Here is my last post. But I could not state my problems in the blog. So, I post this one for getting some advice, suggestion and guideline.
How does one deal with mental fatigue when practicing Competitive Programming?
I am interested in Competitive Programming, but when practicing problems(even the easiest one) intensely after around one hour, my brain starts to get foggy and my mental condition drops to suboptimal levels.
I would wish to continue practicing, but these circumstances force me to take a break. How do people maintain concentration over long periods of time? Is this ability trainable or genetic? (Other than taking illegal drugs like Erdős.)
I know this is a soft question. But I really need to know, since Competitive Programming requires the most mental concentration.
P.S.: I don't know if I enjoy cp much. I enjoy improving through practice. If I see improvement in contest, it gives me pleasure. It is like an addiction to me, "improvement addiction".
can i ask why you are doing cp? personally i stumbled into cp after some cp youtube videos popped up on my youtube recommandation feed and i watched them and it seemed fun. and i was like let me aslo do this thing. and it has been fun for me ever since. i think you should stop doing cp if your brain get foggy or your mental condition drops to suboptimal levels. i dont think you are having any fun doing cp and imo the best time to retire from cp is when it stops being fun. after all cp is meant to be a hobby, and you dont force yourself to do a hobby. some things are just not for some people. you might find some other things that you truly enjoy doing.
but those are just my opinions, and you dont have to follow any of them.
goodluck & have fun!
I think that as you do more CP, the process of thinking will become easier for you and you will have to spend less of your mental energy of a specific problem, which means that overall you will be able to do more problems of a certain level later than now. You can also try virtual contests for improving your concentration. However, I don't think that there is anything necessarily wrong with taking a break. If you feel that the time that you are spending is not the most productive, then it is perfectly fine taking a break (maybe doing exercise or some other activity), and then you can return to practicing. It is the same argument as if you are sleepy, then it is better to take a nap so that when you do actually practice, it is ultimately more productive.
Thanks for your suggestions. But if I take a break, it is hard for me to fix my fogginess early. It takes much time than averge.
Well, you are your own person, and for different people it will be different. What else can you do besides working as hard as you can? Just try your best and see where that takes you.