So.. What is YOUR training regime?

Newbie Saikyo Dojo
1

I have been playing SF4 since vanilla, but I only got down to levelling up my game this last year and a half, with the arrival of my stick. Now that I am separated from my Xbox, I have been thinking about practice etc and the following thought came to mind:

I am usually trying to endlessly grind out the combos I need to learn, staying on that training mode (and session) for hours at a time without interrupting for other game modes. However, after the first non-stop couple of hours of trying to grind out the specific goal for that day I get mentally exhausted, a state that doesn’t leave me even after a large break. So from a point on, I just push myself to train and keep pushing until I finally either do it (after a considerable amount of cursing and threats to throw that stick out the window) or I reach the time I allow for fighting game practice for the day, given all the other stuff I have to do.

So, I kept thinking about it and eventually came here to ask the following: How do you guys train? Do you continuously train for 1-2-3-4 hours a day with breaks, or do you mix it up with a little versus, some SF online games etc?

Thanks for your time,
Cypher.

2

Now i’m no pro, but i was able to jump into ssf4:AE a few days ago, and pick up seth better than when i
had sf4.I’d say play at least 2hrs a day and study other combos and plays.

3

i practice one combo til i can do it without thinking.

4

Play more and you’ll win. Besides practicing certain combos and set-ups in training mode, there is nothing more you should do to get better besides playing actual games against people who are better than you.

5

Thanks for the replies, but my question was about the format of training you use, not how can I win more :stuck_out_tongue: I mean, how do you do it? Do you practice for 5 hours straight without even a bio-break, do you mix your training session up with a couple of games (on/offline) here and there, etc.

6

i’d say train for 3 hrs a day, taking breaks to practice online

7

If you’re brain-fried, stop. Most people don’t learn well when they’re already at saturation.

8

I’ll generally start off by just doing a bit of execution drills. Really simple stuff; varies on which character I’m using. Generally its stuff like using special moves, attack > FADC, and so on. After that I’ll play a couple matches online, like 5 or 6. Just to get warmed up. Then I’ll move back to training mode to practice what I need to: combos (my main in T. Hawk, this one doesn’t happen much), option-selects, situational decisions, etc. Once I’m done with that, I’m either done or I’ll play more online, depending on what my daily goal may be.

As for combo practice. You can practice all you want, as long as you want, but don’t just get something down in a day or two and quit practicing it. Even if you feel like you can do it flawlessly, keep at it for a couple weeks REALLY get it burned into your muscle memory.

9

Wow. Hours a day!!! Sheesh.

This is my routine.
[LIST=1]
[]Turn on PS3 and mobilise my fingers, hands and wrists while I’m waiting for the game to load.
[]I spend about 5mins in training. I just practise one combo and make sure I can do it from the right hand side (my weak side) at least 5 timed in a row.
[]Go to arcade mode and play on hard level. This way the CPU puts up some level of fight, but it leaves itself so I can keep practising my combos while I wait for someone to challenge me.
[]If I get beaten 3 times in a row by a human player, I take a mini break and watch the replays of my fights and try to see what I could’ve done different.
[*]After 30mins to an hr, I go do something else.
[/LIST]
I love this game, but there’s no way I could play for hours a day just training. Gotta play the game to get better! Plus that’s where all the fun is. And I’m playing for fun. It feels good to win, but fun comes first. I figure if I’m still playing at this rate in a years time, then I’ll be an okay player. I can really push players around now that a year ago I wouldn’t stand a chance against, so it’s working. Slowly. But I figure that most players literally have YEARS of practise behind them at street fighter. I’ve only been playing since SSF4 came out. But I consistenly hit at least 30mins a day, with a week off every couple of months to keep myself keen. Then I come to this website and get really motivated to play again.

10

What I do is that I first go into training mode for about 20 mins with my main and 2 subs. Then after I get warmed up with the motions and FADC’s and combos and resets that I know I jump on XBL and play for atleast an hour and then after that hour i go check my replays to see what I can do better to improve my game and I take notes on them and then repeat the process.

11

Basically this. I found it way more helpful to play a bit everyday instead of playing once or twice a week for many hours.

12

I know this guy who goes to the gym 2-3 hours a day 5 days a week. Straight after work for 3 days, and at the weekend.

I’ve explained to him the physiological process of muscle building, myofibrils and the importance that rest has in building muscle. If you go 5 times a week for 3 hours a time you will not build as much as if you would have gone 3 times for one and a half each time. (this varies from person to person, could be one hour, 2 hours, twice a week, this isn’t the point)

The way muscle memory is built is thought to work in the same way. You build neural pathways that allow you to pull things off at command. It builds new strains that will let you achieve a certain repetitive exercise. The brain reacts in a certain way instantaneously because it has had time to build up the memory, it has gotten stronger.

Just like when pumping iron, sleep and rest is very important to allow these processes to finalise. If you play too much doing the same stuff over and over you will probably build up a resistance to it because of psychological factors. Stress, frustration, tiredness, your nerves can tense up etc. You end up messing up, doing the wrong stuff over and over and can theoretically undo your work making it harder for you to achieve the goal you set out.

My advice would be to find a medium of reading, training, implementing. That should be the trinity of improvement in any situatuion.

Read about it, understand it.
Train it, get some muscle memory, understand the practical side in controlled situations.
Attempt to implement it in a game or Vs CPU in training, not under controlled, static situations - (As Ryu) The dude jumps in at you, you want to SRK into FADC into Ultra, you fuck it up. But you are attempting to implement it. That’s the important part. The other two factors will aid the other eventually.

I normally do a few things in training, 3 or 4 combos, play the computer on hardest, attempt to work on FADC into Ultra, do it from both sides etc. Never stick to the same thing.

I train to much, I know that I do. I just love playing, but I only train when I have no one to play against. I play more over train because there are more important things to learn over combos. Zoning, spacing, mind games and execution.

This is my training regime.

Read guides on spacing and my chosen character.
Go train something. Set up a scenario to test when i can Hadouken safely and when I can’t
Play online, get my arse kicked.
Watch replays,
Go play or train.

This might be 90 mins at a time max.

Give it a shot. Mix up your schedule. Never do one thing over and over and over. It’s counter productive.

13

as is with 3s and MvC3, I usually follow this:

  1. while the game loads, I do some wrist rolls, crack my knuckles, and pull back my wrist (just enough to feel the burn, but obv not to the point of hurting yourself) to stimulate blood flow. I do this whenever I warmup for playing guitar and I find it makes my movements more mobile.
  2. hit training mode. do basic motions like QCF, QCB, DP, RDP (this I hate the most), HCB, etc. before jumping onto combos.
  3. practice your character/s’ B&Bs.
  4. this is where I think to myself “what new thing can I work on today?” this can be anything from a new mixup, reset, or combo. I like to learn at least one new thing every training mode session, even if it’s minor such as “my new akuma combo works on most characters except character y because of his/her small hitbox, so I need to use a new TC”.
  5. test out new tech with the dummy first then CPU so you start applying it in a real match situation.
  6. hop online or vs a friend.

also, never forget to keep watching streams and good matches. learning new tech from top players by watching is just as important as playing against a friend for matchup experience, for instance. take breaks, too. you’ll know when you need to stop if you keep messing up on things you shouldn’t be.

14

I found out that any kind of a prolonged training session hurts more than helps. Better to warm up for 3-10 minutes per character, than keep trying for an hour. Of course, this only applies to combos that I know already. If I’m trying to learn something new (or couldn’t implement it into online play yet), it’s a no-brainer to practice/experiment for at least 30 minutes. Also, if I have time to spare, I watch a couple of my last replays; just to point out what mistakes I’ve been doing lately.

15

I spent at least one hour in training mode going over simple BnB combos. This goes for any game, really. If you can jump on and perform simple combos without much thought or effort, then half the battle is already won. Many people I know of constantly form these stupidly absurd, extremely situational combos. Sure, its okay to practice corners and mid-screens, but don’t try to pull off an air H Dankuyaku when the opponent is at the top of his jump arc, then Legendary Taunt into Ultra 2. Also, try to distance yourself from source material. I’m not saying to 100% ignore it, but it is far better to figure out things for yourself. Reading all of your information just makes you regurgitate it rather than memorize it.

The most important thing is to find a friend to compete with. Online play will make you a bad player. A majority of the time, you will probably have a bad connection with a bad player. The worst part about online is that no matter how perfect the match, there will most likely be dropped inputs and frame delay.

16

Viscant would like a word with you, as would Wolfkrone and Latif, who the bulk of their play has come from online.

I train in 3-5 minute intervals on things like combos or general execution while waiting for matches in training mode. I get maybe an hour’s worth of training mode time and 2-3 hours of actual play time in. If there’s a particular setup I want to practice I do that between matches, and then see about the practical applications.

17

^old man viscant has a lot of MvC2 experience though, and those days you either had to play with a friend on Dreamcast or go to the arcade to body some people

18

Viscant has been around for a while. But with Wolfkrone and Latif, I can’t speak for certain, but I bet they do a TON of work in training mode to make up for not playing with a varied scene all too often.

19

The way I practice/learn the game is by going straight to versus mode and playing the CPU on the hardest level.
I only use training mode to improve what I learned in my matches and etc. However, if it’s a new fighting game, I’ll go straight to training mode.

20

I must admit that all of your answers here have given me much to think about! Not being able to practice, I thought I should take a look at the way I train and try to optimize it as much as I can. I can’t spare more than 3 hours a day on training (or 5, depending on the day), so I wanna make the time I got as constructive as possible.