ITH Poker Forum

[AntonDrake]

The book goes into a lot of detail about the emotions and the physiological implications of tilt.

check out channel pokerisometrics on youtube if you are interested, I'd be open to having a further
discussion on this topic, especially as regards what I will frivolously call the William James/Joseph Ledoux model
of emotion, and related concepts.

[TheGShark]

Hmm. I suspect you would also make some new friends. Particularly if you look like her. And you may have just as much a chance as putting others on tilt.

I'm not sure you're going to get many dudes doing these at the poker table, regardless. But I'm willing to be proven wrong.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeBR32Lgy5Q

What's the sound in the background?

[AntonDrake]

Hmm. I suspect you would also make some new friends. Particularly if you look like her. And you may have just as much a chance as putting others on tilt.

I'm not sure you're going to get many dudes doing these at the poker table, regardless. But I'm willing to be proven wrong.

What's the sound in the background?

Well, the sound in the background is the custom-mixed soundtrack, actually...

Yeah, the idea isn't that players will do isometrics *constantly* at the table, or try to get in an epic, sweaty workout at the table while they're playing--this book has never been marketed as "get totally ripped in 20 days playing poker" or "lose 20 lbs or fat and gain 20 lbs of muscle in one month playing poker" or anything like that.

The core idea of the book is that, even though we're poker players and are largely "up in our heads", so to speak, we also have physical bodies, and the reality is that if you're playing poker 10 hours a day, or whatever, then you need to realize that your body is basically just parked during that 10 hours. The book gives you a new set of tools that you can use, not constantly, but just now and then, to kind of get the blood flowing, pump up a bit, shake yourself off tilt, get grounded and re-connected to your physical body, and burn up some of the fight or flight stress hormones in your bloodstream, which are the hormones that can make sedentary activities such killers over the long run.

If you've ever taken a really bad beat for a big pot, and/or started to lose your temper with an opponent at the table, and/or started to get rattled at the table, using some of these techniques can make a HUGE difference, both health-wise and in terms of staying off tilt.

Virtually 100% of all the materials I've read on "tilt control", mindset, staying off tilt, etc tend to focus on two factors--the first is what I would call psychological factors, and the other is behavioral factors. The psychological factors are generally a type of reframing--change your thinking, so that a "bad beat" becomes just an expected downturn in your short-term expectation because of random variance; a losing session is just a standard dip in your long-term upward expectation graph, etc. In other words, reframing your mental approach to poker to focus on longterm expectation and to attenuate some of the emotional stress and upheaval associated with bad outcomes. The behavioral factors are desirable patterns of behavior which can be recommended for most players--if you notice you are playing bad, stop playing. If you are way behind and chasing, or getting outplayed, or tired, or upset, or feel that your at a disadvantage, stop playing. Etc.

In dealing with Tilt proper, however, what seems to never get mentioned is that Tilt is an emotional reaction, and that emotions occur in the body. An emotion is essentially just your mental state as the body goes through a physical response of some sort; William James talks about the man being afraid BECAUSE he is running from the bear, rather than running from the bear because he is afraid. Emotions happen much quicker than we can make sense of situations on a verbal/mental level, and the emotion turns out to be just your mental feeling as your body responds to either pleasant or unpleasant stimuli. Tilt is oftentimes the result of an avalanche of stress, as well as a kind of muffled rage that is in effect stewing inside a player as he sits, silent and inscrutable at the table, bundled up in hoodies and sunglasses... So cool on the outside, but on the inside an emotional basket-case. Fear, anger and disappointment, especially where significant financial pressure and (possibly) gambling addiction are present, can be absolutely brutal emotionally.

So... having an extra set of tools in your toolbox, which can allow you to burn off some stress at crucial moments, can be very valuable. And healthy. And of course, becoming more health-conscious and body-aware in general will potentially add productive years to anybody's career.