5 proven techniques to help you study poker charts

At BBZ, we’re constantly updating our range of Charts so you have access to everything you need to become a consistently winning player.

We know that studying poker can be daunting, but nobody expects you to simply memorize countless charts at once. Studying poker effectively is about taking things one spot at a time.

That being said, there are ways you can improve your ability to retain what you learn through poker study and put it to use during your sessions. Whether you’re grinding through ranges, reviewing hand histories, or watching Daily Seminars, these techniques will help the information stick.

Here are five proven techniques that will help you study poker more effectively and improve your results at the table.

Prioritize your sleep

Getting a good night’s sleep can be difficult for poker players. You can never be sure how long a tournament will run for and that can often mean sessions run well into the early morning hours. But it remains essential, particularly when it comes to studying poker effectively.

Sleep resets our brains and recharges our ability to learn and store new information. You could study poker ranges for two hours a day, but if you’re sleep-deprived, it’s going to be difficult for that information to be retained in your memory.

Some poker players choose to study after their sessions, which means staying up even later. While it works for some, it can be detrimental to others. Research has shown that the first half of the night contains the deepest sleep, and this is when the brain consolidates facts, figures, and new information. This is retention territory, and without it, you’ll be foggier the next day on those basic facts you studied.

So how can you ensure you switch off after a late poker session? Your best bet is to take a warm (not hot) shower to help your body reach an ideal temperature for sleep, get away from all screens, and instead read a book or listen to a podcast to help relax your mind.

To improve your poker study retention, you could also try taking naps immediately after studying. Researchers have found that taking a short power nap of 45 to 60 minutes immediately after learning something new can significantly boost your memory. Imagine how many ranges you’d have memorized!

Get your body moving

You don’t need yet another lecture about why regular exercise is good for you. But when it comes to studying poker and retaining what you’ve learned, exercise really is crucial.

Our brains demand a healthy flow of oxygen-rich blood in order to function and there’s no better way of supplying it than with exercise. It’s also massively beneficial to memory. Researchers at the National Institute on Aging found strong links between aerobic exercise like running and improved memory. Exercise triggers high levels of a protein called cathepsin B, which travels to the brain to trigger neuron growth and new connections in the hippocampus, an area believed to be critical for memory.

But when’s the best time for poker players to exercise? According to the studies, that would be around four hours after you’ve studied. So ideally you could watch a seminar and study some ranges, go about your daily business, then do some exercise before firing up a session.

There’s a reason elite poker players like Jordan “bigbluffzinc” Drummond and Jason Koon always seem to know the correct plays. They exercise regularly and study hard, and therefore have ranges and bet sizes stored in their brains.

Take written notes

The next time you settle in for a poker study session or a seminar, have a notepad and pen handy. It might seem old school considering you’re already sitting at your computer, but studies show that we’re more likely to remember things we write down by hand as opposed to typing them out.

But why is this? There are several reasons, as Zapier explains. The physical act of writing stimulates cells at the base of your brain called the reticular activating system (RAS). When the RAS is triggered, your brain pays more attention to what you’re doing at the moment. When you’re writing by hand, your brain is more active in forming each letter, compared to typing on a keyboard where each letter is represented by identical keys.

Research has also shown that when people take notes on their laptops, they tend to transcribe lectures word for word. When taking notes by hand, we tend to reframe the information in our own words, which is a more active kind of learning. So the next time you’re reviewing a hand history or watching a coaching video, grab a pen and write down the key takeaways.

Spaced repetition

Have you ever studied a particular spot or chart for an hour or two, then the next day realized you’ve forgotten the info you need mid-session? It’s frustrating and shows that poker players have to actively work on retaining what they’ve learned.

One way experts say we can improve our memories is through spaced repetition. The Spaced Repetition System (SRS) is “a to-do list that changes according to your performance,” according to Gabriel Wyner, an expert in learning languages. In terms of poker study, that means taking short intervals between studying particular ranges or spots.

Let’s say you watched a video from the BBZ Bundle on big blind play and then studied big blind ranges for an hour. Then the next day you play a session and find yourself more comfortable playing in the big blind. Every time you successfully remember what you’ve learned, you can increase the interval until you study big blind play again.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t study poker as much as you can. It just means you should switch up the topics you’re studying. “This pattern keeps you working on your weakest memories while maintaining and deepening your strongest memories,” Wyner writes in his book Fluent Forever. “Regular practice creates an equilibrium between old and new.”

Share what you’ve learned

“A lot of my studying is done when I’m coaching, especially when I’m coaching higher-level guys,” says BBZ. “There are a lot of sims involved. While I’m coaching I’m learning, even if I’m preparing the session. A lot of times I’ll be running a sim for someone else and I’ll notice something new and explore it.”

BBZ isn’t alone in this. They say the best way to learn something is by teaching others, and that’s particularly true in poker study.

Obviously, we’re not saying you should all become poker coaches. But what you could do after a productive study session is share what you’ve learned in the BBZ Discord. That way you can discuss spots with other members of the community and you’ll be more likely to remember the material yourself.

It’s called The Protege Effect: when people prepare to teach, they organize their knowledge, improving their own understanding and recall. And as they explain the information to others, they identify gaps in their own thinking. A 2009 study found that students engaged in instructing others spent more time going over the material and learned it more thoroughly.

So make sure you’re signed up to the BBZ Discord. You won’t find a more supportive poker community anywhere else.