How to improve at chess? USCF rating increases 300pts in 1 year – here’s how

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How to improve at chess? This is a question we all ask ourselves at one point or another. It’s the reason why I read all the science there is on Chess and started Chessable!

Recently, I got news that one of our users made some remarkable improvement, 300 over the board points in one single year. I got in touch with him to find out a bit more about it.

How to improve at chess? GermanMC has gained 300 USCF points in one year.
How to improve at chess? GermanMC has gained 300 USCF points in one year

GermanMC is not only one of our power users, but he has also made his opening repertoires available on Chessable for anyone to use. Some are free, and some, cost a few dollars. His top book is on the Ruy Lopez, it’s free and has been studied by an impressive 1,238 people!

He has learned 764 variations with a modest maximum daily streak of 9 (there are some who have kept a streak for over a year).

I’ve tried to keep the questions similar to previous chess improvement interviews so as to stick to a familiar theme. Now, let’s find out a few more insights on how to improve at chess, here we go!

1) You have improved around 300 USCF points in a year of tournament chess since joining Chessable, that’s impressive, how do you feel?

Improvement is very satisfying of course, but it also makes me feel hungry for more knowledge and improvement. It’s really nice to live in an age abundant with brilliant resources like Chessable; all I have to do is open up my laptop and get to work.

2) A lot of work must have gone into this, and your game must have improved all around for such a brilliant change. Let’s break it down, how have you improved your chess openings?

Over this past year, I have become much more familiar with the typical plans in my openings as well as the “theory” moves. I often understand how to handle the positions that I get out of the opening better than my opponents, which has allowed me to win many easy games against strong players. Chessable has been a key contributor to this aspect of my game because so many of the available repertoire books contain very high-quality instruction and allow me to easily review lines

3) Which openings do you play (if you don’t mind sharing!)?

My style has changed a lot over this past year as I have become a stronger player. As Black, I like to play the Najdorf against 1.e4 and the Benko Gambit against 1.d4 because I always seem to get fighting positions that are interesting to play. As White, I enjoy playing 1.d4 and going for Catalan-type structures with a later Kingside-fianchetto (spoiler alert – this will be the topic of my next Chessable book).

4) How have you improved your middle game?

The middlegame is probably the most critical stage of the game because it is where most games are decided at the amateur level. I personally have improved my middlegame significantly by obtaining a better understanding of the plans out of my favorite openings, as I mentioned earlier. Working daily with an online tactics trainer has also improved my middlegame play a lot. Other than that, I recently got started with Jeremy Silman’s How to Reassess Your Chess, which I find to be a very enjoyable read.

5) What about your endgame, have you worked on that at all?

I have to admit that I have slacked off a bit in my endgame study, but I have taken the time to learn a few basic king and pawn endgames as well as some rook endgames. John Bartholomew has some great videos on his Youtube channel about various essential endgames that I find very instructive!

6) You gained over 1,000,000 points on Chessable, that’s pretty impressive. What would be your tips to new Chessable users about how to get the most out of the platform?

My biggest tip to new users would be to develop a “Chessable routine.” To get the most out of the platform, it is important to do smaller (but daily!) review sessions rather than reviewing a very large quantity of lines every few weeks.

7) What would you personally like to see improved on Chessable?

I think the user interface could be improved a bit, but it seems to be getting better almost every time I log on!

8) What’s next for you? Any new goals? Ideas on how to improve at chess?

I have my eyes set on 2200, which is when the National Master title is given here in the United States. It would be great to reach that goal sometime in 2018. I would also love to play in some international tournaments when I happen to be in Europe so that I can increase my FIDE rating, but that’s more of a long-term goal.

Thanks GermanMC!

It’s very inspiring and motivating to hear of your chess improvement.  I am sure many of our readers, including myself, will take a tip or two away from your experience and apply it to our own game. Best of luck on the road to 2,200 and see you on the leaderboards! Personally, I am aiming for 2,000 FIDE this year, which right now, seems a long way away, a long way away!

So, how to improve your chess?

In summary, it involves a lot work (1,000,000 points don’t come easy!), habitual study, and a balance between knowing chess openings and understanding the middle game concepts that are relevant to that chess theory.

A bit more about GermanMC:

GermanMC is a chess player who is also a student in Austin, Texas. His nickname stems from the fact that he grew up in Munich, Germany. His passion for chess has been highlighted in recent months as he reached his age-groups Top 100 List for the USCF after improving 300 rating points in one year. He spends his free time playing chess tournaments, solving tactics, reading chess books, and of course, creating Chessable chess books.

Courses from GermanMC:

The Open Sicilian: Masterclass Edition

Black vs. Anti-Sicilians – Tournament Edition

Queen’s Indian Defense – Tournament Edition

Nimzo-Indian Defense – Tournament Edition

Ruy Lopez: Masterclass Edition

1.e4 e5!: A Comprehensive Black Repertoire against 1.e4

The Sicilian Dragon – Tournament Edition

Crush the QGD!

The Semi-Slav Defense: Masterclass Edition

1.d4: A Comprehensive White Repertoire

The French Tarrasch: Masterclass Edition

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