Training Specificity in Poker

Whether or not we decide to engage in the discussion about the place of poker in the world and whether or not we choose to call it a sport, it's hard to deny that the path to getting good at playing cards somewhat echoes the path to getting good at lifting heavy weights of the floor or kicking the ball for 90 minutes in a certain direction. While calling poker players 'athletes' might be pushing the term a bit, there are certainly some parallels, namely the fact that training is an absolutely essential part of poker lifestyle.

We all watch coaching videos, read strategy articles, analyze our databases, engage in discussions about strategy within study groups etc. etc. The type of poker training we choose to engage in can either provide us with a solid amount of edge over the opposition or cause us to run in place doing something that might look good on the surface, but isn't really applicable to our situation.

Principle of Specificity in Sports Training

Specificity is the principle of training that states that sports training should be relevant and appropriate to the sport for which the individual is training in order to produce a training effect."

According to the principle, training should go from highly general (to build fundamentals when the level of player skill is relatively low) to highly specific (to maximize the acquisition of skill for competent players). Lastly, to become good at a certain exercise or skill you must perform that exercise or use that skill.

With the theory out of the way let's look at a few simple examples of the specificity of training in action. If you're a powerlifter and you want to get good at deadlifting, squatting and bench pressing you might start with a general strength training routine (to build fundamentals), and then transition to a specific training program focused on those three movements using adequate volume to ensure progress. If you want to get good at cycling you shouldn't be deadlifting 400 pounds in the gym but rather follow a cardio routine and of course - cycle. This might seem very obvious and intuitive, but we live in a world that's full of distractions and constant innovations.

Specificity of Training in Poker

Poker isn't free of the phenomena described above. With so many training materials available to us we often feel confused about which one are best suited to our particular needs. The good news is that at the beginning of your poker journey almost every training method will help you develop your skills.

According to the principle of training specificity, general training is best suited for the stage when your skill level is relatively low. Learning about the basics of poker math like odds and outs combined with a good dose of coaching videos and hand discussion can make almost anyone into a somewhat competent poker player in a very small amount of time. Unfortunately, many beginners fall into a trap of tackling very specific subjects like game theory, advanced statistics, three and four-bet game etc. way too early into their development effectively stunting it.

Another cardinal sin that many poker players are guilty off is the lack of balance between training outside and at the poker table. There's no way around it, in order to become good at poker, you have to play a lot of poker. Some players forget about that, they find enjoyment in learning the theoretical principles but due to the lack of experience, they find the act of putting those principles into action overwhelming and intimidating.

Poker is very volatile. The existence of luck factor makes it difficult to correctly evaluate our actual skill level. Even great and experienced players can fall victim to long break even and downswing stretches which can cause them to question their level of competence. On the other hand, lack of play experience makes the negative reactions to the manifestation of variance much more likely.

Now that we've established that playing poker is absolutely essential to your development let's get back to the realm of theory for a second. Here's a list of popular poker training methods combined with the ideal application based on your skill level:

• Coaching Session Videos - very useful for beginners, moderately useful for intermediates, somewhat useful for advanced players.
• Concept Videos - moderately useful for beginners, very useful for intermediates, moderately useful for advanced players.
• Line Check Analysis - very useful for beginners, very useful for intermediates, somewhat useful for advanced players.
• Sweat Sessions - very useful for beginners, moderately useful for intermediates, somewhat useful for advanced players.
• Database Analysis - somewhat useful for beginners, very useful for intermediates, very useful for advanced players.
• Work With Poker Software (Flopzilla, PioSolver, PokerSnowie) - not useful for beginners, somewhat useful for intermediates, very useful for advanced players.

Thinking Outside the Box

The principle of specificity in sports training is a great example of why poker players shouldn't close themselves to the ideas from outside of the poker world. Other fields like sports science or psychology are often much more developed than the knowledgebase poker community managed to gather over the years.

While you can't learn what range to 3bet with against an aggressive button opener from a psychology book and you won't learn how to plug that river cbet leak that's been bothering you from an article about time management, both of these sources can provide you with tools and ideas necessary for developing as a poker player.  

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