[pclayton]

Just got back from a week of intense bridge.

What happens to your weight during 7-10 days of a tournament? Do you gain weight or lose weight? How much?

[scoob]

i lose a ton - my sleep is reduced to 2-3 hours and my diet is reduced to only things i can ingest via a straw, preferably with a high alcohol content

[han]

I probably gained some weight, not sure. I didn't play any sports and ate restaurant food, some of dubious quality. Also a lot of snacks.

[jdonn]

I usually come home with a huge headache due to random eating/sleeping habits from the tournament, and I get a cold immediately after the tournament about 2/3 of the time, probably from holding the cards touched by so many people.

[keylime]

I go out and eat every night too, but I have been using the exercise room after the evening play to relax and get some work in.

The food here has been quite good and is a strength of this NABC; there are MANY places within 4 blocks radius to eat.

[barmar]

I don't weigh myself, but it always feels like I've gained at NABCs. Like everyone else, I go out to eat big dinners every night, but at home my dinners are mostly lighter. And I also usually get a cold -- my theory is the same as Josh's.

I bring my gym clothes, but I rarely get myself into the gym. At home I go to aerobics classes, I hate just walking on the treadmill for an hour....

[pclayton]

I lost almost 4 pounds.

A typical schedule would be:

--Wake up at 10-10:30

--Eat late breakfast / early lunch (but twice I skipped, don't ask me why)

--Play from 1:00 - 5:00 / 5:30. I like to bring a Clif bar to sessions to munch on every hour or so - this tends to regulate my blood sugar nicely, so I don't get hungry or light-headed.

--Light dinner, no booze

--Play from 7:30 - 11:30 / 12

--Have the ACBL freebie (hot dog / cheese, whatever) and a few drinks.

-- Crash at 1 or 2

-- and Repeat.

When I got home on Thursday, I slept for 4 hours in the afternoon, and then 12 hours that night. My sleep cycle is back to normal.

Fortunately, I don't think I've ever got sick at or after a tourney.

[pclayton]

keylime, on Jul 27 2007, 08:45 PM, said:

I go out and eat every night too, but I have been using the exercise room after the evening play to relax and get some work in.

The food here has been quite good and is a strength of this NABC; there are MANY places within 4 blocks radius to eat.

I won't exercise during tourneys. I did once and my mental performance suffered.

[pclayton]

Jlall, on Jul 28 2007, 08:09 AM, said:

If one drank a lot that may contribute to their weight gain, hypothetically of course

Ask Skank about that.

[TimG]

pclayton, on Jul 28 2007, 11:05 AM, said:

I won't exercise during tourneys. I did once and my mental performance suffered.

I've found the opposite. I think a moderate amount of exercise for the body does good things for the mind.

I've also found that my eating habits are often better during a bridge tournament. I think I do less snacking and am less likely to have a big, heavy meal in the evening because a big meal might make me more likely to be drowsy in the middle of the evening session. Those midnight offerings can be a problem, though.

I'd write more, but I hear the kitchen calling...

[mr1303]

Mine always used to go up. Not sure how much, but I always felt unhealthy afterwards.

That's why I don't play these events any more.

[keylime]

The other benefit for me in working out after the play concluded, was to prep the body for sleep - otherwise I lay in bed until 3AM going through all of my errors.

After the tourney I have to watch myself wandering over to the dessert section...

[pclayton]

keylime, on Jul 30 2007, 07:34 AM, said:

The other benefit for me in working out after the play concluded, was to prep the body for sleep - otherwise I lay in bed until 3AM going through all of my errors.

After the tourney I have to watch myself wandering over to the dessert section...

Going over the hands in your head is inevitable. Reading helps me sleep but yoga works best.

[keylime]

If I read something it only creates more brain activity - I spent quite a bit of time on that treadmill listening to music on my keylime colored iPod with Gypsy Kings or Kylie Minogue.

I had a couple of late nights trying to purge all the hands from my psyche...

[DJNeill]

Hey,
My weight doesn't change much. It might go down temporarily if I didn't stay hydrated - caffeine and heat will drop me 8 pounds of water weight. I would gain a few pounds of fat if I ate out all week, but that's true anywhere for me. I don't play enough bridge to fidget off pounds when I go to tournaments. Sontag I would imagine gets a workout when he's gyrating, waiting for the other 3 slowpokes to play.

Thanks,
Dan

[mikeh]

I don't travel much anymore, but historically it depended on my attitude to the tournament.

Regionals (I hardly ever go/went to Nationals) were usually 'fun'.. playing exclusively with friends and doing a lot of partying and eating at least two excellent meals. So I think I would be a net gainer. As I got older, and as I struck up a couple of serious partnerships, this lessened and I probably break even.

Serious events... the Canadian Team Trials or the few times I played internationally, are more like 'work' for me: I am very disciplined: no alcohol during the day and at most a couole of beer or glasses of wine at the end, to slow my mind down. Healthy, light meals... little meat... at least one or two pieces of fruit during the playing session, to keep the blood sugar stable, and lots of water.

Add to that an inability to sleep well, and a lot of nervous tension, and my estimate is that I'd lose about 5 lbs over the course of 7 days.

No vigorous exercise, even if the tournie happened during one of those periods in my life where I otherwise work out.. but I make sure to go for walks, especially if playing 6 handed and thus sitting out on occasion. The walks are to try to get my body a little exercise to help with the sleep problem... tired brain, rested body is not good.

[Apollo81]

I play better when I am hungry, so I usually lose weight at tourneys since I try not to eat much. I know this is the exact opposite for some people.

[han]

You play better when you are hungry? That's very interesting.

I'm willing to believe that you play well when you are slightly hungry, let's call it an appetite. But when you are really hungry, I think your performance would drop dramatically.