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Can you power through burnout?

Paul CaintPaul Caint Alum Member ⭐
in General 3521 karma

I've gotten to the point where I'm just drilling and taking PrepTests now. Ambitiously I've tried to do 1 per day, but I've quickly realized this has diminishing returns. After the 3rd or 4th consecutive day of taking PrepTests, my scores begin to drop significantly (like a difference of minus 4-5 questions on proceeding PrepTests).

I can tell when my mind is burnt out too - I may have to read a stimulus multiple times and it often feels like I'm just intuitively picking answers instead of reasoning through them. I'll often miss questions because of a silly reading error. After a day or two of rest, my score is back up to where it was initially.

My question is, does this phenomena ever end? Have any of you been able to take a PrepTest every day with no diminishing returns? And if so, what strategies did you employ?

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  • Victoria14Victoria14 Alum Member
    776 karma

    Yeah, it's really hard to do a PT every day and not essentially break. I recommend 3-4 a week at a max. It's just too much for anyone in all honesty. Take a BREAK! If you are burning out this badly, take the rest of today and tomorrow off. Do something fun and mind numbing. You brain needs recovery time. I wouldn't do more then a PT every other day and use the in-between day to drill problem zones and review. If you finish up early, then be done.

  • AlexAlex Alum Member ⭐
    23929 karma

    @pcainti said:
    I've gotten to the point where I'm just drilling and taking PrepTests now. Ambitiously I've tried to do 1 per day, but I've quickly realized this has diminishing returns. After the 3rd or 4th consecutive day of taking PrepTests, my scores begin to drop significantly (like a difference of minus 4-5 questions on proceeding PrepTests).

    I can tell when my mind is burnt out too - I may have to read a stimulus multiple times and it often feels like I'm just intuitively picking answers instead of reasoning through them. I'll often miss questions because of a silly reading error. After a day or two of rest, my score is back up to where it was initially.

    My question is, does this phenomena ever end? Have any of you been able to take a PrepTest every day with no diminishing returns? And if so, what strategies did you employ?

    A test a day I think is an objectively bad idea. I think it was JY who once aptly likened PTs to X-rays. Getting x-ray's of a broken bone won't help it heal any faster... And taking a PT per day won't really help you become better at this test. You need to take what you learn about your skills from the PT and then BR, review, and drill weak areas. Also, doing a test a day is probably a good way to not only burn yourself out, but burn through the finite number of fresh PTs you have left. Best case scenario you're just going to keep hitting diminishing returns. Worse case you'll burn yourself out to the point where you'll need weeks off just to recover.

    As far as powering through burn out, I just don't think there's anyway to remedy such a problem unless one takes a break. Adrenaline will only carry you so far before you crash. Take @Victoria14 's great advice and take a break and schedule your PTs such that you only take them when you've done all you can to improve on the weaknesses of your last PT. I find this usually means taking 1-2 a week and spending more time doing review and timed sections.

  • LSATcantwinLSATcantwin Alum Member Sage ⭐
    13286 karma

    Let yourself rest. I was exactly like you, I pushed hard and figured I could do it. I saw score drops, and my confidence dropped and I felt defeated. I came here asking questions and @"Alex Divine" and @"Cant Get Right" as well as a few others told me to slow my roll and take a break. I listened, and came back stronger than I have ever been before on the LSAT. I am pushing the 170 mark after weeks of being stuck in the mid 160's. I owe this to hard work and dedication, but also to listening to people who have experience.

    Breaks are important, a PT every day is excessive. You should be trying to shoot for 1-2 a week with intense review of the test to see what you got wrong. The question isn't "can I push through burn out?"

    The question is "should I push through burnout?"

    And I think the answer is no. Read a book, breath, relax, play a game, go see a movie! Treat yo self!

  • Freddy_DFreddy_D Alum Member ⭐
    2983 karma

    Can you power through burnout? probably. Should you? probably not. I think the costs outweigh the benefits. Take a break and let your mind rest. The test will still be there when you are ready to return.

  • Paul CaintPaul Caint Alum Member ⭐
    3521 karma

    Thanks all. I guess I've always looked at studying as "more is better," but the LSAT doesn't take kindly to this approach.

    I've never experienced this kind of mental fatigue from studying before. The LSAT is an unkind beast :'(

  • LSATcantwinLSATcantwin Alum Member Sage ⭐
    13286 karma

    @"Paul Caint" said:
    Thanks all. I guess I've always looked at studying as "more is better," but the LSAT doesn't take kindly to this approach.

    I've never experienced this kind of mental fatigue from studying before. The LSAT is an unkind beast :'(

    Yeah but once you tame it, you'll be one of the coolest kids around.

    the LSAT is my legendary Pokemon...

    http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view4/3139814/legendary-pokemon-o.gif

  • Victoria14Victoria14 Alum Member
    776 karma

    the LSAT is my legendary Pokemon...

    http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view4/3139814/legendary-pokemon-o.gif

    @LSATcantwin Bless you

  • TheMikeyTheMikey Alum Member
    4196 karma

    you can, I have done it in the past, but it's so much better to just take a break.. trust me

  • Seeking PerfectionSeeking Perfection Alum Member
    4423 karma

    I took 8 PT's between the last two Wednesdays. I took 2 Wednesday, 2 Saturday, 2 Monday, 2 Tuesday, and 2 Wednesday.
    I generally take two PT's back to back for a variety of reasons, but it might also provide rest days when pushing the pace on PTs.

    There was no drop in my scores at all (they fluctuated from 174 to 179 fairly randomly). That said, it was a struggle to blind review all of them. I only did it because I don't have time for a full PT this week and needed new logic games to fool proof without wasting untaken tests. The rests built in might have helped avoid burn out.

    I prepared for my first LSAT (a 172 in February) by taking as many PT's as I could the three weeks before (though I had oral surgery unexpectedly midway through that period so some of this study was in a relaxed narcotics induced state). I did at least 30 PT's and hit one point below my average on the last ten on the real thing.

    I imagine you can PT at least 7 times a week for a few weeks and not burn out. I also believe you can probably push through burn out (though I have never felt it as acutely as you describe it, possibly since I have always wound up working in some sort of break.)

    But I also imagine you could get burnt out trying to PT more frequently than you are comfortable with, could get lazy with blind review, or could fail to push through the burn out and walk into the real test exhausted.

    After the couple day break only doing games I am on right now, I am going to study hard until I go back to school and then slow things down for the last two weeks before the test finishing up the last few PT's I'll have left.

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