Among the many valuable learning resources on the Internet are Bridgebase Online’s Vugraph broadcasts of major tournaments. A free login gives you a play-by-play view of high-level bridge, often with expert commentary and tips for improving your game.
You may also witness major blunders. Championships have been decided by bidding and play errors that you swear you’d never make. More than 500 online kibitzers once saw a world champion miscount trumps.
It’s heartening to see that elite players make mistakes, too, but theirs tend to occur under especially trying circumstances. Teams in the finals of some championships have been playing up to 60 boards a day for two solid weeks. Even with sit-outs, that schedule drains their physical and mental energy.
Bridge is called a sedentary pastime, but it can be hard work. A Cleveland Clinic research team compared 41 bridge players at the beginning and end of one tournament session with a dozen surgeons before and after difficult operations lasting up to eight hours. By measuring changes in perspiration, heartbeat and blood pressure, the study concluded that the bridge players were under decidedly greater strain.
Fatigue is the greatest enemy of concentration. Your stamina is dependent in part on age and physical condition, but there are techniques that can boost your physical and mental energy. Here are some recommended by scientists and successful bridge players:
Food and drink. An infusion of caffeine or sugar may improve your staying power during a session. Before playing, though, it’s best to eat light. After a big meal, blood flow is directed to your stomach to digest food instead of to your brain to solve bridge problems.
Oxygen. Most people breathe shallowly when they feel tense. Taking a few long, slow breaths – deep enough to make your stomach expand -- will force more oxygen into your cells. The result is a slower heart rate, lower blood pressure and improved circulation.
Movement. Your brain equates being seated to being stuck and responds by restricting energy. If you’re sitting North-South or playing a long team match, try to get up and move every half hour or so. Stretching or taking a short walk around the table will tell your brain you’re still mobile.
Temperature. A frequent complaint at tournaments is that the playing area is too cold. That’s actually a boon for mental function, though, because your brain reduces its output as your body temperature rises. If you’re instead playing in a room that’s too warm -- or if you just need a quick pick-me-up -- try putting your hands and wrists under cold water for a few seconds. According to neuropsychologist Roy Sugarman, this tells your brain that your body is fully cooled, which will release about 15 minutes’ worth of extra energy.
Posture. A young player at our club was describing a tournament site to a newcomer: “Rows of square tables, lots of lima beans in the chairs.” Take a look at seated players the next time you play and you’ll see how fitting his picture was.
Bridge players tend to slump in their chairs, with their backs rounded and heads down. That’s the worst posture for staying alert because it impedes blood circulation to the brain. It also adds to fatigue because every inch your head tilts forward doubles the weight your neck has to support.
To ease that strain and stay mentally sharp, try to keep your back straight, shoulders squared and head held high and straight above your neck. Hold your cards at chest level. This posture opens the chest cavity and increases oxygen intake by as much as 30 percent.
Awareness. Remember that mental activity can be tiring and learn to recognize signs of fatigue. And the next time someone claims to be exhausted from physical exercise, be ready to reply, “Yeah? Well, I just played 26 hands of bridge.”
© 2017 Karen Walker