Help managing heartrate (3 Viewers)

[upNdown]

I saw an interview with Dnegs yesterday, where he addressed that issue we’ve mentioned, where the heart races when you have the nuts and when you’re bluffing. He credited fedor holtz with this theory - he said fedor said yeah, their heart races whether they have the nuts or they’re bluffing, but he said that if you wait and watch, when they have it, they’ll relax and their pulse will settle. But when they’re bluffing, it keeps racing.

 

[Dbxela]

I actually have an idea for a poker tournament where everyone has to start on a treadmill and finish 7 miles at a minimum speed. The faster you complete it, the sooner you can sit down and fully focus on poker, but those running faster maybe at a temporary disadvantage.

How about some intense activity when its your turn to act? I reckon there'd be less tanking!

 

[Moxie Mike]

My heart rate if in a hand always rises and I cannot figure out how to relax and keep it down. If we are in a pot, it’s going to rise until it gets crazy high and stay there until hand is over. Bluffing, nuts, easy spot, hard spot, low stakes, high stakes, it doesn’t matter. And I don’t know if it’s just me being aware of it and noticing it more, but it really seems to be getting worse.

Any and all advice is welcome. Ive been trying some things, but only thing thats working is beer and would be good to have a couple backup options. Really want to solve this before WSOP

Just saw this. I read through the thread and I didn't see if anyone asked you this:

Do you have a history of anxiety attacks or panic disorders?

It sounds like this is an anxiety response to stress related to risk. In many cases, alcohol and caffeine are not your friends. MJ might help - depends on your personality but it might affect your decision making. It is a big no for me personally.

Recognizing that this is a stress trigger is the first step. It may be a psychological thing - are you playing at stakes that are going to significantly affect your life if you win or lose? I.E. are you going to miss a car payment if you get felted at the cash table? It doesn't have to be that extreme - it could be the reaction of your significant other when you tell them you donked off $xxx on a bad night.

I went through something similar in my 20s. I once even had an anxiety attack at a friend's place after losing a hand and I actually passed out at the table.

Since then, I've developed a more melancholy approach at the table. I don't get very excited about big wins and I take losses in stride. Even in big hands with a lot on the line, I don't get much of an adrenaline hit either way. It's probably that I've been playing for so long and seen basically every possible situation so many times that I've reached the point where the deck's going to do what the deck's going to do.