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 Language Learning Forum : Learning Techniques, Methods & Strategies |  | |
| tricycle Diglot Groupie Germany Joined 5598 days ago 99 posts - 107 votes  Speaks: English*, German Studies: French | Message 1 of 27 26 September 2011 at 12:02am | IP Logged |
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Since renewing my language learning efforts in August (thanks, 6 week challenge!), I've encountered an annoying problem: I sometimes have the time, the will and the motivation to do more, but after a certain amount of time, my brain simply goes on strike.
In general, I've been finding it hard to do more than 3 hours of quality self-study in a single day (two is already a grand achievement). It would be nice if I were capable of doubling that for when both free time and motivation are abundant. Basically, I'd just like to be able to use those occasional free Saturdays a bit more efficiently. For those who are capable of more, do you have any tips or strategies to keep up concentration and avoid mental fatigue? 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| jazzboy.bebop Senior Member Norway norwegianthroughnove Joined 5353 days ago 439 posts - 800 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Norwegian | Message 2 of 27 26 September 2011 at 1:48am | IP Logged |
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Exercise and a good diet make a big difference. Although my diet could still be
improved I have noticed my concentration get much better after a few weeks of doing cardio exercises daily for about 30-45 minutes. Try to eat something every 3-4 hours, this will keep your energy levels more consistent throughout the day. I read an article once that said that the habit of 3 meals a day doesn't really suit the way our bodies work. If you want your metabolism to remain more or less constant and optimise your body's (and brain's) performance then 4 or 5 smaller meals a day is much better. Or have three meals and two large, but healthy, snacks which is what I do. Keeping study times to about 45 minutes long, followed by a break for 10-15 minutes works best for me, though after my second study session I take a longer break of about 25-30 minutes. I find a light jog between study sessions can be beneficial too, it relaxes the mind and gets the blood flowing so when you return your concentration won't plummet too quickly. 8 persons have voted this message useful | |
| dongsen Newbie Taiwan Joined 4744 days ago 30 posts - 44 votes Speaks: English | Message 3 of 27 26 September 2011 at 6:06am | IP Logged |
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Timeboxing is great for this reason. Initially My brain had a hard limit of 2 hours per day total. I started using
timeboxing, 10min on 10-50min off and I was able to study for an entire day. I have since been able to gradually improve the ratio. I now do 13min on 1-2 min off, with a proper break every couple of hours. And as the other poster mentioned, exercise is important, and diet is even more important. Cut out food products that screw with your blood sugar levels, ie a coke and white bread sandwich for lunch makes you feel great for about an hour or so and then you have a massive dip in energy as your insulin levels skyrocket to try and fix the blood sugar levels. The first video on this page helps explain it somewhat: http://www.fathead-movie.com/index.php/2011/09/06/the-swedis h-revolution-glucose-and-cancer/ 4 persons have voted this message useful | |
| jean-luc Senior Member France Joined 4895 days ago 100 posts - 150 votes Speaks: French* Studies: German | Message 4 of 27 26 September 2011 at 9:01am | IP Logged |
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A good sleep is essential.
4 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Jo15 Triglot Newbie United Kingdom Joined 4763 days ago 13 posts - 16 votes Speaks: English*, German, French | Message 5 of 27 26 September 2011 at 10:16am | IP Logged |
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I agree with what has been said, learnt valuable lessons from uni days!
Simple things like going for a walk, fresh air and no coffee also work wonders. But, surely learning a language should be fun and rewarding, not just sat drilling words into memory? So maybe only studying for however long comes naturally will be more beneficial in the long run as you are actually learning and not forcing yourself to sit and study? Personal opinion of course, I've never been the most motivated of people myself. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Andrew Coach Diglot Newbie AustraliaRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 4740 days ago 17 posts - 18 votes Speaks: English, Hungarian | Message 6 of 27 30 September 2011 at 8:13am | IP Logged |
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Having breaks of course is important. But the real reason that these problems set in is ( if you have taken breaks ie)
because what you are doing is boring, is repetitive or is not engaging. So the trick is to learn languages in a way that engages you...in the same way as some people are engaged in video games. Have you heard any one of them complain of what you are talking about? :-) 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Andrew Coach Diglot Newbie AustraliaRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 4740 days ago 17 posts - 18 votes Speaks: English, Hungarian | Message 7 of 27 30 September 2011 at 8:15am | IP Logged |
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We are always motivated when we are with our first love :-)
The reason we lose our motivation is because we have lost the emotional connection with what we are doing. Maybe that's why they say, to find a lover in the new language :-) 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| tricycle Diglot Groupie Germany Joined 5598 days ago 99 posts - 107 votes Speaks: English*, German Studies: French | Message 8 of 27 30 September 2011 at 11:46am | IP Logged |
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Thanks for the input, everyone. My diet and exercise routine have been quite good since getting into fitness and weightlifting earlier this year, but I'm probably guilty on the coffee and sleep fronts.
Timeboxing/pomodori/etc seem like they may be the solution. I experimented a bit earlier this week and was easily able to do about 4 hours in one day. My only problem is that sometimes I'm so "in the zone" that I don't want to stop when the timer goes off! I'm also going to try other things to stay alert such as switching between languages and changing study locations. (I certainly don't want to give the impression that I'm a workaholic who crams all the time, though! For example yesterday I only managed to get in about 40 minutes of French listening.) 1 person has voted this message useful |
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