I'm going to put myself on a small chess training program. I will try to post updates here. It might be interesting to some inexperienced players to see how a Chess Master trains.
One thing that I have learned is that it is a good idea to set a reasonable goal when it comes to the time spent on studying. In my opinion it is always best to start with a small study/time goal. I will try to study 2 hours a week (this is a very lazy regime) and if it is too easy I will add more time. Considering that I haven't really done any studying at all in the last year, this is a big improvement over studying zero hours a week.
When I say study, I do not include playing. I play a lot on the internet. This is good practice, but it will only help someone of my level to a certain point. I do count analysis of games that I play as study though. For example, I will play my favorite openings in a blitz game. If someone plays an unusual move I will review it in Chessbase to find what the best response is for future reference.
I plan on studying mainly endgames. Most players find endgame the most difficult thing to study. Hoever, most GMs and IMs will suggest that study in this area is the most important for long term results. Chess players enjoy studying the openings. The reason why is because they can see immediate results. They can learn an opening, then go out and play it the same day. If they memorized a series of moves and play it correctly in a game, this is very satisfying! People also like to study tactics, because it is somewhat enjoyable to search for the answer then solve it correctly. Tactical puzzle solving brings the same enjoyment found in Sudoku puzzles, crosswords, wordsearches, and other logic games. Endgames, in my personal opinion, are the most boring thing to study in chess. There is no immediate gratification. If I master a certain rook ending, it is possible that I will never see it during a game in my whole life. But nonetheless, endgame study will help the player understand chess better, and that is the goal of studying.
I plan to work with one of my old coaches that helped me when I was a junior, International Master Ben Finegold. It is not only important to find a strong coach, but someone that you work well with. I have known Ben since I was a little kid, so I have a good student/coach relationship with him. He is very honest when it comes to telling me my weaknesses. Many coaches try to feed their student's ego too much. Also the fact that he is willing and able to work with me over the phone and internet is a big plus.
