{"id":7298,"date":"2014-03-25T20:23:03","date_gmt":"2014-03-26T03:23:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/maintaining-a-healthy-lifestyle-as-a-league-of-legends-professional\/"},"modified":"2024-01-24T16:37:55","modified_gmt":"2024-01-25T00:37:55","slug":"maintaining-a-healthy-lifestyle-as-a-league-of-legends-professional","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/maintaining-a-healthy-lifestyle-as-a-league-of-legends-professional\/","title":{"rendered":"Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle as a League of Legends Professional"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Brian “i am guitar” Cordry, Player Manager for Evil Geniuses<\/em><\/p>\n

A lot of people work in high-pressure jobs. People working in the financial industry are playing with numbers that can earn (or lose!) them a lot of money. Architects, engineers, and construction workers design and build structures that must support hundreds of thousands of people safely for dozens of years without. Pilots and emergency vehicle personnel have many lives in their hands during transport. All of these professions require their workers to bring their full attention to the job every day and put aside the distractions that might plague them in their personal lives. If you have an ‘off day’ in a high-pressure job, you might be endangering others along with your career.<\/p>\n

Any time you take a job in a field that revolves around competition, you’re also placing yourself in a high-pressure situation. Professional athletes, writers, real estate agents and the like all compete for their points, their publishers, and their customers. If you’re a hardcore (or even casual) online video game player, it’s statistically likely you’re in college – so you might know firsthand what it’s like to be in a competitive environment. To an extent, college students compete with each other for the best grades and for job opportunities upon graduation; falling behind in class can mean less job offers and a smaller chance at a dream job.<\/p>\n

Try to imagine the feeling you get when you have a big test tomorrow (if you do<\/em><\/strong> have a big test tomorrow, stop reading this and go study!). You might feel a number of physical symptoms associated with stress and anxiety: an upset stomach, chest pain, a rapid heartbeat, dry mouth, or shaking hands, to name a few. You might also find yourself experiencing cognitive symptoms like the inability to concentrate (“I’ll just check Facebook again before I continue studying”), extreme pessimism (“There’s no way I can pass this test, I’ll just give up now”), or elevated agitation (“Why won’t those asshole construction workers just let me focus!”). Even if you’re just recalling the feeling of a big exam tomorrow, your body might start to sweat and you’ll feel your pulse rate increase. Stress has that<\/strong> big of an effect on the body!<\/p>\n

I’m sure you see where I’m going with this by now – high-stress environments are hard, and to an extent, can be unhealthy. Pro-gaming, especially the LCS, is the epitome of a competitive, high-pressure job. That feeling you got when you failed your first big test in college or came in late to an important day at work – that is a feeling that LCS players feel every single week. There are few other jobs where you’re forced to compete for your job every week against five other individuals (who are also under a lot of stress) while facing six (or more) months of “unemployment” before you can “reapply.”<\/p>\n

Not only that, but there are very few occupations where your every step is broadcast for the world to see and judge, where passer-byes can be put on an equal platform as you to state their opinions and criticisms. Can you imagine an NBA where every casual YMCA rec-league player could pick up a microphone and tell the entire stadium all of the mistakes that they think LeBron made last week? Can you imagine a Hollywood where every movie was prefaced and followed by a slew of comments by “fans” that ripped into an actor’s character based on their performance? It’s hard to do, isn’t it? These are some of the stresses that pro-gamers face on the weekly.<\/p>\n

I’m painting a pretty bleak picture of the life of an LCS player. Don’t get me wrong, there’s glamour to being a gamer and a celebrated personality that few other professions can capture. I don’t want to imply that many (if any) of the players in the LCS hate their job or wish they were doing something else. But there’s no doubt that most or all of them detest the extremely high levels of stress that they’re subjected to on a regular basis. You can see their breaking points frequently – Voyboy getting sick before LCS matches, Araneae retiring prematurely, dozens of players commenting and complaining on social media. It’s pretty clear that the platforms that fans have to bash on players (Twitter, Reddit, Facebook) combined with the cutthroat nature of the league (relegations) create a pressure cooker of stress that’s just waiting to explode from under the skin of any player.<\/p>\n

So what can players do to counteract this effect? In my eyes, there are two effective methods that anyone in high-stress environments can use to keep themselves sane and healthy. They simply revolve around monitoring two important parts of your life: the first being consumption, the other being activity (both mental and physical).<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

This is going to sound like obvious advice, but making sure that you eat right is a huge step to keeping your focus and concentration. First and foremost, keeping your stomach full<\/strong> is key! Trying to grind the ladder, win scrims, create strategies, and succeed in matches is impossible if you’re starving. When you wake up, make yourself a light and quick meal. Cereal, toast, oatmeal or fruit; there are quick and easy options that can help you start your day off right. Lunch and dinner are typically heavier meals, but there are plenty of options that take a short amount of time to prepare with minimal effort and can provide you with meals for the rest of the week. A slow-cooker plus a slab of meat and some spices can create a couple bowls of stew or enough scrumptious filling to make sandwiches with for several days. I do the majority of the cooking at the EG LoL house, but any of the guys could easily make some simple dinners for everyone as well. In fact, the beauty of living in this day and age is that you can look up recipes online to fit any time or budget constraint \u2013 I’ve got practically an entire cookbook of meals that only take 20 minutes to make.<\/p>\n

Eating enough is important, but eating healthy<\/strong> is equally critical. You might be eating three proper meals per day, but if your meals consist of fast food and boxed noodles, your sedentary lifestyle is going to catch up to you quickly. During times of high stress combined with unhealthy eating, it’s possible to really pack on the pounds, leaving you lethargic and unproductive. Not to mention that non-stop trips to your local take-out restaurant can really impact your wallet. I highly recommend making salads as frequently as possible. Even if you buy pre-cut, bagged lettuce and diced veggies, mix them up and add some lunchmeat (as opposed to buying all your produce whole and preparing it), you are going to be saving a ton of money and avoiding the fats and carbohydrates of fast food. Other simple and healthy meals include chicken and rice, tortilla soup, fruit salad, light noodles, and even plain sandwiches. Knowing what to avoid is half the battle as well. Instead of keeping bags of chips, candies, and crates of soda around the house, stock up on water, handheld fruits (apples and bananas are so easy!), nuts, and pretzels. Avoid the salad dressing and piles of cheese on your burgers.<\/p>\n

Okay, so you’ve managed to fix your bad meal habits \u2013 you’re eating three times a day to keep yourself level and full of energy and you’re not gorging yourself on foods that make you feel bloated or lethargic. The next step is monitoring your activity. It’s important to ask yourself, \u201cWhat am I doing for ‘fun’ outside of my job?\u201d Even in an environment where your ‘job’ is an activity that others might do for enjoyment, too much of it can quickly burn you out. College students especially can relate \u2013 after a few hours of studying, you can distract yourself with literally anything. League of Legends is the same way. Grinding 8 straight hours of solo queue or scrims is hardly an effective way to improve efficiently. Make sure you’re taking breaks every few hours.<\/p>\n

These breaks should include a variety of activities, both mental and physical. The easiest and most important is standing up, getting fresh air, and getting the blood flowing in your body. Every two games you play, you should walk outside and clear your head – take in the sun for 5 minutes and mentally erase all of the bad things that happened in your last games. It’s so simple, but so critical as well. Resetting your body like this can give you a fresh outlook on each set of games instead of spiraling a bad attitude or performance into your future set. Taking the time to read a book, playing cards or a board game, or otherwise engaging your mind on something other than the computer screen a few times a week is also nice. Are you living in a group setting with others doing the same activity? Spend a few minutes per day getting to know your housemates! It’s a great way to build bonds and strengthen trust.<\/p>\n

And last but definitely not least, physical health is key to the stability of a professional gamer in the long run. Spending even half an hour per day with strenuous physical activity will not only add years to your life, but make you much happier in the short-term. There are countless studies that show physical activity helps reduce depression, stress, and frustration. There’s simply no reason to not get out there and move around a bit!<\/p>\n

Okay! That’s a lot of words, so let me summarize for you: professional gaming (like many other career paths) generates a ton of mental stress. Combat this stress by eating a good amount of healthy food each day and getting your butt off the computer every once in a while. It’s obvious advice, but sometimes the most obvious advice is the hardest to follow. If you’re looking to become an LCS player, start these good habits now so you don’t find yourself in an unhealthy situation when the pressure really kicks in.<\/p>\n

Useful Links<\/h2>\n

52 Healthy Meals in 12 Minutes or Less<\/a> – Greatist.com
\nList of 101 exercises you can do at home with no equipment<\/a> – julesfuel.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Brian “i am guitar” Cordry, Player Manager for Evil Geniuses A lot of people work in high-pressure jobs. People working in the financial industry are playing with numbers that can earn (or lose!) them a lot of money. Architects, engineers, and construction workers design and build structures that must support hundreds of thousands of… Read More »Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle as a League of Legends Professional<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2456,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2724],"tags":[2793,914,931,2794,1547,69,1833,2267],"class_list":["post-7298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-active","tag-esports","tag-evil-geniuses","tag-healthy","tag-lcs","tag-league-of-legends","tag-pro-gaming","tag-professional-gaming"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7298","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7298"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7298\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15364,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7298\/revisions\/15364"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7298"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7298"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cyberpowergaming.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7298"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}