Preparation for Marathon Gaming - Launch Rushing

[Saracens]

With launch just a week away I figured it was about time for the prep for launch posts to go up, so I wanted to throw my two pennies in.

I've posted this on other sites and gathered information over the years to compile some information I seriously think is beneficial to you as a gamer. Enjoy and feel free to add to it! (Both legitimate and silly things alike.) EvrMoar from 2arc Gaming laid the foundation for this, and I've previously posted on MMO-Champ during past expansion launches.

Safety Tips For A Gaming Marathon Rush

There are two things that you have to be seriously wary of are Sleep Deprivation and Deep vein thrombosis.

Sleep Deprivation

There is little way to stop Sleep Deprivation, and it his highly recommend to not go to far over 48 hours without sleep. If you are planning on doing 24 hours+ please stay hydrated and well fed. If you can sleep, even if its 15mins after the first 24 hours and have someone wake you up, or set an alarm on vibrate, it will greatly help you stay focused and healthy. I can't stress enough, don't push past 72 hours if you haven't done it before and if you feel like your body isn't in a state to handle it. I will cover how to properly prepare for a marathon, but for now try to stick to under 72 hours.


Your body will try to compensate for loss of sleep, so just like your body needing more sleep after being up for 24hours+ you can also store sleep for when you need it. If possible try to sleep at least 12 hours before a marathon.

Sleeping has a ton of purposes for our body, one of which is relaxing the eyes. To avoid eye strain I highly recommend the 20/20/20 rule. Look at something 20 feet away, every 20 minutes, for 20 seconds. This will help ease headaches and will also help protect your eyes.

There is a program called f.lux (https://justgetflux.com/) that simulates wearing gaming specific eye protection and is something I know personally can stop headaches from staring at even an LED monitor too long. (I even used this in the cruiser when I was a patrolman.)

Last but not least don't drive or do something right after marathon without catching up on sleep. Simply put don't be dumb. If you have to work in 5 hours and you just stayed up for 24 hours+ PLEASE have a friend drive you, or take a bus. One of the highest cause of traffic accidents is sleep deprivation. This is logic people, don't endanger others!

Deep Vein Thrombosis

Deep Vein Thrombosis, in a nutshell, is what leads to blood clots that are fatal! So what happens when your sitting for extended periods of time is decreasing blood flow through your body. This can create blood clots, those blood clots can dislodge when you become more active and, unfortunately, often kill. This is often what you hear about in the news that kills gamers that stay up for days on end.

‘If you sit for 90 minutes or more at a desk, the blood flow behind your knees decreases by 50 per cent, significantly increasing the chance of a DVT,’

‘It is vital to take regular breaks every hour or so: get up, walk about, rotate your ankles and stretch out your calf muscles.’

I pulled these facts from a couple articles, please just get up and stretch and walk around when possible. Don't sit in your chair for hours on end without getting up and moving!

You can purchase and use these: http://www.amazon.com/Zensah-Compres...ession+sleeves They cost about $40 and help with blood flow when in a seated position for a long time. ( DO NOT SLEEP IN THESE)

Note from a Friend

Chow wrote:
NOTICE: This is an addition from a friend of mine named Chow, who is far more knowledgeable in the subject as he is a doctor, and we should all heed his warnings and use the information he's provided.

So I'll chime in here and offer my medical advice.

I've seen more than 1 patient in my career suffer a pulmonary embolus (a blot clot occluded an artery leading to the lungs) after a 6-hour flight. And patients almost on a daily basis who are bed bound in the hospital. In the hospital, we heparinize our patients as a prophylaxis and use compression stockings and patients still develop blood clots because of stagnation. With regards to gaming, it's been well documented that people have died from blood clots from stagnation.

How to Prepare and Keep Going!

Now for the fun part, how to prepare and keep going and keep your body in a good place while you're trying to hit the level cap. This will mostly cover food, and water intake to help you keep your body happy.

RULE 1 DO NOT DRINK HIGH SUGAR ENERGY DRINKS

No don't do it, it does not help you stay up like you think and it is not good for your body when you need to stay up for more than 24 hours.

This next section is a bit on the graphic side, but people in all seriousness, this is something to think about.

Your body needs water, water should be your number one choice. Honestly when you take a piss if it's yellow you need to drink more water. That is the easiest way to gauge it, if it doesn't look like water coming out you're wrong.

How do you know if you’re properly hydrated? Take a look at your urine. Generally speaking, the clearer the urine, the better hydrated you are. If it is a clear-pale lemonade color, you are hydrated. If it is a darker lemonade to apple juice color, you are dehydrated. And if it is dark and cloudy, you are severely dehydrated and should notify medical staff immediately.

Basic hydration know how, please stick to water.

To give you a short idea of why not to drink soda/sugars is because of crashing. Coffee is good to start off, but generally, caffeine doesn't wake you up it stops the flow of chemicals that makes you feel tired. It doesn't magically wake you up, it just stalls you feeling tired. So once you're tired caffeine won't help. Sugar makes you crash, even tho it picks you up for a little bit you will crash. It's less harsh on your body, and will be more effective if you stick to water and avoid sugary food/drinks. You can start with coffee but don't depend on it, and once you start to feel tired just stick to water.

FOOD

This is going to sound like everything you heard growing up but stick to fruits and veggies to replenish nutrients you need, ones that your body will be burning when it goes into overdrive mode. Sticking to these foods will help your body a ton!

To name a few:
- Baby Carrots
- Peanuts/nuts and peanut butter
- Yogurt with/without oats
- Tuna (no mayo, use a dressing or mustard)
- Grilled or baked meats (ie Chicken and Fish, less on the red meats.)

These foods are amazing to help your body when you need to stay up for longer hours.

Don't Risk Your Life For First lvl 110!

[Blueobelisk]

What launch are you talking about?

[Jotaux]

Thanks for posting, I was just going to make a thread asking for advice. I'm planning on going to sleep at 5pm when I get home and waking up around 11pm. I'm going to get to 110 in one sitting then get some sleep. I have carrots and almonds available and I guess I'll pick up some chicken this weekend. Are eggs or egg whites decent as well (I usually have some in my fridge) or should I just stick to chicken?

[Saracens]

What launch are you talking about?

Legion, I'll change it to be more specific.

- - - Updated - - -

Thanks for posting, I was just going to make a thread asking for advice. I'm planning on going to sleep at 5pm when I get home and waking up around 11pm. I'm going to get to 110 in one sitting then get some sleep. I have carrots and almonds available and I guess I'll pick up some chicken this weekend. Are eggs or egg whites decent as well (I usually have some in my fridge) or should I just stick to chicken?

Eggs are great protein, both with and without the yolk.

[DrMcNinja]

Also recommend a piece of fruit, like an apple, mangos or bananas

[AlphaOut]

I agree with pretty much everything except sleeping for an extended period, like 12 hours, prior to a marathon. It won't make a difference for your health for sleeping longer prior to. Once you break the 24 hour mark your mental and physical health diminishes regardless if you sleep for 6 or 12 hours beforehand. The absolute best thing you can do for yourself is proper diet not only during, but well beforehand as well. Set your body up with proper hydration and healthy fuel well before you put your body through potentially mental and physical trauma.

[Saracens]

I agree with pretty much everything except sleeping for an extended period, like 12 hours, prior to a marathon. It won't make a difference for your health for sleeping longer prior to. Once you break the 24 hour mark your mental and physical health diminishes regardless if you sleep for 6 or 12 hours beforehand. The absolute best thing you can do for yourself is proper diet not only during, but well beforehand as well. Set your body up with proper hydration and healthy fuel well before you put your body through potentially mental and physical trauma.

Great advice, I'll get it added.

[RobertoCarlos]

Can't tell if joking or not

[Deleted]

Excellent post, especially like the list of good foods. Thanks.