When cubing gets boring?

[Paul Wagner]

So I have a little bit of a problem,

I love to read the speedsolving forum still. But cubing has just become a bore. It seems as if it is such a normal part of my life the fun is gone. Like, I get home watch TV, cube, listen to music, and sleep (barely). And now it's not very exciting what do you recommend I do?

Did this ever happen to you?

Do you think buying a new puzzle will make cubing interesting?

But the thing is that I feel bad letting cubing slip. Because I love it, but now it's just boring .

Do you think that it could possibly be because it's the summer and I have to much time for cubing?

Do you think I am asking way too many questions?

Do you think it's time I click "Submit New Thread"?

Well too late I already did.

 

[jcuber]

I say get a new puzzle or go to a competition.

 

[V-te]

Well, try new puzzles, They keep the flame alive. =)

 

[lowonthefoodchain]

Teach somebody new. Just talking to an acquaintance about cubing could really make something interesting out of cubing.

 

[JTW2007]

New puzzles, new methods, new challenges (like solving into patterns, reducing a 4x4 to a 2x2 and solving, 5x5 OHMBLD, underwater in one breath, etc.), and go to some events. If you don't already do them, try hi-games, cubemania, and any other online competition you can find.

 

[Paul Wagner]

Teach somebody new. Just talking to an acquaintance about cubing could really make something interesting out of cubing.

My cousin cubes.

 

[zip_dog12]

That's happened to me before. I'm nowhere near a speed cuber (still learning Fridrich and Petrus methods, 3x3 PB of 49.43) and I sometimes get bored or frustrated simply by solving the cube over and over again, trying to improve my time. In the past, I've simply stopped cubing for a few weeks and after a while my hunger for cubing returned. Maybe just take a break for a while. Be careful though; you'll be much worse on your return, forgetting algorithms and having slower speed. I'm just saying that it's worked for me as a non-speed cuber.

Also, watching youtube videos of people better than me, learning new methods, buying new puzzles, and even getting Cubesmith products have helped with the excitement I get out of cubing. Maybe solving a cube in some sort of creative or impracticle way will help, like while sky diving or something...lol. One more thing is that just doing a relaxed non-timed solve using less memory and more logic/intuition every once in a while, like the puzzle was originally invented for, can keep myself into cubing.

Since I'm still a noob I'd say it will take me a long time to get to your point. For heavens sake, my only 3x3 is a storebought Rubik's brand :fp

This is what I do, so I'm not at all confident that it will work for you. These are just suggestions. There's a lot of cube-related things that I haven't tried yet, so I have several approaches available to relieve boredome.

In a slightly more pessimistic manner, some things don't always last...right?

 

[rjohnson_8ball]

I looked at your WCA profile. Learn blindfold solving. (I use 3OP from cubefreak.net, but others prefer classic Pochmann or M2.) It is an amazing thrill and feeling of accomplishment when you memorize and then solve the entire cube without looking.

 

[peterbat]

I looked at your WCA profile. Learn blindfold solving. (I use 3OP from cubefreak.net, but others prefer classic Pochmann or M2.) It is an amazing thrill and feeling of accomplishment when you memorize and then solve the entire cube without looking.

I second that. Learn BLD! It's by far my favorite type of cubing, for exactly the reasons stated above by rjohnson_8ball.

 

[IamWEB]

You'll be recommended to take a short break, not too long so that you can still regain interest upon returning, but you'll find that you still have the urge to solve it at least a gew times a day. You'll restrain yourself so that you like it more when returning, with hopes that the restraint doesn't make you like not solving.
Life's depressing, ain't it?

IamWEB, and I approve of this post using italics.

 

[Carrot]

Paul, I ended up in the exact same situations in the start of the summer xD

(My average is about yours ) I could only get sub 20 solves with Fridrich, then I said to myself... Petrus, that sounds funny, I'm gonna be a sub 20 Petrus-user... that worked very well for a month... it was so exiting each time I made a solve... But now when I actually reached a sub 20 average with Petrus it's no longer fun :/ You should try set some funny goals

As Long as you are going to do something special you will normally get exited

 

[LNZ]

Yes, solving cubes and other puzzles does get boring sometimes. When that happens to me, I don't use any of them for a day or two. And I try some variants of traditional cubing to put the variety back in.

Some examples:

1. Use my 4x4 cubes as a giant 2x2 cube. Yes, the 4x4 is really a bloated 2x2 cube!

2. Solve your big cubes (4x4 and larger) as a 3x3 by only using the L,R, U, D, B & F faces in scrambling.

3. Do some lovely patterns on my big cubes. There are lots of web sites devoted to cube paterns, the 7x7 is awesome for making some magical patterns including the very conterversial swastika pattern. Remember, if you do the swastika pattern, you are not a nazi, it's just another interesting pattern to try.

4. Admire the 1x1x1 cube. And solve it too.

5. Try an average of 5 3x3x3 solves by only using the rank beginner method.

6. Laugh at all those 1x1x1 cube videos on Youtube. Believe it or not, one video has an "alg" for solving parity on a 1x1x1!

7. Do an average of 12 solves for the 1x1x1 cube.

8. Have a day where you solve cubes with no F2L, Fridrich or Peterus algs whatsoever.

9. If you have a 6x6, use it as 3x3x3 by using two slices per cubie.

10. If you have a 6x6, use it as a 2x2x2 by using three slices per cubie.

 

[CharlieCooper]

going to a competition always refreshes my urge to cube. i definitely go through phases, and that monotonous routine you speak of, well, that's just life sometimes unless you change the activities you do every single day, you will get bored of them eventually! trying to get speedy at a different puzzle you haven't paid much attention to before could renew your interest. try that?

 

[(X)]

Just solve the cube

 

[CuBeOrDiE]

If I ever get bored with cubing, I don't cube in a week or something, and then cubing becomes fun again. Getting new puzzles or learning new methods also helps.

 

[Waffle's Minion]

If I ever become bored of cubing, I'll shoot myself in the head. As for you, getting a new puzzle and solving it without looking anything up, and doing gigantic relays will help.

 

[Hakan]

Getting together with other cubers always refreshes my enthousiasm in cubing.

Especially doing things in a group after a competition is always fun! Like having dinner with 20 cubers can never be boring

 

[CharlieCooper]

Getting together with other cubers always refreshes my enthousiasm in cubing.

Especially doing things in a group after a competition is always fun! Like having dinner with 20 cubers can never be boring

no, especially with all the angry glares because of the noise.

hakan, i haven't seen you for ages. will you be at belgian?

 

[SaberSlash49]

Despite me being a non-speedcuber (PB: 41.77), I was quite bored of cubing when I first started this summer, seeing how I didn't really want to take this serious. 2 months later, and I've got a good 1.5 inch binder full of rubik's cube stuff. Learning some random methods and making crazy patterns always motivates me for a bit, even if it's just 15 minutes..

In Buddhism, they say that happiness never lasts... (I should know, I'm buddhist. :O)

 

[Deleted member 2864]

Buying a new puzzle always helps. I was losing my passion too, but I got a megaminx, and I started picking it up again.