Improving reaction times

[Victory.IsMyDestinySSB4]

There are so many times when you are playing smash 4 that you need to think and react quickly. It may even be life or death, such as teching on a stage to avoid being stage spiked. What are you guys' tips on improving reaction times?

 

[FamilyTeam]

You don't improve reaction times - you're born with them.
What you can improve is your perception of the match so you can predict things better, and thus, react in advance to what is about to happen. You're not physically reacting any faster, you just know what to expect. That's the only secret. The only way to train that is with experience. Not a day worth of experience, nor a week, a month, or hell, even a year - it's all the experience. Knowing what's up in the metagame, what people do with their characters, and how quickly you catch up to their habits.

 

[Crosstails20]

Ditto I can not argue Aginest that except that I can it is physically possible to decrease the time it takes for you to react to something, but only by a couple of milliseconds. No joke. But other than that Ditto.

 

[Crystanium]

You don't improve reaction times - you're born with them.
What you can improve is your perception of the match so you can predict things better, and thus, react in advance to what is about to happen. You're not physically reacting any faster, you just know what to expect. That's the only secret. The only way to train that is with experience. Not a day worth of experience, nor a week, a month, or hell, even a year - it's all the experience. Knowing what's up in the metagame, what people do with their characters, and how quickly you catch up to their habits.

Just because you're born with the ability to react to things doesn't mean you cannot improve your reaction time. Enough rest helps with reaction time. Eating healthy also helps. So does exercise and meditation. Caffeine helps as well. So there are ways to improve one's reaction time, but as you get older, your reaction time will be higher. (With regard to chronometry, lower is better. This may seem counter-intuitive, but reaction time isn't like physical strength or speed where higher is better.)

 

[Captain Meta Knight]

Just because you're born with the ability to react to things doesn't mean you cannot improve your reaction time. Enough rest helps with reaction time. Eating healthy also helps. So does exercise and meditation. Caffeine helps as well. So there are ways to improve one's reaction time, but as you get older, your reaction time will be higher. (With regard to chronometry, lower is better. This may seem counter-intuitive, but reaction time isn't like physical strength or speed where higher is better.)

Would drinking water help as well?

 

[Axel311]

being well rested and eating well is about all you can do. drink coffee. you can't change your genes or brain, unfortunately.

 

[Crystanium]

Would drinking water help as well?

It'll keep your body hydrated and blood flowing. If your body goes without water, your blood thickens. You need blood flowing. I would make sure to drink water with electrolytes, though. Or at least have some kind of source of magnesium, salt, and potassium if you're going to just drink from the tap.

being well rested and eating well is about all you can do. drink coffee. you can't change your genes or brain, unfortunately.

Your environment can do more to your body than you might think.

 

[Victory.IsMyDestinySSB4]

I found a really cool strategy. I mentioned earlier that I had trouble with teching for stage spikes, so I got a buddy to stage spike me almost every time they could. It helped a lot.

We occasionally tech those.

 

[FuzzyQuills]

I found a really cool strategy. I mentioned earlier that I had trouble with teching for stage spikes, so I got a buddy to stage spike me almost every time they could. It helped a lot.

We occasionally tech those.

"We... tech those? xD"

On a serious note, yes, it is possible to develop better reaction times, but only by a small margin.
Your own DNA obviously affects your reaction time, as everyone's different. In my case, I can mentally visualise a SINGLE FRAME, hitboxes and all, and use that to react accordingly to my opponent. I also generally have a reaction time of like 200ms (I can measure milliseconds in my head as well... I'm an odd one)

But yea, coffee, good sleep healthy eating... it isn't just Smash you can apply this too, good CS:GO and TF2 Snipers do this as well, as having a clear mind improves your aim in such games immensely.

As for improving your reaction time... the best thing I can recommend is meditation; it helped me when I wanted to perceive things faster (I had other reasons to want to do this, it helped me in Smash later) as a good meditation technique sharpens your mind and improves how fast it can process stuff.

 

[The Kirbyister]

My reaction time is trash
I got an average of 321 reaction time ( in 5 try’s) on the Human benchmark site and 371 in 46 try’s ( the 371 try was on the second time I did it)
(Btw I’m used a iPad for it)


Is that bad for playing smash?