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You need a life balance, in fact I too much studying is going to hurt you come test day. I'm doing around 20-25 hrs a week but I still go to work, work out everyday, and hang out with friends on the weekend.

Patriot1208 wrote:You need a life balance, in fact I too much studying is going to hurt you come test day. I'm doing around 20-25 hrs a week but I still go to work, work out everyday, and hang out with friends on the weekend.

Very true. The thing about this is that I do work, I work 20 hours a week at the U.S Attorney's Office as a student. I don't work out but I do hang out with my friends Saturday night, since I cant do anything Friday nights because I have my prep course Saturday mornings. I am also taking a summer course.

My schedule is pretty rigid on a week to week;
M-F from 11-1245 I have class and from 1-5 I have work.
I feel pressured, as if I wont be ready for my exam in October, which is why is why I study every day after work M-F, from about 530-1100 (this includes doing my class homework)
I also study Saturdays AFTER my course and Sundays too throughout the day.

Do you really think I could study too much?

Are there people who have been in a similar position that would like to shed some light??

We are in very similar situations. I (usually) work out around 7 am, I'm taking a summer class 9-11 everyday, I work for the DOJ 12-5:30 everyday, and I have a study class 6-10 monday and wednesday. I get the stress thing, but I know that I am doing everything possible and plan on exhausting every single preptest as well as the bibles and my prep classes material come october. You just have to allow yourself to feel confident and let it come to you. Right now my study schedule looks like this 4 hrs saturday, 4 hrs sunday, my two classes, and then I try to put in another 4-8 hrs at work or if its busy that week I'll just do one night after work like a thursday. And I have definitely heard of people burning themselves out, it happens, just take it easy and keep to a steady and logical schedule.

One of the things that really helps me cool down is watching world cup games or some movie or show I like at night, it is really helpful to just gear down and stare at a tv.

jesus, i feel like law school is going to be riddled with people like you. Ok, the test is in OCTOBER, fucking relax dude, getting worked up and anxious will only HURT you in the end. How old are you? 21, 22? You really going to let a stupid test that you can take 3 times and still get into Columbia affect the way you feel?

It is not a bad idea to immerse yourself in the LSAT, but that does not mean making it your life. After a month you'll find that you look at things a different way, more logically, if you are arguing with someone, you'll probably be able to piss them off by saying that what they are saying has no relevence, etc. But thinking about it 24 -7 is not healthy. In fact, on days you dont do lsat shit, I wouldn't think about it at all. Honestly, if you do 3 PT's a week and go over them (every wrong answer and every answer you sort of didnt know) then you should have the test down in a month no problem.

What your doing right now is percisely what I did during my first attempt at taking the test this past December. While you definitely need to be on top of things there are a few things to keep in mind...

1) Your not taking the test until October, that is many months away and you have more than enough to study. In fact, you might want to pace your studying so that you don't run out of materials.

2) Your body absolutely needs to rest. During my second attempt I made it a policy of mine to not study on Saturday. Ussually by Friday I would be so warn out from studying and working a nine to five that I was craving my day off, and my LSAT practice would be subpar. Come Sunday I was on top of things again.

3) Remember that the LSAT is a skill based test. At the end of the day you have either developed the skills or not. Studying for five hours per day is worthless unless you're actually gaining headway in this area. This isn't the type of test that you can cram your way into...however, that being said....

4) The next best thing you can do once you have the skills is to do practice section after practice section until you are super comfortable with the test format, and so that the timing doesn't intimidate you anymore. From my own experience, a lot of preforming well on the LSAT comes from mastering the clock.

In short, remember to relax, and use your studying time strategically to develop your skills in logic. Bearing this in mind I was able to bring score up from a 163 to a 170. Best of luck!

If you fuck up on the actual test, you can always re-take it. Is it a big deal? Sure. Will your Oct score ruin your life if you do poorly? No.

Do your best, but relax.

I never thought teaching the LSAT would be similar to being a life coach. But it is. It so is.

Forget about balance... study everyday until you fall sleep. What do you have to lose? Its only a month out of your entire life. I studied 8 hours a day for 3 weeks and went up 21 points. Its worth it.

Ive taken the LSAT twice and Im going to take it for a third time this October. Why so many times? Because I did exactly what you did. I thought that quantity was the way to go and I really stifled myself. In 2 months time I did 33 PT's, read the LRB, and worked with a bunch of other Kaplan stuff. The problem was that I was so focused on getting as much done as is possible that I didnt take the necessary time to develop the basic skills necessary for the LSAT. I kept making the same mistakes on PT's and come test day I scored poorly. I retook in December and went up slightly. Between Sept and Dec I did little LSAT work and I suspect thats why my score went up. It didnt go up as much as I wanted, hence why Im retaking in Oct, but I went up. I attribute this to not stressing myself out and doing LSAT stuff all the time. For the Oct test Im taking a much different approach, a quality over quantity approach. Im working about 2 hours a day, 5 days a week, but its not about how many PT's I can do, its about understanding the basics and fundamentals necessary to answer LSAT questions.

One last thing, WORK OUT! Working out has so many positive benefits both mentally and physically. Increased tolerance to stress, increased stamina, better performance in sex. All things that come test day will help you out. Plus, its awesome to look good.

Good luck!