Computer Workout

Computer Workout

One of my favorite areas of chess.com is Computer Workout. You get there by selecting the menu LEARN then COMPUTER WORKOUT. You are given positions to play against the computer. Some are just the basic mates while some are very hard. You can sort by difficulty, popularity, themes, alphabetical order, and other ways. I recommend to sort by difficulty and do the entire Beginner (<1200) workouts then do Intermediate (1400-1800). Many of the Beginner positions are endgames positions. It is important to know how to win these positions like the back of your hand. When you will get to a similar positions in you games you may not have a lot of time and you may be mentally worn out. If you know how to win in the position with little effort because you have played it against a computer and are familiar with how to win the game you will be way ahead of the game. While working to solve the positions you may ask for hints to get the method to win. Make sure you can win the position without any hints before moving on. If you find one position too hard, just move on to another position.
Doing these workouts are important. I have seen many players (Even Cooley players) that had a Winning endgame (Ex. King + Rook vs King) and ended up drawing the game. If they would have practice the Mating with a Rook workout then would have won the game.  http://www.chess.com/computer-workout/server/mating-with-a-rook