Afternoon fatigue...GMAT scheduled in afternoon!!

Question

Hi!

I am not an early riser and the nearest test centre is 2.5 hours away. So I thought taking the test in the afternoon(1 pm) would be a good option. Due to office hours (second shift) I used to take my mocks at 11 am and I scored 690,690,680 in the 3 MGMAT mocks that I tried at 11 am .

Yesterday I decided to take a mock on my real scheduled time ( 1pm ) and to my horror I found myself to be too sluggish and managed to get only 650. By the time I finished IR I was feeling too tired. I ended up making too many silly mistakes and messing up my timing in quant section. Also, I got all 5 last questions wrong. In verbal I made another bunch of 5 continous mistakes towards the end and timing was again an issue. In none of the previous tests did I suffer from major timing issues. By the end of each of the 2 sections (last 10 questions) I got so sluggish that I had to read a question several times in order to decipher it's meaning. Apart from the change in time and temperature (It's summer time in India) I did not find any difference between this mock and my previous tests.

I can't reschedule my test and I don't know how to get used to this timing in 2 weeks. I am thinking about taking a big breakfast at 10:30 and skipping lunch on the test day. I've read that eating trail mix and drinking glucose water during the breaks can be helpful. What's ur opinion? what should I do guys?? Please help :cry:

ShannonWong · Answer

Increase your stamina! Do questions in stretches of 1 hour.

I found that bananas, red bull and 100-plus helped me to keep my energy up! It's probably better to have a light lunch and then snacks during the breaks.

Have a good rest and you should be fine. More importantly, try to increase your baseline to above the score that you want.
I did my mock tests in a noisy area and that helped me to train my concentration for the real exam. On the real GMAT, I had totally no problems with concentration and energy!

All the best.
Find out more in my debrief  https://gmatclub.com/forum/740-after-5-weeks-of-intensive-prep-171909.html

GMATPill · Answer

I'd say a decent size breakfast -- and then a very light snack afterwords. Certainly include a banana in there.

Probably better off skipping lunch and sticking to breakfast and light snacks. Each person is different, but based on what you say, that's what I would recommend. Lastly, keep these tips in mind: https://www.gmatpill.com/about/studying- ... trategies/

KarishmaB · Answer

Responding to a pm:

Here are my thoughts on this problem:

1. Do not drive down to the test center on your own. Ask someone to drop you or take a cab. Driving is tiring even if you are used to it. Try to catch a small nap (which might be difficult) or wind down during the ride - don't chit chat/play on phone etc. Listen to some relaxing music using your headphones and shut down the outside world. All in all, try to relax yourself as much as possible.

2. You will need a good, healthy breakfast - nothing fried or over the top creamy. Egg sandwich on whole wheat, fruit juice etc. Start taking such a breakfast from tomorrow itself.

3. Eat a light snack before you start the exam - unsweetened breakfast bar, a piece of fruit, some water etc. Whatever you plan to carry to eat that day, make sure you eat that regularly in the next 2 weeks. Also keep some small snacks for the breaks. In drinks, people suggest red bull, coffee, glucose water etc but I feel plain water is the best. Go with whatever works for you.

4. On Sunday, take another practice test simulating exam conditions. You don't need to drive down 2.5 hrs but otherwise do what you intend to do on exam day. Eat and drink exactly as you plan to on exam day and then take the test at 1:00 pm. See if your energy levels are up to the mark. If not, you can come back and we can suggest ways of doing things differently.

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Afternoon fatigue...GMAT scheduled in afternoon!!

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