With the help of a speed cube’s magnets and stability, you can easily align your speed cube for the next twists and turns that will help achieve your goal. But there are many other factors that affect your speed solve time. So, if you are a beginner, then here are a few tricks you should understand and tips you should remember to perform better at speed solving. If you want to take on world records and become the world’s fastest cuber, then visit us here.
7 Tricks To Solving Rubik’s Cube For A beginner
1. Get slower before you get faster
Whenever you learn something new for your solves, you need to understand that you will get slower before you can get faster. The best example of this is the change from solving one piece at a time to solving two pieces at a time through F2L techniques. There could also be moments when you need to change something you are doing, which will slow you down initially but will also be improved in the long run. The earlier you learn something, the easier it is to fix it. Whether you learn a new finger trick, new algorithm, etc., it is likely to make you slower initially, but you can get faster with practice.
2. Don’t initially learn on magnetic cubes
As a beginner, it is mostly recommended that you should not learn all your habits and finger tricks on magnetic cubes. This is especially vital if you are new to speedcubing. It is more beneficial to learn algorithms and solve methods on a non-magnetic cube before switching over to a magnetic one. The reasoning behind this is that you can subconsciously develop skills and better turning accuracy, which is crucial for speedcubing events. Transitioning from a non-magnetic cube to a magnetic one is effortless.
3. Achieve colour neutrality
Colour neutrality is easier to gain if you begin practising it as soon as you learn how to solve the cube. This is the ability to begin a speedcube with any colour. Since you don’t have any habits formed, the concept of starting with the easiest colour cross is quite intuitive. The sooner that you try and change to colour neutrality, the easier is the process.
4. Mirror your algorithms
You need to practice mirroring your algorithms on both sides of the cube. This will highly help in developing your turning ability with both your left and right hand. If you use the CFOP method, then you will find this skill highly beneficial. When you learn to use both your right and left hands, you can easily avoid rotations in F2L and combine flexibility to your solves.
5. Don’t spend money on cubes
As a beginner, you shouldn’t need too much time or money on getting the latest and greatest speedcubing hardware. It might not make any significant impact on your speedsolve time. However, this does not apply to highly competitive cubers or events where hardware is still improving. Better cubes can definitely make a difference if your improvement rates have slowed down, and for some, WCA events are the driver for improvement.
6. Don’t be scared of the OLL algorithms
If you have just finished learning PLL and have started to learn full OLL, then you should not be scared of the 57 OLL algorithms. Though it might sound daunting right now, the OLL algorithms are shorter than PLL; many are just slight variations to the algorithms you already know and can be recognized easily.
7. Try your luck at competitions
Participate in cubing competitions if you can. WCA (World Cube Association) Competitions are not just about officially recording the solves. It also functions as a community event. Competitions are a great way to meet cubers who are more than happy to give advice regarding competitions, their perspectives and solving techniques.
Wrapping it up!
As long as you are practising the right things, then all practice is good practice. If your solve times have been the same for several months, there is nothing to worry about. Improvement in cubing is a gradual process. However, it is characterized by relatively large jumps in your solve times. In the beginning, your improvement rate might be quick, but the faster you get, the harder it is to improve. Stagnating, or at times, getting slightly slower, is absolutely natural and happens to everyone. So, keep learning and keep practising! Happy cubing!
