Any man in the street knows how to increase his physical strength, but among most chess players confusion reigns when it comes to improving their playing strength. Axel Smith's training methods have guided his friends, teammates and pupils to grandmaster norms and titles. Hard work will be required, but Axel Smith knows how you can Pump Up Your Rating .

Every area of chess is covered - opening preparation, through middlegame play, to endgame technique. Smith delves into both the technical and psychological sides of chess, and shows how best to practise and improve.

International Master Axel Smith from Sweden has had great success as a coach. Using his methods on himself, in the space of two years he boosted his rating from 2093 to 2458. He is now closing in on the Grandmaster title.

Content:

003 Foreword by Aryan Tari

005 Preface & Contents

007 Introduction

015 Part 1 Positional Chess

017 No Pawn Lever - No Plan

055 Fair Exchange is No Robbery

103 Auxiliary Question

127 Calculation

157 Part 2 A Training Program

165 The List of Mistakes

221 The Woodpecker Method

279 Opening

323 Theoretical Endgames

345 Attitude

367 Appendix - Databases

370 Apendix - Endgames

372 Name Index