I started Competitive programming in August 2024, at the beginning of my second year of college.

My first few Div.2 contests were humbling — I could solve 1 problem, sometimes 2. In Div.3, solving 3 problems felt like a win. But what kept me going was not the rating, but the nature of the problems themselves.

At the 800–1000 level, it’s mostly about thinking — no fancy algorithms, no heavy data structures — just logic and clarity. That fascinated me, and I decided to stay.

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The Phase Nobody Talks About

In the first four months, I climbed quickly and reached 1459 on 12 January 2025.

Then the graph stopped moving. For the next 110 Days, I was stuck below 1450.

I practiced. I gave contests. I did everything I had been doing before. But nothing showed.

Only after breaking that level again on 3rd April 2025 did I realize how important that phase was. It forced me to learn how to work without validation, how to trust effort without feedback, and how to stay disciplined when progress was invisible.

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Another Plateau, A Bigger Test

After that, I reached Expert quickly and hit 1650 on 24 April 2025. And then came another long stagnation.

From April to September, I revolved between 1550 and 1650. September was especially difficult. Doubts started appearing: Am I doing the right things? Should I change everything?

I won’t pretend I never thought of giving up. But I didn’t. I kept solving. I kept learning. I kept trusting the process. By the grace of God, I managed to push through.

In October and November, things finally started rolling again.

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When Belief Became Real

In October, I had two contests in one week with deltas of +53 and +98. That momentum carried forward, and over five good contests, I climbed from 1647 to 1831.

That was the first time belief stopped being hope and became certainty. “Okay, CM might actually be possible.”

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The Contest That Changed Everything

One contest before reaching Candidate Master, I gave the best performance of my life till then. The predictor showed a 2140 performance and a +85 delta. I needed 80 to reach CM.

I got 70.

It didn’t hurt — but it felt incomplete. What it did give me was confidence: On my best day, I could cross 1900.

Then came Codeforces Round 1075.Codeforces Round 1075 (Div. 2)

I started fast with A and B. Got stuck on C1 while watching many others solve it — pressure built. Then something clicked. I solved C1, stayed calm, found the right approach for D1, and optimized it for D2.

That was the contest where everything aligned. Global Rank 179. Candidate Master. standings

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The Most Important Lesson

If I had to summarize my entire journey, it would be this:

Growth is rarely linear, but it is always cumulative. There will be phases where the graph lies to you. Where effort feels invisible. Where you doubt yourself.

That is exactly when you need to trust your process — while staying flexible enough to learn from others. There are many ways to grow, but not all of them are meant for you. Find your way. Stick to it. Improve it slowly.

If you’re stuck right now, let me tell you this:

The graph is not the truth, Your effort is. If you show up honestly every day, even when nothing moves — one day it all connects.

Candidate Master is not the destination, It’s just another checkpoint.

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My Practice Regime (What I Actually Did)

Many people asked about my practice routine, so I’ll keep it simple.

My entire journey revolved around consistency. I gave almost every Codeforces contest in the past 16 months, and if i could not attend a contest, I made sure to attend it virtually. I was not a big fan of getting stuck on a problem for hours and would prefer referring to the editorial after giving a honest shot to a question for about 40-50 minutes, because there might be a thing being used in the problem, that I might not be aware of. But after reading the editorial, make sure to internalize the idea and code it up on your own.

On normal days, I practiced mostly from the Codeforces problemset, focusing on problems near my current rating and sometimes when i felt the need to work on a particular topic, Apply the filter for the same on CF problemset. I normally did around 100-120 problems of a particular rating and post that i generally became comfortable with that rating and moved ahead to the next.

I didn’t follow a strict schedule or long study hours. I learned topics as and when problems demanded them. When I crossed 1500, I spent time on the CSES problem set, which helped me get comfortable with many common patterns. Topics like DP or number theory felt difficult at first, but facing them through practice helped me slowly overcome that fear.

During plateaus, I avoided changing everything. I didn’t switch platforms or increase volume drastically — I just kept showing up and trusted the process. In hindsight, that patience mattered more than any single technique.

But please keep in mind, this was something that worked out for me, but each and everyone is different, and you need to find the best methods for yourself. Never try to copy others, you can pick good things from others, but ultimately, you are the best Judge for yourself.

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Help and Feedback:

If anyone reading this is stuck or needs help — whether it’s about practice strategy, contests, or mindset — I’d be more than happy to help in any way I can. You can reach out in the comments or messages, and I’ll try my best to respond.

At the same time, I’d genuinely love to learn from all the Candidate Masters, Masters, International Masters, and Grandmasters out here — your guidance and perspectives would mean a lot as I continue this journey forward. Please give your honest and constructive suggestions as to how can i improve further in my Competitive Programming Journey.

It is my first blog. Forgive me for any mistakes i might have made unknowingly.