Sports betting involves research, an understanding of the game being bet and the ability to correctly evaluate stats, facts and trends. There’s a lot that goes into being a successful sports bettor. Along with all of the fact gathering and number crunching, the sports bettor has to attend to the management of their bankroll. Plus, there’s the basic evaluation of their handicapping methods or strategies.

Even if a sports bettor does everything that they are supposed to do, they may still find themselves in the throes of a losing streak. In fact, if you stay with it long enough, sports betting will yield numerous streaks of bad outcomes over the course of a year or two. You can change the tide and get back on track. Here’s a look at how to do just that.

If you find yourself in such a situation, the first thing you have to do is evaluate your sports handicapping process in an objective and thorough manner. (Actually, you should be doing such even when you’re winning.)

You do this by looking at the outcome of a given game and asking yourself if the game were played again next week would the spread have been the same? In other words, was your loss based on the happenstance that accompanies all sporting events or was it poor handicapping and your inability to determine the value of the spread?

If you’re making poor betting decisions, then you’ll need to discover where your problems lie. It is most likely in an aspect of your handicapping. You may be lacking in some primary methodology. To get a handle on this, see our article on the F-T-S of sports handicapping. It will help you define areas in which you can improve. However, if all seems to be in order, in other words if your sports bets after careful evaluation are sound, then what should you do?

For a while, at least, you should stay the course. That is, you need to continue betting, adjusting your standard unit to reflect 2% of your diminishing bankroll.  Let’s say your losing streak extends throughout the week and then goes into the next. What should you do then?

First, here are a few things that you should not do. Do not start throwing a lot of cash at your next bets in order to try to make up for losses. This can prove to be disastrous. Also, don’t start altering how you make picks if you’ve determined that your handicapping methodology is sound. If you’ve been losing due to the bounce of the ball or puck, then that’s the way it goes.

At some point, you may just need to take a break. That’s right—stop betting and stop digging yourself into a deepening hole. Walk away for a while. It is the equivalent of removing yourself from the poker table for a length of time. Why would you do such a thing? There are many good reasons to take a break from wagering on sports.

The first is simply to clear your head and to give yourself some new perspective. Hey, everyone needs a break and that includes sports bettors. This new perspective may grant you some insights on how to proceed when you start betting again. For a while, it’s a good idea to remove yourself entirely.

Don’t watch the sport, check the lines or read the latest news. Yes, you’ll fall behind a bit but you’ll be able to catch up on what’s important quickly and when you’re ready. Right now you are taking a real break from the barrage of information and blur of games. This is a much needed vacation from the world of handicapping and treat it as such.

Also, taking a break will simply get you out of the losing pattern. This pattern may be a reality or merely a perception, but sometimes perception turns into reality. By not wagering on sports, you can’t possibly lose and not losing is the first step towards winning.

How long of a break should you take? More than a day or two is recommended. The length is up to the individual, but when you return you should be rested and ready to go. Your head should be clear and you must be focused on the task at hand, which is picking winners.

A few days prior to returning, as a warm up, you may want to make some mock sports picks to see if you’ve got your winning ways back. After a few days of mock picks, it’s time to get back to real sports betting. Chances are after a break and with a renewed perspective you’ll be ready to enter the fray again. Start slowly, wagering a few units at a time, and once you get your sea legs under you, get back to it in full force. It’s time to start a new streak—a winning one as a rested sports bettor.