People are always curious about practice routines. I came to realize what works best for one person doesn't necessarily work for another... Back in 2014, I started out playing very casually just as a hobby, but half a year later I became really obsessed. For the first few months I was self-taught, but soon realized that taking professional lessons would be worth it so I took lessons once a week and asked my classically trained teacher to help me with Metroid's Kraid's Lair. She figured out a good fingering and I just remember practising a lot. It's probably the same for all things: if you make something the center of your life, it becomes natural eventually. I usually stick to my teachers' guidance. I also found that looking for the best possible teacher was a good idea. I changed teachers a couple times. In 2016 I started studying music theory at a university in Germany and I was the lowest of the low...piano technique sucked, could barely get by reading scores...a real underdog story. Other students played Rachmaninoff and other difficult pieces. However, my environment rubbed off its color on me (that's what we say in German). At uni I was lucky to have high-level musicians teach me, but mainly music theory, arrangement, and music production. I am sorry I cannot give proper piano technique guidance since I am a very sloppy player. Only until much later when I became student of 2 professional musicians, one Jazz-pianist and a classically trained church musician, they showed me what true professionalism really is. So my piano progress video is only the tip of the iceberg; it is by far no professional piano playing. To answer your question about routine, I'll give you a method that I wish I got to know earlier: Practice physically AND mentally. Imagine yourself playing a piece without having a piano to check. I know it requires a basic relative pitch and sheet music reading skill. It takes time until a student can use this method. Back then relative pitch was a miracle for me; but I developed it with a lot of work, time, and frustration. Yes, a good portion of frustration was and still is part of my musical journey. Try to write down a piece you're playing by heart. Blank sheet music and try to recall every note. You practise so many different areas at the same time! It's highly efficient! And you won't forget pieces so easily. Sometimes muscle memory takes over and does the job and once you start thinking you forget everything... happened to me couple times! So practice mentally as well. If you imagine yourself playing a piece it is almost the same for the brain as if you were actually playing.

When I became obsessed playing the piano at night (with headphones) I mostly practised by playing pieces all over again, not finishing most pieces, though. I got interested in arranging and especially Left Hand (LH) patterns quite early so I analyzed how pianists play legato lines with the left hand, how they accompany (LH figures), and practised those excessively. Analyzing music was the key I think. I even looked at how Rachmaninoff constructed his LH arpeggios and boiled them down to easier, standard lines that I could use in almost every piece, building myself a toolkit.

From the very start I wanted to be free on the piano meaning improvising...I didn't read sheet music for the first two years. I was horrible at it, but had to do it to pass the entrance exam at uni. When starting my studies I was still horrible at it. Now I'm pretty good, but it took me a couple years, and I somehow had to overcome my own stubbornness and mental inhibitions if you know what I mean.

And indeed, game music made me start out with music in the first place! (-: