I'm curious on what others do to warm-up and stretch prior to really getting into practice or playing? I was reading the post from @Olivier, on the potential of getting tendinitis, then I saw others who have the same issues. I know I am guilty of getting right into the lessons and do not spend time warming and stretching like I should.
What routines do you use that you have found successful that helps with keeping everything relaxed, stretched etc.?
Good question, I never thought of that.
It's a good question. About a week ago i found a video on youtube by a classical guitarist called Brandon Acker called Warming UP. I watched the video and followed his advice for ten minutes before playing Devin's Old Grimes, an Irish type instrumental that i'd been learning and making lots of lazy mistakes with. And guess what? I played the piece from start to finish without making a single error for the first time ever!
I have done the simple but effective routine every day since and highly recommend it. It just gets you warmed up and familiarises you with the neck and string spacing. Things we take for granted, but shouldn't. There is emphasis on hitting the notes close to the frets so you don't get buzzing, and it gives you a good stretch too. You can do it in five minutes or longer if you like.
I hope Devin doesn't mind me providing the link here.
Thanks for the video Dom, looks like it will be helpful.
@dom I'm definitely going to check this out. Right now I run through a couple of scales to get warmed up and oriented, but I have been looking for something else to do to warm up. Thanks!
Well i'm 5 or six weeks into this routine and have not missed a day. I haven't timed it but i'd say it's five or six minutes of my time before i do anything else.
There is no question that the key points it emphasizes: Clean finger placement, up down pick progression and the initial re-programming of string spacing awareness, are profoundly useful for me. I have seen a noticeable improvement in my playing as the weeks have gone by.
I'm getting a huge drop in buzzy notes. My up/down picking is second nature. I can - when i choose - dispense with my pinkie as an anchor and get decent results with a clenched fist (though i'm still partial to using the pinkie). It's also a great way to kick off the day because you really feel like you've got yourself in shape before you've even tried to play anything. What's more, It's actually a lot of fun too as you begin to do it effortlessly via muscle memory and speed up without loss of clarity.
I think this is a fantastic place to start the day.
Glad to read that!
