We’ve all heard the admonishments over and over: warm up before you play guitar! After all, playing is a physical activity that requires a lot of repetitive movements from small muscle groups; there is definitely the possibility for injuries, strains, or repetitive motion injuries.
After playing for many years – literally thousands of hours of practicing and gigging – I figured I knew what I was doing. My technique on electric guitar is pretty well developed, and the classical guitar teachers I’ve studied with have drilled proper hand position and techniques into me.
Then, a few years ago, I embarked on an intensive classical guitar practicing regimen, while still playing electric guitar and – perhaps worst of all – writing a book, which required several hours of typing per day. It wasn’t long until serious problems appeared. First, pain developed in my wrists, and there was stiffness in my fingers. In the morning, my wrists were curled in and almost locked in place. The symptoms became worse and worse. Yikes!
A visit to the doctor confirmed that I was on the path to serious injury, and a trip to the surgical ward at the hospital was looking possible if I didn’t change my ways. Anti-inflammatories were prescribed, and I was forced to sleep in stiff wrist braces that held my hands and wrists in a neutral position. I dropped playing electric for a few months. I also learned to position my hands correctly when typing and to type with a much lighter touch. I consulted my classical teacher, who showed me some gentle wrist and finger stretching exercises. After about a month, my hands and wrists were back to normal, and there was no permanent damage done.
Pretty scary! As musicians, our hands are everything; without them, we have no connection to our instrument, no way to create the music we play.
All this is to say, if you value your ability to play guitar, then you must take care of your hands! And a big part of a hand-care routine is to properly warm up before you play. I’m not a physical therapist, nor do I have any medical training, but over the years I’ve picked up the following tips that have worked well for me:
- Be aware of the demands on your hands outside of playing. If you’re doing a lot of typing, then use proper hand position, take breaks, and press the keys with only the minimum amount of force required – the same letter will appear on your computer screen, whether you slam the key down or press it gently. If you’re lifting weights or doing physical labor, then be conscious of the extra work your hands are putting in.
- Gently stretch your hands and fingers, and rotate and stretch your wrists several times a day to keep them loose and flexible.
- Before playing, gently stretch your hands and wrists for a few minutes – just as a runner stretches before sprinting down the track, we need to stretch our muscles before tearing into Yngwie-inspired 64th notes or even into Slowhand-style bends.
- Warm up slowly. For classical guitar, I have a series of exercises that warm up both my right and left hands – a good teacher or method book will be able to provide these for you. At the least, regardless of whether you play steel-string, classical, or electric, slowly play through scales and arpeggios to get your fingers warmed up. Resist the urge to tear into a fast run or demanding passage until your hands feel warm and loose.
- If you’re like me, then you grab a guitar for a few minutes of plinking numerous times throughout the day, outside of your regular practice. If you do so, take it easy, and don’t push your hands if they’re not warm.
- Some players recommend placing your hands under a faucet and running warm water over them, or soaking them in a basin of warm water. To me, this is too much hassle. Plus, I don’t like the way the warm water softens my calluses prior to playing – but if it works for you, go for it!
The key to success with whatever warmup routine you devise is to take it easy – slow and gentle is the way to go. Your hands will tell you when they’re ready to move on to more challenging playing. Above all, avoid pain! (Guitar playing is NOT a “no pain, no gain” activity.) Never push a stretch until things hurt – just to the point where you feel the muscles begin to pull and loosen up. Again, there are many books and resources that will help you learn how to stretch properly.
If it seems like going through all this is a big pain in the posterior, and that it’s taking time away from playing, then you’re looking at it the wrong way. Warming up is an investment in your guitar playing, and it’s as integral as anything else you do – practicing, working on your gear, listening to music, or whatever.
Take it from me, you never think hand problems will happen to you until they DO happen to you – and believe me, there’s absolutely no worse feeling than not being able to play your beloved instrument simply because you didn’t take a few minutes to take care of your hands! A few minutes is all it takes – time well spent!