RC here at 54. Do you all have techniques for coping with your aging issues and guitar? I used to play when I was a teen, and have picked up guitar again and noticed quite a change in:
1. General fatigue
2. Specific fatigue
3. Large muscle limits
4. Arthritis and related
5. Stretching considerations
6. Instruments against the body
1. General Fatique - I seem to be better with this when I exercise - walk, jog, weights of course. But I notice that I avoid songs that I know that exhaust me (Heart/Crazy on You, Misfits/Where Eagles Dare). Besides avoidance and exercise, any other tips out there?
2. Specific Fatigue. I just can't keep up some fast movements. I've noticed this in scales and arpeggios, pull-offs and repeated quick riffs, like so in Mood for a Day... I wonder about how to avoid repetitive stress syndrome
3. If I remove the guitar and pretend to hold it, boy, my arms are just hanging - that yanks at muscles in my shoulders, neck and sides. Any good specific exercises people have found to strengthen those areas?
4. Arthritis and related - this is similar to the specific fatigue and can relate to it, but I'm thinking more here about chronic pains and limitations due to arthritis like conditions. I don't like to prescribe for others, but CoQ seems to be helping me with this a little. "warming up" seems to help as well, playing scales slowly and carefully for a few minutes. I've tried aspirin, but I find that negatively impacts my recall on complex pieces like Bach's Bouree or Allman Bros Jessica.
5. Stretching considerations: Just how much stretching is good and how much takes us into more problems? I use some Johnny b Goode like chording for stretching, open to some other ideas.
6. Instruments against the body. Just sitting with that guitar digging into my leg has created a problem over the last year. I resorted to a pillow and standing up with a strap. I'm looking around for a nice square of leather, I think I could take that with me outside the house and not feel too embarrased.
Looking forward to other ideas, suggestions, warnings, considerations....
Thanks,
RC
