How Often do you practice?

How often does everyone practice?

I try to practice 1-2hrs a day with some guitar theory in there depending how busy or not I am. If Im super busy then I try to practice for atleast 45 minutes but most days im not busy so I can fit in the 1-2hrs of practice.

I hit the string most every day.. If I don't work on some lesson aspect, I at least do enought to keep my finger tips tough and knuckle joints limber. If the weather is nice I may just grab the accoustic and sit in the carport and go thru every little diddy I can remember.. I have even put the head phones on one ear and play during a Baseball Game... That can be a good practice session if the Yankees and Red Sox are playing...

I pick mine up everyday also. Most days I try and do a format of scales, timing, chords and then some playing time to just goof off and experiment or just keep playing a song I am trying to learn over and over. I try and read up on this site and the internet in general on different areas like theory or techniques or just listen to a few lessons during my lunch time at work and then when I get home I try and go over them with my guitar. Some days I don't have an hour to myself so I pick it up for a few minutes here and there just doing scales and what not.

Jaime

I try for a more or less scheduled hour each evening on weekdays. But other than time of day I have nothing preset. I will noodle just working on exercises, run some random chord progressions & alternate between the chords and lead. Sometimes will run my "playlist" in iTunes. I've got a solid hour or so of stuff I have down pretty good. Occasionally, I will even work on a GT lesson. :)

In addition to that hour, I try to get in about an hour after work. I didn;t do that at first, but I find even if it's only half an hour, it has really helped my progress.

Weekends are really random. I seem to have less time and less routine, so that's when I dabble with learning a new song, or messing with Reaper (just got midi pads for my drum software), or just more random playing and practicing.

I "practice" every day, but not as structured as it should be. My guitar is on a stand right next to me at my desk, so I'll pick it up everyone once and a while to mess around. Do some basic exercises but then move on to something else.

whenever possible. I tend to sit and play solidly for an hour or so, and then I'll have a guitar with me throughout the evening, and will play for a few minutes (or much longer) while watching TV, being online or whatever. Pretty much the only time I don't have a guitar within reach is while I'm cooking ;)

I practice between 1-2 hours a day (now that I've signed up to GT I'll be doing at least 1 hr of GT lessons every day). 2 days a week I'll practice between 7-8 hours but that's usually accompanied by my band so its not really focused practice in terms of structure/exercises/technique etc, more just prepping for gigs.

Well..... when i first picked up the the guitar i was 14....and I loved it! I would print out tabs i couldnt play and study them....the hardest tab i got was cliffs of dover...but i loved this guitar so much that my family would alway see me on this couch playing monday through friday 6 hours and saturdays 12 hours straight(sunday is Church time:) with of course little breaks like bathroom or lucnhen.. but for those 12 hours i would try to at least play the tabs i got.. it got to the point when in the first 8 months of playing i finally learned cliffs of dover..but soon I've noticed my relationship with my guitar was deterioting. i was spending less time with it. heck.... there some days were i dont pick it up...does anyone do that? were they spend so much time with it when you first get it, but then you lose intrest in it because theres not much elese to do with it but write your own songs?

Originally Posted by: Snake_Eater there some days were i dont pick it up...does anyone do that? were they spend so much time with it when you first get it, but then you lose intrest in it because theres not much elese to do with it but write your own songs?

Sure, it's easy to get burned out. The one thing I've noticed about taking time off is that when I do come back, I feel refreshed and for some reason the creativity seems to kick into high gear.

Some of my best riffs have come to me after I've not picked up my guitar for over a week or two.

Originally Posted by: RickBlackerSome of my best riffs have come to me after I've not picked up my guitar for over a week or two.

Im with you on that man.

My playing is a roller coaster ride, and frankly it sucks. I wont lie, Ive gone 5 months not even looking at the guitar before. Then Ill get a random surge and Im back on it 4-5 hours a day for a few months. Pretty strange, and obnoxious.

Any of you guys read "this is your brain on music"? Pretty interesting. One of the key points he makes is they (scientist and their studies I guess) have concluded that it takes roughly 10,000 hours of practice to supposedly become a virtuoso; or even more broad, to become an expert in whatever profession. Of course its very subjective and depends solely on what is practiced (thats a whole'nother thread if you ask me...), but interesting none the less. I think he said thats 3 hours a day for 10 years; or 8 hours a day for 3 1/2 years.

Supposedly that magical 10,000 number has popped up several, several times in studies concerning chess players, athletes, musicians, writers; pretty much "everything" to be considered a master, so they say.

Hmmm, so at an hour per day... 10,000 / 365 is... Hey! I'll be expert in only 27.3 years. Is 73 too old to start my rock career? :eek:

Originally Posted by: RazboHmmm, so at an hour per day... 10,000 / 365 is... Hey! I'll be expert in only 27.3 years. Is 73 too old to start my rock career? :eek:

Maybe not, but I'd set your expectations low on getting the hotties.

Originally Posted by: JarsewOne of the key points he makes is they (scientist and their studies I guess) have concluded that it takes roughly 10,000 hours of practice to supposedly become a virtuoso; or even more broad, to become an expert in whatever profession.

I had no idea this book existed. Thanks for the heads up!

And you right on the money pointing out that depends on what is practiced. And also, how it's practiced.

I started playing when I was 10. Played a couple hours a day getting the basics right. Then I got my first electric at 12 and got serious. Started practicing 4-8 hours a day. I that did that until I was 18. After that I was not just strictly practicing, but always playing via performing & teaching guitar. And still 4-8 hours a day, sometimes more. More whenever there was time available in between working!

Nowdays, I sometimes only get in an hour or two. But I do get in 5-6 hours somedays. Again, though, most of that is GT teaching, or writing, recording. But I never let a day go by without playing guitar. I'm playing right now while reading the forum. I love to play the guitar. :)

Originally Posted by: RazboHmmm, so at an hour per day... 10,000 / 365 is... Hey! I'll be expert in only 27.3 years. Is 73 too old to start my rock career? :eek:

Razbo, you don't even need to be close to a virtuoso to have a rock career. You only need minimal musical skills. But will you need a band, some tunes, stage presence & an active fan base. That list doesn't have to take 27 years, but it will take some time. :)

Originally Posted by: CSchlegelRazbo, you don't even need to be close to a virtuoso to have a rock career. You only need minimal musical skills. But will you need a band, some tunes, stage presence & an active fan base. That list doesn't have to take 27 years, but it will take some time. :)

Ha! Thanks for the encouragement!

...You are much more supportive than Mr. Blacker :D

I practice for an hour or so most days, but also do it as 'work' so I spend most of my day playing or doing something related to music. The hour is the time I push myself to do something new, or to focus on an aspect of technique I want to improve etc.

I started playing classical at the age of 8 and didn't really enjoy it much, then played electric and moved toward jazz in my teens and much like Chris practiced more or less all the time I wasn't in school or asleep.

Now I have a family I can't hand on heart say I practice every day. Outside of teaching and performing I don't always even play guitar every day but now it's less of s crazed obsession and more of a joy.

I even like playing classical guitar now, and I never thought I'd say that... without burning my brain out on the math I'm sure I must have done more than 10,000 hours but I'm not sure I'm a vituoso.

I guess I practiced wrong... :o

Originally Posted by: RazboHmmm, so at an hour per day... 10,000 / 365 is... Hey! I'll be expert in only 27.3 years. Is 73 too old to start my rock career? :eek:

Hell no Razbo, would you consider a girl for a band member...you and I can rock the nursing homes and retirement centers. :-D.

Jaime

Originally Posted by: LilbikerHell no Razbo, would you consider a girl for a band member...you and I can rock the nursing homes and retirement centers. :-D.

Jaime

ha ha! My band is open to all comers. And I have always rather dug female musicians. Big Heart, Pat & Joan fan here. :)

Originally Posted by: RickBlackerMaybe not, but I'd set your expectations low on getting the hotties.

When I was in a band, I learned that you had to be in a band bit didn't really need to be good to get the hotties. Um, let me be clearer; I noticed that the guys that were in the crappy bands still got chicks...

I will say, even in my very short lived time in a band, it was odd playing gigs, people treated you differently. It was kind of disconcerting, in a away. When I helped other bands such as a fill in sound man, no girlie attention. When I played, a surprising amount of more attention. Odd.

I will say this, I preferred hanging with girls that played. Something to actually talked about and they were usually pretty smart too.

I try to have half an hour per day. I guess I have 5-6 hours per week but today I had 2,5 hours. :)