I've noticed recently that I'm getting a sore left thumb and wrist, are their any excercises that I can do to stretch to alieviate the pain ? Only practicing about 1 to 2 hours a day for the past month and it would be nice if it went away.
Sore thumb and Wrist
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Originally Posted by: cheaviagI've noticed recently that I'm getting a sore left thumb and wrist, are their any excercises that I can do to stretch to alieviate the pain ? Only practicing about 1 to 2 hours a day for the past month and it would be nice if it went away.
Here's a list of things to be mindful of:
(1) You do not need to grip the guitar as tight as you think you do. Try fretting a note as light as possible and still ring true to get the idea how little pressure is needed to hold down a note. People seem to naturally feel like it takes a tight grip to play. It's doesn't.
(2) Review Chris' How to Hold a Guitar course to be sure that you maximize the comfortable position of your guitar. Also consider using a strap when practicing even when you're sitting. I've done this since I started playing decades ago. It takes the pressure off of actually holding the guitar.
(3) Don't 'over-practice'. You noted that you may practice up to 2 hours a day. That's a good amount of time to practice. By that, it's a lot of time to practice. Don't overdo it. You haven't yet built of the stamina to play for long periods. Like being a runner, you don't do a marathon out of the box. You build up to it. If you start feeling the strain, stop. You're injuring yourself. However, see the above tips as they will help as strategies to help you play longer.
(4) Do warm up excersizes too. You may want to integrate Lisa's spider legs warm up. Still using the runner analogy, you stretch before you run. Make sure that you've properly warmed up. You may not have to do all the warm up stuff but a little warm up helps a lot.
(5) Be patient. As much as we all wanted to play great stuff early on, it takes time and you're physical abilities need time to grow too.
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