Spider Legs issue

Each time I practice I do warm up stretch exercises. One exercise Spider Legs that Lisa teaches I have the following problem:

I'm unable to position my hand/wrist properly in order to place one finger at a time on frets 1, 2, 3 my and leave them there no to lift fingers. My wrist does not stay straight, it angles and I find my fingers partly laying on the strings instead of the finger tips. 

I have no problem placing each finger tip on the frets one at a time but I must lift each finger - index finger on fret 1 lift, middle on fret 2 lift, place ring finger on fret 3 lift. 

Is that incorrect if I place my fingers one at a time on each fret ? I can successfully play each note clean but only if place my fingers as noted.

Thanks,

Bob

In general it's fine.  But it can hinder your playing later.  Let's go over the details.

First you need to make sure you have good position & posture. If you bend your wrist too far in any direction to get your fingers around the guitar you will severely curtail any natural strength & dexterity you have in your fretting hand. So make sure you have a slight, natural curve in your wrist.

Next, it can help if you don't try to keep your fingers in place. It's okay & often beneficial to release finger pressure on the lower frets, just enough to reach higher & make that higher fretted note ring properly. Don't completely lift your finger off the strings. Just release the pressure that was necessary to make the note sound. Maintain a little contact, just let the finger rest on the string without pressing it down. Otherwise it's wasted effort to raise your finger until it's completely off the string, only to have to bring it all the way back when you return to that fret.

The guiding principle is efficiency of motion.  Aim to use the least amount of effort (motion and pressure) to get the notes to sound.  Any more is wasted effort & can hinder your playing.

Make sense?

So adjust your wrist, hand & thumb placement just enough to slide your hand over in order to help get enough pressure on that next fret. It not necessary to hold on to those lower notes with so much pressure.  Finally, go slow! Take your time, it's not necessary to blaze through this exercise. The goal is just to get all your fingers into the act of fretting notes, gaining a little finger independence, strength & dexterity so they'll eventually be ready to do all the things they have to do in order to play music on the guitar!

Hope this helps. Please ask more if necessary & best of success!

Thank you Christopher - could not have said it better myself! 

I love the guiding principle of 'efficiency of motion'. 

Best of luck with this Bob, and remember, it is meant to be something you work towards being able to do, over time. It is designed to help build stretch and strength and orientation - but nobody expects those things to all be in place from the get-go. It is a process. 

Be well all, Lisa

Thank you Christopher and Lisa, 

I appreciate your assistance, guidance.

Thanks,

Bob

You're welcome.

You could also try starting from first finger on fifth fret, so placing fingers on frets 5, 6, 7, 8.

Try that for a few days, then try starting on fourth fret for a few days, then third, second, and finally first, spending a few days starting from each.

If you reach a point where it becomes a struggle, simply spend a few more days starting from the last fret that felt more comfortable.

This would increase the amount of stretch over a period of a few weeks instead of attempting it from the start, which, in my opinion, can cause frustration instead of making playing the fun it should be.

Also, remember to relax and breathe at all times.