Is this guitar related or something bigger

[Dan Shipway]

There have been a few issues I have been struggling with for a while and I have thought for a while that there could be a bigger reason for it.

They are mainly to do with posture, tension and rigidity.

One of the issues is to do with posture. I cant help feeling like its to do with arm strength in general because when I try and put it into position, whether it be in the classical or regular position. I find my arm gets fatigued very easily.

This does two things, makes moving my arm to create fluid movements very difficult and it also makes me anchor my arm on the edge of the body and makes it immovable whilst playing unless I take my arm off and put it back again.

One thing I have also notice is sometimes when I try and relax my picking arm, my right shoulder slumps forwards which causes pain very quickly.

the last thing that I find is that when playing lead and sometimes (but rarely rhythm) that my hand and arm can be quite rigid as more precision is needed than when strumming chords.

I was thinking maybe there is tension in my body that isn't necessarily caused by guitar related stuff and maybe it's something that needs to be looked at on a more general level.

If you guys have any ideas or advice on whether it could be down to bad technique, posture etc instead please feel free to lmk!

 

[Christian Schulze]

Sorry to hear that.

Sounds to me like this is a tension and rigidity issue.

Ideally ,and I say it because it happens to me as well, you should play being the most relaxed. Maybe stretch your body before playing for longer periods in order to be more relaxed.

That tension can lead to injuries, thus preventive measures like good posture and being relaxed and warmed up are always a good bet!

 

[Dan Shipway]

Are there any types of stretches you found useful? I never thought to do them before since i had always heard its only useful if you have muscle and joint problems.

 

[Mauro FILHO]

There have been a few issues I have been struggling with for a while and I have thought for a while that there could be a bigger reason for it.

They are mainly to do with posture, tension and rigidity.

One of the issues is to do with posture. I cant help feeling like its to do with arm strength in general because when I try and put it into position, whether it be in the classical or regular position. I find my arm gets fatigued very easily.

This does two things, makes moving my arm to create fluid movements very difficult and it also makes me anchor my arm on the edge of the body and makes it immovable whilst playing unless I take my arm off and put it back again.

One thing I have also notice is sometimes when I try and relax my picking arm, my right shoulder slumps forwards which causes pain very quickly.

the last thing that I find is that when playing lead and sometimes (but rarely rhythm) that my hand and arm can be quite rigid as more precision is needed than when strumming chords.

I was thinking maybe there is tension in my body that isn't necessarily caused by guitar related stuff and maybe it's something that needs to be looked at on a more general level.

If you guys have any ideas or advice on whether it could be down to bad technique, posture etc instead please feel free to lmk!

Trot grady has a course of pickslanting. Look up YouTube and you will have new ideas

 

[Riff36]

When u pick u might have used more of ur forearm rather rhan wrist movement and the angle if ur pick hilding might me too adjacent and not slanted there for it causes forearm strain. For the shoulder i would say either the guitar strap are too low for you that u need to put pressure to execute Powerchord. Hipe this tutorial might answer your question.

 

[Dan Shipway]

thanks guys, i will check it out and see what results I get!

 

[Calvin Phillips]

If you feel you are getting tired you should try adding weight to your guitar. I know that sounds crazy but if you play a heavier guitar or with more weight you'll solve that problem really fast. My guitars are very heavy so I never struggled with those issues.

I know you've been struggle for a good year now with positioning and whatnot. I'm.thinking you could also just find a way to work out without working out. My job is enough labour to keep me in shape. In the end you are always lifting your arm and it does get exhausting. Your shoulders and triceps probably need more muscle.

Any adjust to a tired muscle only adds stress to other muscles. That's a bad idea. If you get tired it's probably best to take a break. It sucks.. but even a 5 min break is enough to keep you going.

Palm muting was a big arm tiring exercise for me too...maybe avoid palm muting early in your jams.

 

[Riff36]

If you feel you are getting tired you should try adding weight to your guitar. I know that sounds crazy but if you play a heavier guitar or with more weight you'll solve that problem really fast. My guitars are very heavy so I never struggled with those issues.

I know you've been struggle for a good year now with positioning and whatnot. I'm.thinking you could also just find a way to work out without working out. My job is enough labour to keep me in shape. In the end you are always lifting your arm and it does get exhausting. Your shoulders and triceps probably need more muscle.

Any adjust to a tired muscle only adds stress to other muscles. That's a bad idea. If you get tired it's probably best to take a break. It sucks.. but even a 5 min break is enough to keep you going.

Palm muting was a big arm tiring exercise for me too...maybe avoid palm muting early in your jams.

I would recommend Dropstrap.

 

[Ed Seith]

I would recommend Dropstrap.

I know Syn mentioned like a YEAR ago about possibly doing a cross-branded promo with the dropstrap or something. He thought they were really innovative.

 

[Riff36]

I know Syn mentioned like a YEAR ago about possibly doing a cross-branded promo with the dropstrap or something. He thought they were really innovative.

No Shit.. im selling it here in Singapore. 1st to bring it in to my Country that is.

 

[Dan Shipway]

Here are two pictures, not too sure if they help at all but the first is my picking position and the bottom is if i relax my arm completely.

I think it may be that the muscles arent strong enough since my posture isnt great in general (working on it). If i lift my arm up, within seconds there is pain so I will in addition to all of this, work on addressing the issue at a higher level.

One thing which helps a bit is having the guitar slanted towards my body, not so much that it's flat but probably around a 45 degree angle as it pushes my shoulder back and helps it relax since im not reaching up and over but i know this isn't the best habit to get into.

if anyone has feedback on the photos or just on the topic of tension please let me know

 

[Riff36]

i dont know if u can really see my right hand resting and picking motion with slant angle picking but for now that is the only video I’ve made. Maybe in future we as all of us Musician… will try to make a great gd more clearer video of the technique and posture. Thou playing standing and sitting is to diff difficulty but as we progress i assure u… in no time u be a badass man! One thing i love regarding rhis Synner community everyone are great and the vive are positive and helpful. Really digging it!

Btw i reverse my neck and bridge pup selector.

 

[Ed Seith]

Here are two pictures, not too sure if they help at all but the first is my picking position and the bottom is if i relax my arm completely.

View attachment 2521
View attachment 2522

I think it may be that the muscles arent strong enough since my posture isnt great in general (working on it). If i lift my arm up, within seconds there is pain so I will in addition to all of this, work on addressing the issue at a higher level.

One thing which helps a bit is having the guitar slanted towards my body, not so much that it's flat but probably around a 45 degree angle as it pushes my shoulder back and helps it relax since im not reaching up and over but i know this isn't the best habit to get into.

if anyone has feedback on the photos or just on the topic of tension please let me know

You may want to see a doctor about blood flow and blood pressure. Just to be sure.

 

[Dan Shipway]

cheers guys, I'm booking a doctors appointment just to be sure but I will keep working on trying to get a more consistent and comfortable technique!

 

[Forgetabull]

Your arm looks a little further back that I'd have it. Do you warm up before you play (or like play general warm up stuff for your strumming arm?). I end up having to do some easy chord based songs for somewhere between 5-15mins before my hands/arms get up to speed.

 

[Riff36]

Uhmm why don’t u give this a try. Relax ur shoulder, rest ur forearm on the the body contour and just do wrist movement. Mute all the string on ur fret and just alternate or strum slowly and den gradually.. and see where it hurts and maybe from there u may know either ur shoulder are too stiff that it causes stress pain or all this while ur method are incorrect. If its incorrect it is gd to realise and correct it at an early stage rather than later as bad habits are hard to fine tune.

 

[Dan Shipway]

That sounds like a really good idea, i dont do a lot of prep before playing as far as warming up goes. apart from slow picking exercises I dont really do much like stretching or just grtting used to the motions before applying them so I will have a look for different ways to stretch effectively and then try to work on getting smooth relaxed movements before playing!

 

[Dan Shipway]

One of the things i am looking at is sleep position as well, I usually sleep on my side which puts a lot of pressure on my shoulder. Not too sure if this causes major issues but it's something im playing around with to see if it has an impact

 

[Riff36]

One of the things i am looking at is sleep position as well, I usually slee on my side which puts a lot of pressure on my shoulder. Not too sure if this causes major issues but it's something im playing around with to see if it has an impact

Hard to say as I myself sometimes practice while lying down in bed…

 

[William B.]

One of the things i am looking at is sleep position as well, I usually sleep on my side which puts a lot of pressure on my shoulder. Not too sure if this causes major issues but it's something im playing around with to see if it has an impact

I do this too, I've been trying to lay flat on my back it helps somewhat.