Fysical ability (limitation?)

[SloeGin]

Hey guys,

I have a question about the physical part of playing guitar.
I have been playing guitar for 20 years now.
To give you some example of what i'm physically able to play are some solo's like Paranoid, Iron Man, Back In Black, You Shook Me All Night Long, Don't Cry (GnR).

The last year i've been working on Crazy Train by Ozzy. Yet i'm struggling big time.
I have alot of trouble with the solo, all the fills and even the fast pull off's in the intro.
I noticed that i get really tense in the shoulder and neck, and it even seems my back too. I also noticed that after practicing those licks for 30 min. i have to stop 'cause my left hand just hurts too much.

Now i'm wondering, is it possible i just can't play this song because of physical inability. Is my body just not capable of playing that fast, complicated stuff. Or do i just need to have patience?

Any help welcome please.

Thanks!

 

[odibrom]

We are all different in shapes and sizes, although we tend to overlook that. In performing micro-precision tasks with one's body , one finds that there are things one simply cannot do due to not having the reach or stretch. This is noticeable in piano where small hand players struggle with extend beyond the octave chords.

What can also be happening (most likely) is that you may need to adjust or train your technique for that particular song.

Nevertheless, one must assume and accept that not everything is achievable for everyone...

 

[budda]

Does the tension happen sitting, standing or both? That is definitely something you want to avoid.

 

[c7spheres]

Based on what you said you can already play you should be able to play CrazyTrain solo with normal practice effort. Keep at it and eventually you'll get it. If you can go 30min like you say then basically that's a practice run. Maybe only go 15 min instead and save it for the end of practice so it don't burn you out right at the start.
- Posture sounds like the issue you're having. Maybe try lowering or raising the chair a bit or standing. I'd recommend standing as much as possible actually. It's harder at first but it will pay off in spades, especially when you actually do sit down.

 

[odibrom]

... I just re-read the initial post. I initially thought you were only talking about fingering reach...

All the songs you said you can play are from different players with different guitars and postures tuned like race cars to their likes and needs, what's comfortable for some may not be for others. They found their way, you must find yours. First thing I'd do is to raise the guitar strap so your fretting hand wrist doesn't get bent when fretting lower strings. I'd also start looking for the classical style fretting hand positioning with the thumb in the middle of the neck and not over it, specially if your fingers aren't long.

These are adjustments to your technique, so you can play better and healthier. Most times, tension builds on the weak links of our body, which aren't necessarily the ones that need correction.

 

[SloeGin]

Thanks for all the replies!

@budda I only play sitting.

 

[JSanta]

It sounds like you may have several different issues going on. Playing while your muscles are tense is going to make it tough to play for any length of time. Work on relaxing your body while you play. Not sure if you have a teacher, but that's something else I'd suggest. If you have bad posture or poor technique, it's difficult for anyone here to tell you so. Getting a good teacher that can watch you play will be a huge help.

The other bit is patience, no question. Skill like playing an instrument is measured in years and decades, not days or weeks. You can't build a tree.

 

[HungryGuitarStudent]

Developing good habits for posture, warmup, stretching and playing pauses may help. There are tons of existing resources online that could help for any of those topics. Don't hesitate to ask if you can't find them, I'm sure a lot of SSO users will chime in

 

[fantom]

Can you imagine the advice a physical therapist would give a basketball player who was saying they can't play well because they have muscle tightness across like 5 different muscle groups?

IMO, you are overexerting yourself. You need to warmup and practice the parts at slower tempos until your muscles and tendons get a workout. No one goes into the gym and tries to deadlift 200 lbs on their first day. They work up to it.

You are likely capable of playing it, you just need to build up to it over time.

 

[Santuzzo]

I think you should put all your focus during practicing on getting rid of the tension. Play as slowly as necessary so you can play relaxed without any tension on your arms, wrists, shoulders, back etc.
This may be very slow but that's ok.
I myself have been playing with a tensed up right arm for about 30 years, getting rid of the tension and learning to keep my arm and shoulder relaxed was my main focus for over a year, Yes, I was so used to tending up that it took me quite long to teach my body to stay relaxed. It takes patience, awareness of tension and lots of slow practice to re-program your body to stay relaxed. But IMO that's well worth it. Don't even worry about how fast you can play, only concern should be keeping your body relaxed. Once the relaxation becomes automatic I'm sure the rest will fall into place and the speed will come.

 

[High Plains Drifter]

I missed if you mentioned anything about your age. Depending on your age ( despite playing for 20 yrs) if you're older or have experienced an injury or even just years worth of wear-and-tear on your body... those factors could absolutely be a part of your seeming inability to play certain chords, licks, etc. If none of this applies to you then it may be more about what's been mentioned already above but old age, an arthritic condition, or muscular degeneration could certainly be playing a part in your discomfort and limitations.