Right arm/biceps get really tired while playing

[bonethug]

Sorry but this its just plain terrible advice and following it is a sure fire way to get carpal tunnel and end your ability to ever play again.
Listen to what your body is trying to tell you and stop if you start feeling pain/fatigue in your arms. As someone that trem picks constantly and at warp tempos, trust me on this. Relax your whole body. Find a position that is most comfortable for you. Grab a metronome and set it at a slow tempo and practice your trem picking. Pay attention to how you are playing when you practice trem picking. Are you tense right before you start? Then take a deep breath. Chill. Is your picking ergonomical or is it weird and ineffecient? Change your pick grip and how you make each stroke. Im almost 100% sure that that last bit is what is causing you to tire and hurt easily.

Or, itll build muscle and stamina. Dood he said his arm hurts carpal tunnel is in your hands. I do get what your saying though. I just mearly posted what worked for me through the years.

 

[orakle]

relaxing is not the key

you're simply using the wrong muscle

you need to start using only your wrist

voila pain is gone !

 

[GSingleton]

do not listen to these people. You need to really study yourself and find out what you believe is wrong with your wrist. If you push too hard incorrectly you will permanently damage your wrist. There is only so many ways to push yourself in a healthy manner. First you have to make sure you are actually doing it correctly. Studied your hands,wrists, etc and how they should bend and what muscle groups are being used and see which ones you should be using.

Point is, I am a percussionist...I use my hands daily for music and I have a healed broken wrist but it does not affect my playing because I use the proper muscles to play. If I didnt...my wrist would be screwed. I believe you should study how your body works and do what you think is best...and relaxing is always an answer since it will not hurt you in the long run.

 

[turbo]

do not listen to these people. You need to really study yourself and find out what you believe is wrong with your wrist. If you push too hard incorrectly you will permanently damage your wrist. There is only so many ways to push yourself in a healthy manner. First you have to make sure you are actually doing it correctly. Studied your hands,wrists, etc and how they should bend and what muscle groups are being used and see which ones you should be using.

Point is, I am a percussionist...I use my hands daily for music and I have a healed broken wrist but it does not affect my playing because I use the proper muscles to play. If I didnt...my wrist would be screwed. I believe you should study how your body works and do what you think is best...and relaxing is always an answer since it will not hurt you in the long run.

so everyone is wrong, and only you are THE only one who knows anything? lets see, drums/percussion..have way more muscles to use than guitar players? we all use the same muscles all together?

playing a guitar Is nothing like banging on a bongo.its just not, sorry.

so sorry.so so sorry.

 

[GSingleton]

so everyone is wrong, and only you are THE only one who knows anything? lets see, drums/percussion..have way more muscles to use than guitar players? we all use the same muscles all together?

playing a guitar Is nothing like banging on a bongo.its just not, sorry.

so sorry.so so sorry.

Well, too bad I play guitar as well and you're ignorant of your own body.
All I am saying is he study his body. Trust me, when you've played about 5-8 hours a day for 11 years, and you teach percussion, guitar, and piano...I think I would know how someone's arms and wrists work. Enjoy.

 

[tacotiklah]

Or, itll build muscle and stamina. Dood he said his arm hurts carpal tunnel is in your hands. I do get what your saying though. I just mearly posted what worked for me through the years.

And Im going off of the advice of college professors, professional touring guitarists and MI graduates. Taking frequent breaks while learning to play any technique on the guitar that is strenuous as well as learning to play while completely relaxed will allow you to build your muscles in a safe way that will minimize repetitive motion injuries. Paying attention to how he plays will allow him to focus on building up the correct muscles. Again this will go a long way towards fighting repetitive motion injuries and against sloppy technique. I apologize if I come off as a dick, but if there is one thing I do well, its trem pick. (listen to the track through the deathamorphosis on the reverbnation link in my sig as an example)

I used to pick sloppy and inefficiently too. Then when I started getting lessons and taking college music classes (such as classical ensemble and performing rock band) I actually had to relearn how to play guitar using better technique. Id rather save OP this hell and hassle by riding him to learn proper technique now instead of him hurting himself or sounding like crap due to bad technique.

 

[turbo]

whats that he says at the end of figure 7 ?
"stay loose,work away any tension, and dont play if it hurts"

 

[pstol]

Work on picking from your wrist, you'll be able to pickup more control and speed and will become exhausted at a much slower rate. Just practice alternate picking only using your wrist to a metronome just playing 16th notes at 2 measures per fret starting at zero, going to twelve and then moving onto the next string. It's extremely boring but after 1-2 weeks of this even at once a day, you'll notice a huge improvement.

 

[Slavocracy]

I've noticed my picking hand is being strained even while I'm not playing the guitar. I can just be "resting" my arm on my guitar and it will get tired, because it isn't actually resting. There is nowhere on my guitar that I'm aware of, for my right arm to rest. It just kind of dangles awkwardly and I have to hold it up. Suggestions...?

Also: I am playing with my wrist.

 

[GSingleton]

You should get your wrist checked out if it hurts just dangling.

 

[thedonal]

It's so easy to say relax, but sometimes hard to do!

You could warm up too- forward and backward circular swinging of arms is good to get the blood going. Also- try stretching around your shoulder (arm across the body at shoulder level) and stretching your wrists. Finally, massage the muscles regularly helps clear some lactic acid from them.

Loads of downstrokes is very demanding, so the above should help get your arms ready and avoid any strain/injuries if you're pushing them for long periods of time.

Re: relaxing- just conscously relax your arm when you feel it starting to tense.

Drink plenty of water and have breaks too. You could be at a point where you're pushing yourself a little more than you used to and it just takes time to get the muscle stamina up there. Maybe pushups would help too?

 

[Strobe]

Of course the idea about playing relaxed is good advice. Here are another few possible solutions you can try.

1) Adjust where you have your strap.

2) See if you can play the notes/chords with minimal motion (unless playing the Who, in which case, do the opposite). If your entire arm is moving alternate pick a note, it might be accomplished with smaller finger/wrist movements

3) I happen to love V shaped guitars because the way I can hold them feels better to me. It is a bit more vertical, and I can rest the center of the V on my leg when doing a solo. I also like the way they play sitting, with the V straddling my leg.

 

[Slavocracy]

Seems as if no matter what I do, one of my arms feels wrong. If I get into a position where my right arm is comfortable, it is by sacrificing my left arm, and now my left arm feels uncomfortable and starts to get strained.

I don't get it. And I never had this problem before, only until about 5 months ago.

edit: when I play as high as say, the beatles would .. my right arm is a lot more relaxed. However, my left WRIST started hurting after about 10 minutes of playing like that. again, when one arm is comfortable, the other is not.

 

[SenorDingDong]

Seems as if no matter what I do, one of my arms feels wrong. If I get into a position where my right arm is comfortable, it is by sacrificing my left arm, and now my left arm feels uncomfortable and starts to get strained.

I don't get it. And I never had this problem before, only until about 5 months ago.

edit: when I play as high as say, the beatles would .. my right arm is a lot more relaxed. However, my left WRIST started hurting after about 10 minutes of playing like that. again, when one arm is comfortable, the other is not.

try this, it might help. I do these every single day before I play, for about six minutes, as well as a fifteen minute guitar warm up.

 

[Neogospel]

whats that he says at the end of figure 7 ?
"stay loose,work away any tension, and dont play if it hurts"

I agree with Satch here^

Just try to focus on using the correct muscles, try to start using more your wrist

 

[refried bean]

For left hand technique: Make sure your thumb is behind the guitar neck, not around it. Also make sure your fingers are fretting right, using as much as your fingertips as possible. I've met many students who didn't know why their left hand fatigued so quickly, and usually it's because of bad fretting technique and/or the position of their thumb. I find people with bigger hands tend to do the "thumb around the neck a la Hendrix" more. Make sure when you're play leads or doing complicated riffing that your thumb is behind the neck, and that your index/thumb make sort of a "V" or "U" shape.

Also, playing classical style should be GOOD for your left hand. Why? Let me demonstrate it. Okay. Put your left hand on your lap, keeping your forearm straight on your leg, palm facing you. Then bend your wrist up like you're grabbing a guitar neck, while you keep your forearm on your leg. Now wiggle your fingers... Feel that tension? A lot of people tend to play like this when NOT playing classical style...this is what many people with bad technique feel. This can REALLY hurt your left hand bad and should be avoided.

Playing classical style, is more like holding your hand up straight. Forearm and wrist straight up, palm facing you. Now wiggle your fingers. MUCH LESS tension. This is why, if you're ever feeling any pain in your left hand playing guitar, SWITCH to classical style. If that still hurts, you're doing something wrong with your fingertips or thumb (the concave is wrong).

Now this generally works with everyone...


For Right Hand Technique: This is a little harder to pinpoint because a lot of people pick different, have big hands, have long arms, work out...guys like Marty Friedman will pick however the fck he wants and never feel any pain while if we did it, I guarantee you this face would not be one of awesome metal brutality.

http://api.ning.com/files/X55YygKly...K5YS*FlVAf4OcyYPXRjSgUaw__/MartyFriedman.jpeg


However, we could always give general advice...most people will say you want to use your wrist. I agree. Hold your hand up, and hold an imaginary pick...Then turn an imaginary doorknob. This is how your hand should feel when you're picking. I imagine it will be uber uncomfortable for people who've never done it before, and there WILL be a big loss of control first because you aren't used to it. For alternate picking...I heard it from Paul G himself that alternate picking is like funk guitar playing. You're just completely minimizing the technique, and bringing the motion of your wrist to just one or two strings.

Myself, I used to pick strange, kind of like how Paul Gilbert also used to pick funny. It took me 2 months to re-train my right hand to pick the "right" way and I've never regretted it since. I have tons of patience though...for that sort of thing.

If you send us a pic of your picking hand, it might be easier to give advice. Maybe you're doing something really really wrong and terrible and you don't know it...or maybe the way you're picking just isn't for you and you should change it to something else...


Anyway, hope that somewhat helped.



EDIT: By the way, you don't work out do you? The more you work out, the less finesse and the quicker your muscles get tense. They get used to brute motions instead of little delicate ones so that might affect your playing in a negative way as well (like when George Lynch started getting buff his playing suffered tremendously). Not saying you shouldn't work out (I do it myself), just make sure you're taking account of it, making sure you're resting properly, and making sure that you aren't forcing anything. After a day of intense exercise, I find it best to NOT play at all.

 

[Mordacain]

You are too tense. Practice on relaxing your arm while playing, because it could also lead to playing related injuries. In my opinion, something more important then playing fast is playing relaxed.

This is truth. I'm still training my picking arm to relax. I found when I tried progressing faster in picking speed that I was picking with my elbow and not my wrist as much. Try keeping the foream anchored and pick with the wrist while keeping loose.

Its definitely helping me both in accuracy and speed.

 

[Slavocracy]

For left hand technique: Make sure your thumb is behind the guitar neck, not around it. Also make sure your fingers are fretting right, using as much as your fingertips as possible. I've met many students who didn't know why their left hand fatigued so quickly, and usually it's because of bad fretting technique and/or the position of their thumb. I find people with bigger hands tend to do the "thumb around the neck a la Hendrix" more. Make sure when you're play leads or doing complicated riffing that your thumb is behind the neck, and that your index/thumb make sort of a "V" or "U" shape.

Also, playing classical style should be GOOD for your left hand. Why? Let me demonstrate it. Okay. Put your left hand on your lap, keeping your forearm straight on your leg, palm facing you. Then bend your wrist up like you're grabbing a guitar neck, while you keep your forearm on your leg. Now wiggle your fingers... Feel that tension? A lot of people tend to play like this when NOT playing classical style...this is what many people with bad technique feel. This can REALLY hurt your left hand bad and should be avoided.

Playing classical style, is more like holding your hand up straight. Forearm and wrist straight up, palm facing you. Now wiggle your fingers. MUCH LESS tension. This is why, if you're ever feeling any pain in your left hand playing guitar, SWITCH to classical style. If that still hurts, you're doing something wrong with your fingertips or thumb (the concave is wrong).

Now this generally works with everyone...


For Right Hand Technique: This is a little harder to pinpoint because a lot of people pick different, have big hands, have long arms, work out...guys like Marty Friedman will pick however the fck he wants and never feel any pain while if we did it, I guarantee you this face would not be one of awesome metal brutality.

http://api.ning.com/files/X55YygKly...K5YS*FlVAf4OcyYPXRjSgUaw__/MartyFriedman.jpeg


However, we could always give general advice...most people will say you want to use your wrist. I agree. Hold your hand up, and hold an imaginary pick...Then turn an imaginary doorknob. This is how your hand should feel when you're picking. I imagine it will be uber uncomfortable for people who've never done it before, and there WILL be a big loss of control first because you aren't used to it. For alternate picking...I heard it from Paul G himself that alternate picking is like funk guitar playing. You're just completely minimizing the technique, and bringing the motion of your wrist to just one or two strings.

Myself, I used to pick strange, kind of like how Paul Gilbert also used to pick funny. It took me 2 months to re-train my right hand to pick the "right" way and I've never regretted it since. I have tons of patience though...for that sort of thing.

If you send us a pic of your picking hand, it might be easier to give advice. Maybe you're doing something really really wrong and terrible and you don't know it...or maybe the way you're picking just isn't for you and you should change it to something else...


Anyway, hope that somewhat helped.



EDIT: By the way, you don't work out do you? The more you work out, the less finesse and the quicker your muscles get tense. They get used to brute motions instead of little delicate ones so that might affect your playing in a negative way as well (like when George Lynch started getting buff his playing suffered tremendously). Not saying you shouldn't work out (I do it myself), just make sure you're taking account of it, making sure you're resting properly, and making sure that you aren't forcing anything. After a day of intense exercise, I find it best to NOT play at all.

Excellent advise dude I'll try to keep mind of all that while I'm playing! I'm also doing some pre-guitarplay stretches as Jstring suggested.

One thing I've noticed as well is that when I palm mute, my whole arm tenses up, and if I try to relax it, my palm mutes sound dead and overly bassy, with not enough power. I'm not quite sure how to find a good balance... if I use too much power in my palm mutes, they sound great but my arm becomes tired almost immediately, and if I don't use enough then it just sounds like shit.

 

[BrianUV777BK]

Are you sure this arm/muscle pain is from playing guitar......

 

[Slavocracy]

Are you sure this arm/muscle pain is from playing guitar......

Hahah that's what my band said when I told them about this, nah it's definitely guitar related