Wow, my fingers hurt

steteak

I will, thank you @Jazzaferri

Bones

Yes, no reason to push too hard especially since you just need to release/damp it right after the strum anyway.

guitarnowski

If you're going to get one of those spring loaded strength trainers, be careful not to overuse it. I gave myself a heck of a case of tendonitis once from getting a little to enthused about using one.
In an unrelated event, after some minor hand surgery the physical therapist gave me some pink clay-type stuff for squeezing and building strength, and it's quite nice with apparently fewer risks to your tendons. Really, it feels great to use it!

Buco

swingnation wrote: »

Here's a great tool I learned from Stephane Wrembel for strengthening your fingers..


J

Thank you for sharing this! I'm gonna use it.

I don't buy using strengthening devices for instrument playing. Really?
I don't think you need anything but the time on your instrument. If you think you need more then what your guitar can already provide stick a higher bridge in there, that'll give you a workout.

Buco

anthon_74

Dude, when I was in about my 3rd year playing django on a selmer style guitar, I got bad tendinitis in both wrists. I think its a right of passage for all players to go through a physical adjustment when learning this style.
Sometimes I find you just have to ease up a bit, or really vary what you're practicing so you limit the amount of repetitive motion stress.

Cheers
Anthony

Jazzaferri

I think building up atrength in ones fingers with a squeezing device is likely going to slow you down....wrong muscles and wrong type of exercise

Jazzaferri

If you really need to strengthen fingers for this ....practicing something like the changes for swing 42 up the fretboard where the action is highest......play it until you get the burn...stop...rest until recovered then repeat several times

steteak

@Jazzaferri Thank you, I will try that. Between the Wrembel exercise and four note chords and transposition of Swing '42 up the neck, I can feel and hear a difference. I can slowly play the progression! How do some of you approach increasing your ability to play faster progressions?

kevingcox

Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.

Jazzaferri

AMEN