Speedpicking Tension, my shoulder hurts Options

[gardner]

hello all gmc's.. i have been practicsing speedpick somedays.. but i allways end up with my shoulder hurts alot after around 20-30 minutes of practicsing..

i think my problem is that i dont relax when practicsing.. but i find it hard to relax when i have to count in my head, 1, 2, 3, 4. for keeping the eveness. and got a clue of what my problem is..

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[AIB234]

Is it possible that maybe you are playing too fast?

Not necessarily to your ability to play that fast, but I know when I play something that challenges my speed I tense up too.

Maybe try playing the same thing a little slower and see if you're still tensing up. It may just take more time and practice with counting while playing before you can play to the full speed potential without counting.

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[The Uncreator]

I had a similar problem a few years back, basically, what i did, was relax all my muscles, and only use my wrist for picking, very little arm movement (thats how i play), and i kept my muscles relaxed while i played, and didnt try to play to fast, or to a point where it feels as if youre trying to hard to reach high speed.

Eventually after enough practice, it should go away, your muscles will adjust. and one more thing, try stretching your arms before you practice, it helps alot, i recommend looking up Petruccis Rock Discipline video, he has some good exercises that get your muscles ready.

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[wheeler]

Look at yourself in the mirror and wave to yourself for a little while, just using your wrist, like the Queen. Now flex your arm, wrist to shoulder, and wave to yourself for a little while. Now do the same thing with a pick in your hand. See where I'm going with this?

If you are using the muscles all the way up your arm to pick, then you will eventually be able to play certain licks/runs/whatever pretty fast....but it will be muscle memory and nothing more. Look up Rusty Cooley or Jason Becker (please no "cooley and becker suck malmsteen rules etc....replies) on Youtube and look at how relaxed their arms are when they're at full shred. They could play like that all day, and make it up as they go, because there's no tension in their arms so they are free to move about as they please. I totally screwed myself by playing from the shoulder and the elbow when I was first learning....now I'm using this site to help UNLEARN those habits 15 years later. PLAY FROM THE WRIST as much as possible.

Sorry for the long post, but it's really important.

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[Brandon2002]

think of it as weightlifting.. your not going to be able to start out lifting as much as you possibly can.. take your time, keep your muscles relaxed, and eventually your speed and endurance will build. try some stretching, or using some small free weights, anything to relax and warm the muscle up, that is key.
i agree with wheeler, playing from your wrist has benefits, your less likely to get fatigued and less likely to get injured.

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[Andrew Cockburn]

think of it as weightlifting.. your not going to be able to start out lifting as much as you possibly can.. take your time, keep your muscles relaxed, and eventually your speed and endurance will build. try some stretching, or using some small free weights, anything to relax and warm the muscle up, that is key.
i agree with wheeler, playing from your wrist has benefits, your less likely to get fatigued and less likely to get injured.

Good analogy - I'm at the building stamina stage - every time I up the metronome, for a while I tire easily, but as I get used to the new speed, my endurance also increases. I also play better at the end of a practice session than I do at the beginning as long as I haven;t tired my muscles out too much - warm ups are important, don;t try for your ultimate speed right away.

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