# Why is my picking hand not working???



## cosmicamnesia (Feb 18, 2009)

..well i know im probably in a rut as usual when this happens, but its lasting way longer than most other times and there is no real reason that i can find why...

the problem is that my pick hand is for some reason completely fucked....i can usually play 16th note alternate picking runs very cleanly at 250 bpm without any problem at all....but these last couple weeks, its completely sloppy and horrible....ive noticed that my forearm/wrist always starts to tence up real bad (it never used to) and i cant control my picking hand as well...its also affecting my sweeps and string skipping stuff too....granted my practicing hasnt been nearly as focused for a few months, but im still playing everyday and i use a metronome frequently.....

any help is appreciated


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## Xaios (Feb 18, 2009)

Could be getting tendonitis, so you may want to rest up the wrist a bit. One time I got it so bad my whole arm went numb for 3 days. THAT sucked. Also, maybe you're playing your guitar at a slightly different strap height then you used to, that might be contributing as well.


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## Stealthdjentstic (Feb 18, 2009)

Although i cant play any of the stuff you mentioned or at that speed I go through temporarily ligimental retardation all the time. Usually if i play loads of videogames before guitar. Maybe lay off those if you do.


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## cosmicamnesia (Feb 18, 2009)

Xaios said:


> Could be getting tendonitis, so you may want to rest up the wrist a bit. One time I got it so bad my whole arm went numb for 3 days. THAT sucked. Also, maybe you're playing your guitar at a slightly different strap height then you used to, that might be contributing as well.




well you nailed that one on the head...i already have tendonitis///you think thats why i cant control when it tenses up?



Stealthtastic said:


> Although i cant play any of the stuff you mentioned or at that speed I go through temporarily ligimental retardation all the time. Usually if i play loads of videogames before guitar. Maybe lay off those if you do.


 

temporarily ligimental retardation....no videogames for me dude.....maybe you should lay off lol


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## Mr. Big Noodles (Feb 18, 2009)

> ...at 250 bpm...


There's your problem!

But really, let your arm rest for a while. I messed up my arm helping someone move, and I couldn't lift a pick for a week (well, I couldn't grip it). When I came back to guitar, I had to get my technique back online, but it didn't take long. Your body needs to rest to repair itself.

I think musicians put way too much into their practice sessions; I was talking to a saxophonist today who fainted over the weekend after he got a little too into it.


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## loktide (Feb 18, 2009)

> granted my practicing hasnt been nearly as focused for a few months



i think this is your problem. 250bpm is quite a mark, imo, and you'll have to practice intensively and continuously to keep it. 
With me, i've noticed that as soon as i stop playing guitar for 1 or 2 days, i'll take me a few days again to get my technique back to where it was.


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## wannabguitarist (Feb 18, 2009)

loktide said:


> i think this is your problem. 250bpm is quite a mark, imo, and you'll have to practice intensively and continuously to keep it.
> With me, i've noticed that as soon as i stop playing guitar for 1 or 2 days, i'll take me a few days again to get my technique back to where it was.





Also, do you work out at all? I've noticed my picking hand really sucks if I try playing after I get home from the gym.


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## thesimo (Feb 18, 2009)

4000 notes/minute? 

unless your cheating and playing normal notes at 250bpm  4 notes/sec sounds more likely than 66


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## Excalibur (Feb 18, 2009)

I seriously doubt you can play 16th notes cleanly at 250 BPM.
Your picking hand isn't fucked, you're simply trying to shoot for a target that even the most incredible players would struggle with.


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## thesimo (Feb 18, 2009)

yea petrucci cant even play that in his dvd


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## ShadyDavey (Feb 18, 2009)

Thats over 16nps alternate picked - not saying you can't do it but thats a very serious velocity. If you don't maintain your chops then chances are you're just out of practice and forcing the issue which leads to you tensing up....and slowing down as a consequence. 

So - relax, take it easy and get your technique back up to shape slowly. If you did it once you can do it again unless you're actually experiencing pain in any shape - if you are thats a different matter entirely.


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## Maniacal (Feb 21, 2009)

I think 250 is probably all the speed you are going to need. If you can play cleanly for long periods of time at 250 then you can probably do bursts at 280? So dont worry about it, just focus of maintaining 250.



thesimo said:


> yea petrucci cant even play that in his dvd



So because Petrucci cant do it, nobody can?


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## Koshchei (Feb 21, 2009)

Excalibur said:


> I seriously doubt you can play 16th notes cleanly at 250 BPM.
> Your picking hand isn't fucked, you're simply trying to shoot for a target that even the most incredible players would struggle with.



It is not that hard to play 1000 notes a minute (assuming you're treating each beat as a quarter note). It just takes a lot of practice to keep your playing clean. Note that most people will only hear a glissando at that speed. 

If you insist on keeping your technique at this level (which imo is a little bit ridiculous unless you have something to play that requires those sorts of gymnastics), make sure to warm up VERY thoroughly before you start playing at this speed, and get a potassium supplement into your diet - ie eat lots of bananas or drink gatorade. It was explained to me by a physio-therapist that potassium lubricates the tendon sheathes, and if you aren't getting enough (and/or aren't warming up properly), they can get inflamed and put a ton of pressure on your tendons, which can cause them to tear, potentially ending your musical career permanently. 

When I was young and stupid, I gave myself a case of tendonitis so bad that I couldn't even hold a pencil it hurt so much. It cost me 3-4 months of not playing guitar. Now, I'm old and stupid.


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## ShadyDavey (Feb 21, 2009)

> make sure to warm up VERY thoroughly before you start playing at this speed, and get a potassium supplement into your diet



Definately - got told the same thing vis a vis stretching for martial arts. Same applies here for both hands. 



> Now, I'm old and stupid



Hey, snap


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## sPliNtEr_777 (Feb 22, 2009)

Koshchei said:


> When I was young and stupid, I gave myself a case of tendonitis so bad that I couldn't even hold a pencil it hurt so much. It cost me 3-4 months of not playing guitar. Now, I'm old and stupid.


 
Snap! Happened to me last summer- I was practicing downstroking, cuz my mate bet me I could'nt downstroke as fast as he could alternate, which was about 225bpm; I must've got to about 200-215bpm, dunno, but after a week of this speed I just couldnt move my fingers/wrist anymore... Needless to say I lost the bet, but I still reckon I'm one of the fastest downstrokers I know of... although I'm nowhere as fast anymore.


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## cosmicamnesia (Mar 3, 2009)

Excalibur said:


> I seriously doubt you can play 16th notes cleanly at 250 BPM.
> Your picking hand isn't fucked, you're simply trying to shoot for a target that even the most incredible players would struggle with.




lol...lets put it this way, i can play along with petrucci's leads note for note cleanly and lately i haven't been able to.....i resumed practicing for hours a day with a metronome for about the last week and there was a slight improvement, but i also starting stretching before my regular warmup licks...i hope everything's back to normal soon

thanks for all the advice guys


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## Maniacal (Mar 3, 2009)

cosmicamnesia said:


> lol...lets put it this way, i can play along with petrucci's leads note for note cleanly and lately i haven't been able to.....i resumed practicing for hours a day with a metronome for about the last week and there was a slight improvement, but i also starting stretching before my regular warmup licks...i hope everything's back to normal soon
> 
> thanks for all the advice guys



Petrucci does not pick at 250bpm 16ths


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## ShadyDavey (Mar 3, 2009)

Maniacal said:


> Petrucci does not pick at 250bpm 16ths





He wishes he could. According to Willjay and the UG guys he tops out at about 14-15nps (a very clean 14-15 nps it has to be said). 16ths at 250 is nearly 17nps (16.7) and thats a significant difference.


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## Maniacal (Mar 3, 2009)

Petrucci couldnt even play 216bpm with the chromatic exercise on his dvd. 

So because you can play Petrucci stuff means you are only picking maybe 220bpm max. 

250 is a few years of hard practice away from 220.


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## Scar Symmetry (Mar 3, 2009)

wow. this has turned into a 'I can play this fast' thread.


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## ShadyDavey (Mar 3, 2009)

Not really - Its merely illustrating the difference between perceptual speed and actual speed which is quite an important component in the mental process of developing technique. 

Besides which......where there are guitar players there are bound to be comparisons of playing speed so while I don't think is anything like as bad as some of the threads on other forums as long as it doesn't develop into a wankfest its fine


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## Scar Symmetry (Mar 5, 2009)

well you were actually offering advice to the threadstarter, sorry I should've quoted Splinter's post



> I still reckon I'm one of the fastest downstrokers I know of


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## thesimo (Mar 5, 2009)

sPliNtEr_777 said:


> I still reckon I'm one of the fastest downstrokers I know of... although I'm nowhere as fast anymore.



Bet you couldnt play Threat Signal - Beyond Recognition


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## ShadyDavey (Mar 5, 2009)

Scar Symmetry said:


> well you were actually offering advice to the threadstarter, sorry I should've quoted Splinter's post



Ah, that always happens - people get caught up in the "I can has more notes in a minute than other people". There was a bit of a discussion on the GG boards yesterday about it and while its understandable its something you grow out of - I know I had to


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## Scar Symmetry (Mar 5, 2009)

ShadyDavey said:


> Ah, that always happens - people get caught up in the "I can has more notes in a minute than other people". There was a bit of a discussion on the GG boards yesterday about it and while its understandable its something you grow out of - I know I had to



QFT, I could make a point of the fact that I can shred at XXXbpm (101 ) comfortably but I don't feel the need to. fast shredding doesn't mean anything anyway, people like Rustey Cooley can play at ridiculous speeds but it doesn't sound any good.


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## ShadyDavey (Mar 5, 2009)

It can all sound a bit pants at times. its true. The wonderful thing about picking is that it can be used to develop face-crushing rhythms as well  I'm sure I had a good article on picking specifically for that actually - must go and see if I can find it as its a really good workout for odd-meter playing, and endurance.


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## freepower (Mar 21, 2009)

Back on topic - I think you have been relying on vibratory muscle movements to gain this speed of yours and now you're feeling the backlash. When I hit this problem I totally (totally) relearnt my right hand technique from scratch. I suggest you do the same. Worst case scenario, you lose a year or two. Best case scenario, you prevent guitar-ending RSI problems and seriously clean up your playing forever.


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## cosmicamnesia (Mar 22, 2009)

i actually solved the problem...at least i think i did....my chiropractor suggested i start stretching out hard before i play and it seems to be working.....it was tendonitis but i starting taking lots of anti-inflammatorys and doing the stretches and now there's not much tensing up at all....even during super heavily picked rythms, so needless to say im pretty happy


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## ShadyDavey (Mar 22, 2009)

Thats a result then - all's well that ends well


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## Mr. Big Noodles (Mar 22, 2009)

So, in summary:

It's important to stretch properly if you're going to downstroke quickly, lest you get backlash from your vibratory muscle movement.


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## cosmicamnesia (Mar 22, 2009)

SchecterWhore said:


> So, in summary:
> 
> It's important to stretch properly if you're going to downstroke quickly, lest you get backlash from your vibratory muscle movement.



exactly


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## cob (Dec 20, 2009)

hahaha petrucci's like fuck that's hella fast. I can't play it so you shouldn't even bother.


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