Stretches for Musicians
We all know stretching is important for athletes and gym-goers alike, but what about stretches for musicians? If you are a musician, you more than likely do a lot of sitting for a long period of time as you’re trying to master your craft. This is all wonderful and takes patience and dedication, but it can really take a toll on your body.
Being a musician myself, I have seen the first hand physical effects of long practice sessions, studio sessions and performances. As a guitar player, a lot of my discomfort comes from sitting and looking down at my instrument, which often manifests itself as neck, back and shoulder pain. And whether you’re a pianist, saxophonist, drummer or guitar player — this all may sound very familiar to you. These aches and pains will come and go, but I largely avoid these with just a simple dynamic stretching routine.
Dynamic Stretching
Research has shown that dynamic stretching, or “stretching with movement,” is the best way to avoid injury and get your body warmed up for whatever activity you are about take on. You will be doing these more for the postural component, but this will help you stave away that nagging neck and back pain that we so often complain about with long term playing.
Below are five simple and effective exercises that will keep us out of that forward head/rounded shoulder posture that can often be the catalyst to chronic issues in musicians.
Diaphragmatic breathing: Begin sitting in an upright position with one hand on your upper belly and your other hand on your chest. Take a deep breath in, feeling your stomach expand against your hand, then breathe out. Repeat. Tip: You should not feel any movement in your chest as you breathe.
Press up: Begin lying on your stomach, with your hands by your shoulders resting flat on the ground. Push against the floor with your hands, bending your back upward.
Seated thoracic rotation: Begin sitting upright in a chair. Cross your arms in front of you, placing one arm on each shoulder. Bend forward, hinging at your mid-back, then slowly rotate your trunk to one side, then return to center and rotate to the other side.
Chest openers: Begin in an upright standing position with your arms by your sides. Bend your elbows to approximately 90 degrees with your palms up. Slowly rotate your forearms out to the side. As you do so, pinch your shoulder blades down and back together. Pause briefly, then return to the starting position and repeat.
Cervical retractions: Begin sitting in an upright position with your feet flat on the floor. Gently draw your chin in, while keeping your eyes fixed on something in front of you. Make sure that you do not look down as you do this exercise, or bend your neck forward.
Performing just one set (8-10 repetitions) of these stretches before and after practice and performance sessions can really make a difference in how your body feels and mitigate any chronic musculoskeletal issues. And who knows, maybe it will improve your playing!
If you have any questions about this topic, feel free to reach out to us at info@keprospt.com.
Garrett Testroet, PTA