Drummers with Tendonitis, etc.

[Jonesy]

I'm sure there are a few drummers on this site who've experienced the pains (literally and figuratively) of tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, etc. I'm just wondering how you guys got over your injuries. More specifically:

- what stretching exercises did you use?
- What warmup exercises did you use?
- How long did you stretch/warm up?

I'm just trying to make sure that, after the break I'm on now is over, I can resume my drumming with enough knowledge to ensure that I don't have to take another 2 month break from the thing I love the most :)

[Jonesy]

Nothing at all guys?!

[pbm2112]

Hi - I've had really bad problems with repetitive strain injury from working on computers for my career (I'm a graphic designer). It effects my neck, elbows wrist and fingers. Bummer. I wrote a post a few years ago with my thoughts at the time - hopefully there's something there of interest:

http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30886

Good luck!!

[zambizzi]

NO stretching here, ever. When I did, even the slightest stretching caused more irritation, not relief.

Warm up properly and there's no need, IMO.

I spent a few minutes just getting the blood moving. That might mean going for a short walk or just jogging around the room for a few minutes, rubbing my hands together, etc.

I then spend 10 minutes doing 16th. note singles at 40-60 bpm, breathing and relaxing. I move on to my rudiments routine and by the time I'm done, I'm plenty warmed up to play however I want with no pain or stress.

After 2 years, this is the formula that made my pain go away...along with working on technique *every single day*.

[Jonesy]

Thanks a lot guys, both your posts should prove to be extremely helpful.

Zambizzi: it's odd that you found stretching to be so painful/unhelpful. From what I've read so far, stretching is the second most recommended action next to warming up.

[zambizzi]

Thanks a lot guys, both your posts should prove to be extremely helpful.

Zambizzi: it's odd that you found stretching to be so painful/unhelpful. From what I've read so far, stretching is the second most recommended action next to warming up.

Even light stretching can cause new damage and exacerbate existing damage to soft tissue. It's easy to over-do it, also. When you're talking about hands, wrists, and forearms, you're talking about very small muscles and connective tissues. It's not the same as stretching your thighs before a jog.

If you warm up properly, stretching really isn't necessary, IMO. Both are means of getting blood into the tissues...one is safer than the other.

That's just my opinion.

[GRUNTERSDAD]

The only problem I tend to have drumming is with my hands. If they tend to bother me I run them under hot water for a good passive warm-up. Flexing the fingers as I let the hot water run on them. Maybe 5 minutes and the old bones start to warm up and the blood starts flowing.

[Thaard]

I don't know what i have, but its probably repetetive strain injury. What works for me is light stretching with the thumb and the fingers and massage the arm lightly(where the pain usually is). Then i warm up carefully with singles, doubles, paradiddles, 6 stroke roll etc, for about 20 minutes. Works wonders. Also, relax your fingers and if you're playing hard, its wise to grab the stick with the pinky and the ring-finger and let the others go, since you're using your wrist. Also, don't play faster than you can, meaning that you dont clench the stick when you're trying to play faster.

Also, relax your shoulders and sit up straight.

[smaolach]

hej

as i started practicing really serious (daily, lots of pad-work) and at the same time got me a vdrum (that "silent practice or no practice"-thing), after some weeks i got some serious pain in my right wrist (thought it would be a good idea to use some tree-thick clubs to strenghten them haha).
as i wasn't sure if it was tendonitis or something, i gave me a full break of two weeks and went to the doctor. it wasn't tendonitis but i think i was as close as one can be, but the pain went away after some acupuncture-sessions (which gave me a complete new consciousness about my whole arm btw).
since then i do serious warm-up and stretching (in this order(!!!)) exercises before, after and between gettin my sticks down, i also like to juggle as i find it to be very loosening my shoulders, arms and wrists. so with exercise blocks of 20 to 30 and rests of 5 to 10 minutes i can practice the whole day without feeling any pain or sore in the evening. some longer stretching for the arms after finishing practice is essential in my opinion, because it prevents stressed muscles from shorten to much (which is as i was told the most common reason for things like tendonitis).
like others said the most important thing is to be relaxed. always. many untrained drummes i know underestimate by the way how much loosening up affects your sound in a very positive way.
warming up before playing helped me also to gain an awareness of my body, which helps me alot to get my moves down in a controlled, relaxed and ergonomical way.

all the best

btw excuse my english; im swiss and i learnd it at school, from computergames and drummer-vids

[Jonesy]

More excellent replies, guys. Thanks a million!

[ace76543]

Even light stretching can cause new damage and exacerbate existing damage to soft tissue. It's easy to over-do it, also. When you're talking about hands, wrists, and forearms, you're talking about very small muscles and connective tissues. It's not the same as stretching your thighs before a jog.

If you warm up properly, stretching really isn't necessary, IMO. Both are means of getting blood into the tissues...one is safer than the other.

That's just my opinion.

I have tendonitis and I've tried everything to make it go away. Finally I went to a physiotherapist and she told me to stretch, and it's helped a lot in only a week or so.

To OP: Stop drumming altogether. Don't even touch your sticks. Drumming more WILL (not can, will) cause further injury.

http://www.ergocise.com/wrists.html

Do "stop!" and "break at the wrist", except for break at the wrist, put your thumb under your wrist so it almost acts as a fulcrum. This is what my therapist has told me.

Anyhoo, if it hurts to stretch DON'T STRETCH. Just let your arms rest for a few weeks. If it doesn't hurt to stretch stretch 3 times a day, 3 times a session. In any case, DON'T PLAY DRUMS ANYMORE

[makinao]

I have had really bad tendinitis of the knees flare up twice in the past 5 years. My ortho mapped out the following:
1) Stop all activities that aggravated it for at least 3 weeks. In my case it was running and tennis.
2) Reduce the pain and/or inflammation with ice and anti-infamatory drugs, but only when needed.
3) Lose weight
4) Wear a knee support to prevent further injuries
5) When the pain goes away, begin light flexibility and strengthening exercises.
6) Resume activities that aggravated it slowly when pain is minimal, and strength and flexibility has returned
7) Warm up before play, and do some light stretching when muscles are warm.
7) Wean from knee supports.
It took about 2 months before I could play tennis again, and another three months before I was able to play at the same level before the injury. I stopped running altogether, but have resumed tennis. I've also had tennis elbow (though not caused by tennis) twice, and except for the weight loss, I followed the same program. At 51, I can't recover from injuries, or warm up as fast as when I was younger. My stamina is still pretty good, but I have to be very careful of my muscles and joints.

[Jonesy]

Again, thanks for the replies, guys. There's some really good advice here, but above all, it helps to know that there are many other people in the same boat as I.

[JoeLackey]

For me, personally, stretching does help my hand/tendon pain. I stretch each finger back individually and hold it there for a good three to five seconds. This link is a picture of the stretch (do with all fingers):

http://www.garyflegal.com/Image4.gif


There are various stretching routines online, also.

[BillBachman]

I think it's almost totally a matter of technique. Your body naturally wants to grab the stick and club things which makes you take a lot of shock through tension. Learning finesse and looseness is the key to drumming hours on end everyday with no strain or injury.

I'm certainly not calling you a tight clubber, but every student I've ever taken on has started out doing too much work and then redefined their mechanics to attain smooth flowing hands.

[nick.bedford]

Correct, relaxed technique is obviously the first remedy if you can't just go cold turkey on the drums, which for most of us, is the case unfortunately.

If you've got good technique and your wrists are tight, it's probably best to reduce the amount of work they have to do. I guess a simple explanation would be "play rock ballads, instead of insane metal".

I have tendonitis or RSI of some sort in my right forearm and I am able to play enough (say10-15 hours a week whether in the band or by myself), but I'm mainly a rock drummer and my drum parts / practice don't involve a great deal of complex and fatiguing exercises so I'm able to keep it under control.