Overuse?

nocTurnal

nocTurnal

Senior Member
I can't believe I am writing this. I thought I was practicing in a way that would prevent any kind of physical problems. I was even taught proper technique by my former teacher, and he even warned me about tendonitis. But lately I developed problems in my left wrist and a little bit in my foremarm. The right wrist is only slightly discomfort. I wouldn't go as far to say my left wrist is in "pain." However, if I have to pick up something heavy I do not use my left wrist. Do you think this kind of thing is inevitable? Have all you pros gone through this earlier in your drum career?

I do not believe this was from bad technique. It's got to be from overuse. It does seem too much of a coincidence that three weeks ago I got a Aquarian Tru-Bounce practice pad and the heavier sticks that came with it. So I was doing a lot of rudiment practice plus with heavier sticks (I usually use 7A). I did not think I was overdoing it, though. It could be the new Groove I'm learning in Tommy Igoe's Groove Essentials. I will practice those notes over and over. Maybe I was going on a bit too long on the same bar.
 
try raising your snare drum up an inch or two. i had the same problem and that seemed to fix it.

also more rebound from the snare seems to help too.
 
unfunkyfooted said:
try raising your snare drum up an inch or two. i had the same problem and that seemed to fix it.

also more rebound from the snare seems to help too.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the suggestion. There's no real of way figuring out what causes it right now. I think my snare is set high enough, but maybe it needs to go even higher. But then my shoulders will get tense if I do that. I think I might've been concentrating on same exercise for too long a period of time. It seems to be healing. Getting better each day.
 
If you're avoiding using your left wrist that would suggest you have an injury, best to get it looked at. Good technique should allow you to practice pretty much anything for an indefinite period without fatigue or injury, so it would seem logical that it's a technique issue. How does your LH technique match up to your RH? Are the grips/stick heights/ wrist movement identical in both hands?
 
Hey Noc,

I am in the same boat as you at the moment. both wrists have felt tense, with slight twinges and not as flexible as they used to be. For me i think this is from 2 things

Firstly for almost 10 months I have been practicing on an electric kit and practice pad for 3-4 hours most days.

The pad I have is the bill hyde pad and I think because it is rubber on wood and my electric kit has rubber cymbal pads and rubber rims they don't help as even with my grip being totally relaxed and my technique is fine the constant impact of the hard rubber isn't ideal.
I am gonna head down to my drum shop and check out some other practice pads to see if another one feels better.

Also i have been carrying a lot of tension in my neck recently which is probably a contributory factor. It may seem stupid but check how your bed is, how many pillows do you use and are they supportive. Also how much time do you spend on the computer? Do you have the gel wrist supports.

In order to combat my problem I am going to do some wrist exercises to build up some strength and aid recovery.
Firstly take a dumbell (a small one) and do wrist curls (only with your wrist...obviously) then reverse wrist curls. Do them really slowly and this should build up some more strength.

Let me know how you get on.

Dave
 
I had the same problem a few months ago after i switched to a pillow instead of a practice pad. My advice (if you are sure that its not your technique), reduce your practice time the next couple of days (or don't max on your current speed/endurance) and eat some more proteins.

If the problem stays, then i guess its your technique, or you play to tensed
 
nocTurnal said:
It's got to be from overuse. It does seem too much of a coincidence that three weeks ago I got a Aquarian Tru-Bounce practice pad and the heavier sticks that came with it. So I was doing a lot of rudiment practice plus with heavier sticks (I usually use 7A).
Click to expand...
I think this could be it. Heavier sticks just don't work the way your hands are used to, and the new pad surely isn't helping you adjust either.
 
Fiery said:
I think this could be it. Heavier sticks just don't work the way your hands are used to, and the new pad surely isn't helping you adjust either.
Click to expand...

Dave_Major said:
I am in the same boat as you at the moment. both wrists have felt tense, with slight twinges and not as flexible as they used to be. For me i think this is from 2 things

Firstly take a dumbell (a small one) and do wrist curls (only with your wrist...obviously) then reverse wrist curls. Do them really slowly and this should build up some more strength.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the help and support. I think I am nearly at 100% recovery. I did a test run yesterday and it felt pretty good. I only played for three minutes. I have been doing these wrist ergocises (thanks to another DW poster for that), ice massage and elbow massage. To do ice massage, I put water in a paper cup and freeze it. Then take cup out and rub it around arm like a massage. Elbow massage I do the same thing but with the opposite elbow/arm area. There is a video on YouTube by a massage therapist on how to do it. Don't press too hard or you'll bruise yourself.

The worst thing about all this is the momentum I lost. It's totally gone! I had some serious dedication going on there for a while. It's all gone now... I just hope I can gain it back. I'll be a little wary when I do after going through this. I guess no practice pad when I return.
 
nocTurnal said:
I guess no practice pad when I return.
Click to expand...
Practice pad is a very useful tool, just be smart about it. Start with the sticks you use for your everyday playing and let them rebound freely so your hands don't absorb most of the shock from the impact.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top