***Drummer Health: How you keep your body goin'

marosell

Junior Member
I had an idea to see what kinds of input some of you have on general drummer health. Here are a bunch of ideas and questions I have, but feel free to take it elsewhere as long as it pertains to health, food, exercise (not technique exercises, but muscle exercises), etc. Basically, I'm curious to know what kinds of things you do to keep your drummin' bodies in shape for the kinds of drumming you do.

Is exercising part of your daily drumming routine to keep your body up to speed? General toning, situps, pushups, back strength workouts, running, tennis? What is your routine?

You should always stretch before playing/practicing, but what kinds of stretches do you find most helpful, and on which muscle groups?

When you practice a lengthy set, what kinds of fluids do you keep on hand, and how often do you take a break, get up, stretch, take a walk, etc? What kinds of snacks do you keep on hand?

In terms of hand-health, have you ever had problems with nail growth, nail biting, failing nerve endings, or other things that caused pain/discomfort which inhibited your playing, and if so, how did you correct/overcome/heal them? How about your feet?

To make sure you have "one of those good practice days", how much sleep do you get the night before?

What kinds of hearing protection do you find most effective in terms of more db-reduction, with less clarity-reduction?

Some other ideas:
  • Posture
  • Injuries
  • Diets
  • Over exhaustion
  • Forms of mental exhaustion
  • Experiences with over the counter treatments, i.e. IcyHot, back braces, Dr. Scholl's shoe inserts, etc.

Have fun, and I hope everyone has a happy, safe and healthy holiday!
 
Wait a second...the part about the nerves...

There's this thing on the back of my neck, you can't see it, but when I lean over, bend down, or turn my neck a certain way at certain times (especially when adjusting my gear while drumming) it feels like someone pinched it, REALLY hard, like a stinging kind of.

Do you know what this is?
 
Diet:
Avoid sugar and excessive salt. Drink a lot of water. I always have water on hand when playing and drink about a gallon a day. Make sure you balance your protein and (complex) carbohydrate intake to rebuild torn-down tissue from playing (or working out, etc.)

Sleep:
It's recommended that you get 6-8 hrs. of sleep at night...I get about 7 most nights and that's the bare minimum for me to feel alert and ready to play at night.

Hand-Health:
I'm mostly over a year+ long bout with chronic tendonitis. Bad technique and over-exertion brought it on. Good technique and common sense helped clear it up.

Stretching:
I will never do this again...not on my arms, anyhow.

Workout/Exercise:
I used to be an avid weight-trainer, power-lifter, etc. Now I lift very sparsely and only do high-repetition weight training. I don't want to bulk up and slow down. I like to play b-ball too.

Hearing Protection:

I use those 3-step Hear-o's when I play w/ the band and sound-isolation ear-plug headphones when practicing. I try to always use ear protection.

Posture:
I noticed that with bad posture came bad technique...for me anyhow. Sitting upright but relaxed helped encourage proper technique. Strange how that is.

That's all I can think of for now!
 
Drumming isn't all that physically demanding. If you have problems keeping up to speed behind the kit, you have other problems.

Not to be a party pooper, but everyone in here should physically be able to withstand even a few minutes of Derek Roddy style drumming. Drumming shouldn't be a reason to exercise or eat well, it should be a life choice that unfortunately many of us don't choose.

And my contribution to the positive side of this thread:

The only way you will notice a difference in your drumming stamina is with dramatic changes such as eating extremely well and routinely running. Small things like drinking lots of water or avoiding simple sugars aren't going to get your through that Joey Jordison drum solo (sorry Zambizzi).
 
Drumming isn't all that physically demanding.

The only way you will notice a difference in your drumming stamina is with dramatic changes such as eating extremely well and routinely running. Small things like drinking lots of water or avoiding simple sugars aren't going to get your through that Joey Jordison drum solo (sorry Zambizzi).


Slight contradiction there. Unless you're badly out of shape there should be no need to 'train' away from the drums to improve stamina on them. Well developed technique/ efficient action should take care of any stamina issue. Similarly, stretching before getting sticks in hand is unnecessary - a decent hand and foot warmup built up from low speeds will warm up the moving parts.
 
I don't have any particular exercises or diet that I do for drumming. I work on cars for a living so I get a stretch and go workout each day. I always meditate before I play. I find that meditation is the only way to get my mind in the relaxed mood for playing. I try to meditate for about a half an hour before a gig. I go to a quite place and I close my eyes (usually in my truck after I set up my kit). I clear my mind from the nonsense of the day, I always hold sticks in my hands. I play gently on my thighs while I clear my mind. I simply play whatever comes to my blank mind. I also tap my feet at the same time. Next I drink one Sam Adams Light beer or one shot of vodka and a Lemon/Lime Gator Aid. Now I am ready to play. This is the only way that I have found that relaxes me enough so that I can play well. After this routine, I can focus on the music. If I don't have time to perform this ritual, My playing suffers a bit.
 
Drumming isn't all that physically demanding. If you have problems keeping up to speed behind the kit, you have other problems.

Not to be a party pooper, but everyone in here should physically be able to withstand even a few minutes of Derek Roddy style drumming. Drumming shouldn't be a reason to exercise or eat well, it should be a life choice that unfortunately many of us don't choose.

boy, you got that right!

I would always have a hearty chuckle when someone would mention how long John Bonham was able to solo during Moby Dick. What's the big deal? The guy was a working pro drummer, he should be able to play for 20-25 minutes without keeling over. And it's not like he was going all out during the whole solo. Jeez!
 
My friend is a guitarrist and while i drive to the set i listen to trance music.. somehow makes us concentrate a bit more on the music, also it works with any music tha is not what we are going to play makes us focus on the practice... and most of all have fun while playing have some jokes works nice to relaxxx a bit
 
Small things like drinking lots of water or avoiding simple sugars aren't going to get your through that Joey Jordison drum solo (sorry Zambizzi).

Well, to be clear - these are general guidelines for good health...things I did long before I ever started drumming. When I feel good I play better. When I don't sleep enough and eat poorly I don't play as well and my *interest* in playing is less.

It's common sense, that's all. What you do w/ your body is your business...I honestly couldn't care less.
 
A lot of agitation, so walking and jogging. Taking care of what i eat. So to say looking after physical health. But i think its also very important to take attention to mental health, because you cant play well, without feeling well.
 
When you practice a lengthy set, what kinds of fluids do you keep on hand,

Beer.

yep...me to

i appreciate what you are trying to achieve with this thread...however without trying to sound like a total douche...its pointless.

theres absolutely no correlation for how healthy your life style is and playing the drums (minus a few examples like perhaps if your a junkie).

a fat person who doesnt have a lot of stamina can play the drums just aswel as a person who has the super healthy lifestyle approach you have put forward. eating fruit and veg and drinking lots of water isnt going to improve your drum technique...practice is.

for me personally...i work in an office, i get little to no exercise, i drink lots of alcohol when im out with friends and on week days i get on average about 4 hours sleep a night (weekends about 12 - 14 hours). None of this ever has any effect on my drumming. The only thing that has an effect on my drumming is how much i practice.

when im gigging i generally drink beer. i limit myself to no more than 3 pints before i go on and i generally bring another pint on stage with me and a pint of water.
 
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