Is there anything you practice “religiously”?

I know a drummer who has been playing over 50 years, and claims in that time, not a day has gone by where he doesn’t do page 1 from Stick Control. Doesn’t matter if it Christmas, his birthday or someone died.

I can see the benefits of having a consistent warm up routine, but think one should mix it up to promote growth and avoid stagnation. How about you?

I was gonna mention this, and a few older drum corps flam and roll exercises that I like from the blue Devils '95 exercise book. My hands rarely sit idel/non-moving
 
When I was gigging I ran my feet for at least 2 hours every single day. I did this for years.

The smartass in me says singles, as we play them all the time when we play, whether we think of them as singles or not. The logical side of me agrees.

I need to add feet as well....doing that first page of Stone with my feet....good idea!
 
...and I find that anymore, I practice to maintain what I have built up and to keep up with my students

I don't want to be that instructor with "dad hands"
 
Up until life got in the way of being a drummer I practiced a lot, the back end of uni like four hours a day.

Nowadays I do a bit of pad work here and there and I have a mesh head snare shell that I do a bit on too.
 
Time, I practice my time playing every day. Moving the snare around the click, the bass drum around the click etc with every pattern I practice so when playing music I can have the biggest impact on the song in the right way.
 
Yes.
Just as one religiously makes the cross sign whenever they enter a church I religiously put earphones in and start a metronome whenever I start practicing.
I'm not sure whether I'd believe in god more if I did the former more often, but the latter certainly makes me believe in practice much more.
 
Sort of. I'll pick something I can't do, and stick with it until I can. Which can take me years, because I just don't spend as many hours behind the kit these days. Lately, it's the standard jazz ride pattern while comping...and NOT straying from the JRP. I'm finally starting to get that down after probably 3 years of trying. I don't feel very comfortable yet, so that will keep me busy for another few years. (I just don't play nearly as much as I used to, all around) When I think I sound...and feel... OK at something, maybe then I'll try something else I can't do. Right now I'm working on trying to incorporate buzzes on my snare hand to the JRP...without buzzing the JRP lol. There's also of course the 2 and 4 on the HH foot and using the BD as a tom once in a while. That's where I am lol
 
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I like to warm up with a modified Stone killer playing 5 strokes with each hand (and each foot), then 4 strokes each limb, then 3, then doubles, then singles and paradiddles and then go back up to 5 strokes. I start slow making sure I'm getting all my strokes full and even and then when my brain and fingers wake up work up my speed. I vary the repetitions depending on my brain and fingers waking up LOL.
 
Matt Patella would be one who claims to do SC religiously in it's basic for every day.

I think there should be some more thought to it, though. Make it so you have to use your mind as well, spend more time on those things that don't work as well, don't spend equal time on everything and get bored with stuff that's too much second nature and relate it to how you actually play and want to play. Mangini and Lang seem to have routines like this, but they put a little but they seem to have put a bit more thought into it.

The old things about nothing being difficult, you're just not used to it is a guiding principle in everything I do. That goes for how I teach others. It's amazing what you can achieve with even a young school band by just tweaking just that 10 min warm-up to make it progressive and fit what's required. Smart practice. Even if you only o it once a week there will actually be progress. Slow progress, but real progress none the less.
 
I started playing Three Camps every day a few years ago, following a suggestion made by Todd Bishop (Cruise Ship Drummer). I hardly ever use doubles when I play, so that little routine helps keep my doubles in reasonable shape for when I need them. (I use a modified version that's easier to play than the original.)
 
Even the simplest exercise can change completely and become more musical with just adding one accent.

e.g.

RRRL LLRR RLLL RLRR LLLR RRLL LRRR LRLL

to

RRRL LLRR RLLL RLRR LLLR RRLL LRRR LRLL
 
Just some basic rudiments to keep my hands & fingers limber: doubles, paradiddles, Swiss triplets etc.
 
I started playing Three Camps every day a few years ago, following a suggestion made by Todd Bishop (Cruise Ship Drummer). I hardly ever use doubles when I play, so that little routine helps keep my doubles in reasonable shape for when I need them. (I use a modified version that's easier to play than the original.)

That's a good candidate for that kind of practicing-- you can just play it a few times and you're done. For a while I was doing it as accented triplet singles with brushes on the hihat to work on my single stroke roll.
 
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