Hello and welcome back to Musician’s Maintenance where it’s my job to curate the often confusing healthcare and fitness landscapes to find the most relevant information for musicians interested in learning to maintain their body.
Here’s what I’ve got this week 1) The 5 biggest practice mistakes and what you can do about them 2) Exercises for upper back pain 3) The Pain Free Musician: Honor your body to master your art.
(Note: If you enjoy these newsletters, please consider forwarding this email to a friend, colleague, teacher or classmate. They can sign up here and then you won’t be the only one you know exercising your upper back).
Let’s go!
1) The 5 Biggest Practice Mistakes and What You Can Do About Them
There are some very predictable patterns that contribute to musicians getting injured. Here’s a nice article by Occupational Therapist Amanda Watson of The Well Musician (Insta) that goes over 5 of the most common patterns. They are…
- Not warming up
- Not warming up correctly
- Not taking rest breaks (or not taking them enough)
- Playing through pain
- Being too hard on yourself
Read the full article below to learn more about these mistakes and what you can do to avoid them.
Read: The 5 Biggest Practice Mistakes and What You Can Do About Them | The Well Musician via Medium
Sponsor: Rehab Science: Find a Physical Therapist
Do you have an injury that is limiting your playing, but are avoiding having it looked at because you don’t know who to see? Finding a good heath care practitioner can be very hard, but also very important in your recovery. To help, Tom Walters, DPT of Rehab Science has a program where you can provide your location and some information about your injury and he will help you identify the best physical therapists in your area. The cost is $49, but finding the right person sooner can save quite a bit of time and money in the long run. Learn more below.
Rehab Science: Find a Physical Therapist | (Affiliate: If you buy through this link, I get a small portion of the sale at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting the Musician’s Maintenance mission!)
2) Exercises for Upper Back Pain
Holding an instrument for hours at a time (or sitting in front of one) will often cause an ache in the upper back (or the thoracic spine if you want to get technical). Here’s a nice group of exercises from physical therapist Josh Elzey to address the area.
- Foam roll thoracic extension
- Sidelying thoracic rotations (one of my favorite exercises!)
- Cat-Camel
- Standing lat stretch
- Kneeling lat stretch (another one of my favorites!)
- Rows
- Prone T’s and Y’s
- Wall angels
The videos for each are in the link below. Clear out a little space and give them a try. Your upper back will thank you!
Move: Exercises for Upper Back Pain | Josh Elzey, DPT via Instagram
3) The Pain Free Musician: Honor Your Body to Master Your Art
There are very few high quality, self directed injury prevention and treatment courses out there for musicians. Here is one that looks very good. It’s by occupational therapist Heather Mogielnicki, who is a certified hand therapist and musician with her own injury story.
The course isn’t cheap ($488), but I think it is a good value. It is far and away the most comprehensive course out there with everything from information on how and why musicians experience injury, exercise programs, warm-ups, meditations, worksheets, a private facebook group and way more.
If you are experiencing an injury and have decided that you don’t want to see a healthcare practitioner, here is a self directed, private, and very high quality option. Click below to get all the details and see if it is right for you.
The Pain Free Musician: Honor Your Body to Master Your Art | Heather Mogielnicki, BFA, BS, OT/L, CHT