When I was getting up close to my 45th birthday and pushing 215 pounds… I knew I had to make some changes…
I used to be an avid cyclist, riding usually close to 200 miles a week, and that kept me down between 175 and 185, but it had been a few years since I’d ridden regularly, and it showed.
I actually like exercising, and I’d tried a few of the usual gym chains and tried to get into a routine but it really wasn’t working out. I also tried a couple of Crossfit gyms because I liked the idea of combining weight training with endurance training and the variety on a day to day basis.
Fortunately, after a few shaky starts, I started to get into a groove (which means I found the right coach/teacher), and can now tell you that not only am I back around 180 or less, I feel better than I have in years… but that’s not really the point (I just didn’t want to leave you hanging with that.)
You see, one of the main things about Crossfit is that every WOD (Workout Of the Day) is scalable – and that’s a really important concept.
If the workout involves doing 10 bench presses at bodyweight, and you can’t do even 1 at your bodyweight, 2 bad things will happen:
- You will fail the workout, and feel like this is too hard and likely quit.
- No matter how hard you try, you won’t get a very good workout or make much progress getting fitter because you won’t actually do anything. Pushing on a bar that’s not going to move isn’t doing much for you in the long run.
On the other hand, let’s say that you are realistic with yourself and say, “There’s no way I can do that, but maybe I could do 10 at half my body weight?”
When you do that, 2 GOOD things will happen:
- You will probably succeed at the workout, and feel better on the other side. That good feeling leads to more workouts and more progress!
- You will get a good workout because you will actually do work. Your muscles will work, go through their range of motion, and you will get your heart rate up and enjoy al of the benefits of your exercise session.
But… you might think, what if you can’t even do half your body weight?
No problem, do an empty bar if you have to, but scale to what is difficult and not impossible.
When you play guitar, you can scale what you play in a few different ways:
- If the rhythm figure (strum pattern, riff, etc.) is too hard to you to do while changing chords, just play quarter note down strums on the down beats and worry about changing the chords.
- If the lick is too fast, slow it down. If it’s still too fast, slow it down more. If it’s still too fast, slow it down more (get the idea?)
- If you feel like you can’t count out loud while you play, slow down and put the counting first and make the notes match, not the other way around.
- If playing a full barre chord is too hard, play just the lowest 2 or 3 notes and let your first finger mute the rest of the strings out.
- If there is a certain chord that is too hard, try substituting a similar chord that might sound just as good (E7 in place of E9, for example.)
And there are probably dozens of other little ways you can make certain songs or lessons easier as you need to. Later on, you can scale them up, but you’ll actually improve faster by keeping things reasonable now.
46 replies to "Guitars And Workouts…"
Well I’m not alone….reading all the comments, it’s clear many of us retired folks (I’m 73) are trying to learn and struggle with making progress in exercise, guitar, keeping up with technology and other challenges now that we supposedly have the time. I am sitting here commenting when I should be out walking in our SoCal 75 degree January sunshine.
After 5 years on crutches (foot ulcers), a dozen surgeries including a lower leg amputation 3.5 years ago, i am now fairly mobile. I decided to actually learn guitar after 50 years of on again / off again attempts as life got in the way. So in between my rehab, I read, practiced, and immersed myself on learning as much as I can about guitar. (probably spent way too much time gathering knowledge, watching hundreds of videos by dozens of on-line teachers [Griff is the BEST] and adding too many genres to my playlists.) All of that costs playing time. I too am frustrated that everything takes so much longer to understand, absorb, and remember.
And then they say you shouldn’t have to think while you’re trying to learn open chords, bar chords, power chords, progressions, scales, riffs, licks, strumming, all the notes on the finger board, Drop D tuning, finger-style, runs, Boxes, Blues, Rock, Slide, learning by ear, COUNTING, yadda, yadda, yadda!!
And being a glutton, I am also trying to re-learn golf which I haven’t played in 10 years!! (And I thought my guitar progress was slow.)
SO…thank you ALL for your supporting comments. i feel so much better about my progress OR lack there-of., I agree that sometimes taking a day or two off puts you in a better place and gives your mind a chance to sort all the input. Crazy as it sounds, my quality of life is so much better, challenging as it can be. Be well and Rock ON.
Hey Griff, A great way to get your message across and now I understand how I should build up my capability.
I have been learning a lot more of all my BGU courses by doing the lessons that I can understand and follow then I go back and try the lessons that I had difficulty. In between the BGU courses I have been learning songs from the internet as my target is 10 songs pa. I have to say this, that all the BGU courses have been instrumental to my being able to learn new songs easily. BGU emails lessons and course play a very important part of my Guitar workouts. Also it is amazing how many versions of a song exists on the net. There must be an art to know which version is close to the recording version..Great Blog Griff keep em coming.
Michael -Sydney Australia – May 21 2020
It’s all about the journey isn’t it? The destination will always change and the journey goes on. Good for you, mate! Ian [Aussie ex-pat in Canada]
I’m applying this to learning Solo6 of the Slow Blues course.
First listen through it’s terrifying. No way.
One lick at a time, completely ignore speed, be prepared for it to take a year or more.
Patience grasshopper.
So far got the first 24 bars up at full speed with 90% accuracy. 3rd verse will take a while but the time will pass anyway.
Thanks Griff, I was starting to feel that way about my playing but I know what I have to do in so far as warming up before practicing which I got away from and slowing down on certain scales from your lesson which I find myself trying to play it too fast. Thanks for your wisdom.
Alexander
not to get off topic ,which was great by the way, But, has anyone figured out when playing a triad, like A for example,if you flat your number one finger viola instant chord? and very movable.
cheers
Coulnt agrere more Griff….Im working on your trading fours course. I follow the logic but I get more out of it when I trade twos.
Like this analogy comparing working out to playing. I have often found a short spell from playing allowing my brain to create new neural pathways, which makes playing things I viewed as too challenging a little bit easier.
Just as you would not work pectoral muscles two days in a row, it might help to take a playing challenge, barre chords, for instance, and play those one day, and then skip to something else, scales, maybe, the next day.
One nugget in this may be what I need: play a 7th chord instead of a 9th chord. I struggle with some 9th chords so I will try the substitution . Ya never know!
I;m 81 years young I’m trying to teach myself not easy but i’m giving my all I don’t think your never too old to learn.
I like “grasshopper it reminds me of things I have learned in life .I
Griff… I alway feel like you are talking to me.I am 75 and still slowly getting it.I get motivated with your e-mails,you are a great teacher and musician.The band is great also,tell them I said.Hi.!
Griff
says count, count ,count.
I’ m having a very hard time with counting.
Trying to play hide away.
Thanks for the lesson.
only 83 BILL
Yep great advice. Slow it all down. I play things over and over and over again until I get it. Then I play that over and over again. Keep on keeping on. 🎸Thanks Griff.
I am also retired and until recently have had the motivation to maintain 10 songs at what I call “gig quality” ( dialed -in set-ups, memorize the words, count the beat in time, articulate the feel, play solo and accompanied versions and transitions between songs for the audience. I feel “free” to perform and ready to go with minimal warm-up.
Over the past four weeks I have seen my motivation for structured practice insufficient to maintain those 10. I usually add two new songs and “retire” two each month depending on the jam or gig schedule. I find myself questioning if the tips of my fingers are getting softer and larger? I get tired of standing when I play & practice and sit for + 85% of time. I drink beer when I practice. I also seem to polish/maintain my guitars more than I play them. And …… (tears) my solos have become robotic.
I think I have the Covid-19 virus Blues.
There’s a lot of it about Carl‼️⚠️🦠⚠️🇬🇧🏴
Hmmmm,, I guess it sounds like ok advice. I am self taught but, maybe it’s a fault, but a perfectionist. Which, btw, means songs like Prince Let’s Go Crazy or The Doors Roadhouse Blues takes me a good week to learn. Make no mistake, I’m a 58 y/o retired guy, so when I say a week I mean playing it 500 times a day and recording it, listening to my mistakes and correcting as needed. After 3,000 times recording it in a week and listening to my mistakes it suddenly just falls into place. Problem is ya better keep playing it a a few times a day then. Give a song a two week hiatus and it’s almost like starting over. But that hiatus means I was learning another song
I am also retired and until recently have had the motivation to maintain 10 songs at what I call “gig quality” ( dialed -in set-ups, memorize the words, count the beat in time, articulate the feel, play solo and accompanied versions and transitions between songs for the audience. I feel “free” to perform and ready to go with minimal warm-up.
Over the past four weeks I have seen my motivation for structured practice insufficient to maintain those 10. I usually add two new songs and “retire” two each month depending on the jam or gig schedule. I find myself questioning if the tips of my fingers are getting softer and larger? I get tired of standing when I play & practice and sit for + 85% of time. I drink beer when I practice. I also seem to polish/maintain my guitars more than I play them. And …… (tears) my solos have become robotic.
I think I have the Covid-19 virus Blues.
I’m also a perfectionist……… but not a very good one!
It’s a curse!
It’s always good to read about someone else’s practical, self -compassion in relation to how they build on a skill or practice.
Thanks Griff!
Thanks Griff, point taken 🙂
Thanks for the great advice! It took me 3 straight months every day to this point to put all the notes and timing together for the 2 solos in Clapton’s Crossroads. Breaking it into really small chunks and practicing each chunk til I got it down was the only way. At times even the small chunks seemed overwhelming but I never gave up. Still not quite up to Clapton speed but it still sounds killer even at 80%. Your courses and advice are fantastic!
So I’m not the only 68 year old that has problems with speed… Good to know… and great advice Griff..
That is BGU is so valuable.,except for voice singing
Great advice Griff, thank you. I’ve been working on the improv Jerry’s for a bit now and getting the lick #, the chord and the counting all organized has been a chore. Today after reading the blog, I slowed the backing track to 50%. Guess what, I can now do all 3. I’ll continue at 50% until I can do it with my eyes shut and having a snooze. thanks again Griff
cheers Tony
I think that if you play at 50% you will remain there , you have to push your brain to function
I think that is the answer , it’s your brain not processing the info fast enough , that is why you can’t play at speed , and probably never will unless you fix it
True.
But would you not agree that if you play faster before you can play something correctly then you are practicing mistakes? If you develop muscle memory to play your mistakes perfectly, then you will play perfect mistakes. At some point, you will have to go back to slower, teach you fingers the right way to move and then begin to speed up again. Your fingers only do what they learned to do. Don’t train them to move incorrectly.
When lifting weights, there is a built in way to avoid this. When you lift HEAVY weight with bad form, you hurt yourself and you can’t continue. You are forced to drop your weight and work to increase it again, more slowly to get your form right.
Just a thought. I think the weight training analogy is perfect in this case.
I’ve practiced 5 note sequences containing a triplet, a bend up and down and a 1/8 note double stop for many days before I got it right. I couldn’t play it up to speed until I could play right slowly.
With regard to Griffs advice to slow down, I strongly recommend Video Surgeon and Song Surgeon. I am working on BGU2 solo #3 which has some difficult licks timing wise. I started at 60% working on licks 1-4. I am now up to 80-85% on licks 1-7. It gives much feeling of accomplishment to play it correctly regardless of the speed and feels even more awesome as you improve your speed over time. I use the Video surgeon until I get the entire solo down then switch to Song Surgeon with just the backing track. I’m constantly getting that awesome feeling of accomplishment as I am able to move the speed bar higher!
In the words of Bob Wiley…….”Baby Steps”
Wise words. I’m 69 and seemingly can’t get a groove going in the gym or on the guitar. I’ve lost my callouses and can’t seem to get my rear off the couch
Sonny, you just described me, except instead of the couch, it’s this stupid computer.
When I get to the gym, I do well. It’s just getting to the gym.
When I put down the laptop and pick up the guitar, I can practice. It’s just putting down the laptop.
I’m starting to see a pattern. Bye!
Thanx Griff, you are the first teacher (physical or in books) that has been generous enough to tell me that full barre chords are not the holy grail. Fret what you can. The rest will be muted anyway and therefore won’t ruin the chord (to any important degree). One day these muted notes might begin to actually “sound”. And if they don’t — so what? It’s only rock n roll. Why didn’t I get this earlier.
This is superb advice for a guitarist like me who has come to the game late(67) but has always loved and wanted to play acoustic guitar. No surprise, I get frustrated from time to time trying to master even the simplest things at times. Sooo I break it down, slow it down, adapt. It keeps me playing, advancing and loving this instrument. This blog post is a great affirmation that I am on the right track! Thanks!
inch by inch anything’s a cinch! Thanks Griff!
10/16/18
Thank you.
Great advice! As long as you are doing something withing reach, you are contributing toward your end-goal in some way.
215???
A lot of beginners have trouble with the F chord try F major 7 an Don’t play the top string, same thing.
Rick, try to incorporate your fret hand thumb on the bass F note using Fmaj7 chord
I ordered your learn classic guitar or blues on line last year as a down load . I should have ordered the DVD’s.
What happened is my computer crashed . And lost it all . I can’t remember how to get back into my account. Can you help me and or can I get the DVD’s.
Thanks John 216-544-0519.
heresjohnnyg@live.com.
Excellent. This is probably the most important concept I have learned and wish someone had told me in the beginning. Otherwise, my guitar playing would have ended at the F chord.
I face both dilemmas. I can’t do as much in the weight room anymore, and my chord changes aren’t as proficient as I would like. Your advice is very helpful.
Thanks much,
Evan
Once again Griff, you have let the genie out of the bottle for me. A simple idea yet very practical. Wonder if you could make us a short video that might apply this to Doc Watsons Deep River Blues? I have tried for a long time to find a way to do the chord changes on that song but every time I just throw my hands up in despair and move on to something else.
Keep those cards and letters coming! Thanks for all you do for us.
I have been playing for 18 months and have done each of the 5 things he listed as I learn and get more comfortable. Adding a 6th technique, sometimes when a song is a bit too complicated, I will just play the bass note of each chord to get the feel for the progression, then power chords, then full chords. What is wonderful here is that I felt like I was cheating, cutting corners a bit. Griff is giving us permission to do this, saying its part of the natural learning progression.
Scott I too have taken Griffs recommendations had had good success. Your suggestion of base notes, power chords to full chords is a fantastic idea. Thanks
Wise words Griff. Do what you can nearly do, NOT what you can’t YET.