anyone have any tips on getting back into playing shape quick?

[The Thrashole]

I have been pretty lazy since I parted ways with my last band around three years ago. My main focus has been on recording and learning how to play drums. Last night I went and jammed with some guys and we clicked well enough to set up a practice schedule. Every one is very professional and on their game but me. I have let my stamina slip quite a bit from my four hour set days. anyone have any ideas to bring my hands back in a hurry. ( I've got to be able to make it through a 3 hr practice on tuesday)

[Kris]

1) Stretch out a bunch... If you haven't been playing much your at a much higher risk for an injury. 2) break out the click track/drum machine and get you're tempo/groove in check... 3) have fun and stay loose.

[Tedster]

Yeah, the click track drum machine, Kris is right on about that. When I haven't been with a band for awhile, that's the first thing on me to go. I'll sit and practice licks, and they sound fine, but I'm subconsciously making these tempo adjustments that I'm not thinking of, and when I get with a drummer, I'm hosed. So yeah, that would be my recommendation.

[halljams]

The key to it is regularity. One hour every day, not 3 hours every 3 days. What ever the time you spend per day just make sure you do it EACH day or in 2 short bouts a day. Your muscles need time to recover and you mind needs time to process.

[jeffbayson]

Are you playing drums with this new band? You had said that you have been concentrating on "learning the drums," which leads me to believe that you were playing another instrument before, which you may be playing again in this new band. Anyway, I'm a jazz piano player. I often get sucked into day jobs and find myself going for weeks, even months without regular practicing. My style involves lots of rapid runs and extremely fast fingerwork, and I find that when I lose my "chops," I can't do three-quarters of what I want to do. The way I get back into shape in a hurry: Practicing with a metronome is key (as the other people have suggested). What I will do is pick four or five different exercises that work different aspects of my playing (as a piano player, I might try scales, arpeggios, block chord exercises, etc.). The key is to start each exercise VERRRRY SLOOOOOWLY. I mean, start at 90 BPM and play one note every OTHER click. Then increase the tempo slowly, say, four BPM each increment. Concentrate on playing each note perfectly in time. If you screw up and play a note slightly before/after the click, keep repeating the exercise until you get it right. This is the tricky part, because it can bore you to tears to do this for hours. But... if you do this for a couple hours a day, starting slow and increasing the tempo slowly until you're going as fast as you can while still hitting the notes perfectly in time, you will regain your chops very quickly. When I have had the time to do this every day for say, months, my fingers have moved like LIGHTNING. But even if you only do it for a week, you will notice the improvement. Of course, it's also important to make sure you're playing properly, with proper form, etc. We piano players can play for twelve hours a day without injuring ourselves, assuming we're playing with proper form. If you're playing drums, you might hurt yourself doing these several-hour-long practice marathons. Hope this helps. Good luck!

[Lee Flier]

Yeah, been there, done that. When I joined my current band the guys were on top of their game, having just been in a very busy band, whereas I'd only been in the studio for several years, no live gigging. My chops and stamina were seriously rusty. I got back in shape mainly by playing along to records. I was also honest with the guys about my situation and asked them to bear with me cuz it would take me a little while to ramp back up. It took 2-3 months of a regular practice schedule and gigs before I felt really comfortable again. I think we played our first 3 set gig after about 2 months, before that it was one set only.

[offramp]

I'm in the same boat, but to add to it I'm rather concerned about my ability to focus anymore; as well, I used to have a killer memory for tunes and arrangements...I feel like I've lost a lot of it, and how I'm going to get THAT back, I haven't a clue.

[The Thrashole]

Whoops, I guess I wasn't real clear. I'm a guitar player most of the time. I just goof off on other instruments. I like the idea of working to a metronome for warmup. Lee, I actually have already burned a "practice Cd " to work with. There's a healthy chunk of material that i have to learn so playing with the Cd is a must for this situation. Thanks for the great ideas people, This is the longest I had ever gone without playing constantly and playing a lot of speed metal, I need my hands in top form quick.

[Lee Flier]

Yeah, I had the same kind of situation with having to learn a lot of material quickly, so the practice thing kinda took care of itself. :D And definitely it's a good idea to play to a metronome - I too was surprised by how much my RIGHT hand suffered from a long layoff, not only in terms of fatigue (took me longer to build up my right hand muscles than left hand callouses) but also in terms of having good time. I have a VERY natural sense of rhythm normally, and like you I'd been playing some drums during the layoff, so I didn't think this would be an issue, but it was!

[DC]

[quote]Originally posted by Lee Flier: [b]I too was surprised by how much my RIGHT hand suffered from a long layoff, not only in terms of fatigue (took me longer to build up my right hand muscles than left hand callouses) but also in terms of having good time. [/b][/quote]It's 'cause you're a south paw. ;) Seems like I've done this over and over. I just play and play and ignore the pain as best I can. There's no real substitute to just doing it every chance you get.

[offramp]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Lee Flier: I have a VERY natural sense of rhythm normally Hoo boy. :D