Stretching fingers

[Andrew Lewis]

In Thile's video he makes a point to beg the viewer NOT to stretch your fingers to loosen them up. Anybody know why? How can this be detrimental? Do you think he's just referring to popping your knuckles?

[MandoSquirrel]

If he means "popping" or "cracking" the nuckles, it really shouldn't matter.(I'm a massage therapist, among other things)
If he means doing stretching movements, if they're done correctly, they can only help; improve flexibility, agility, etc.

[LateBloomer]

MandoSquirrel
Are there particular stretches you could describe for us, or give a link to?

[John Flynn]

Well, he would be at odds with Mike Compton and musicianshealth.com, both of who have recommended stretching sets that are great. My take is this:

1. Thile is still pretty young. I will wait to see what he recommends 20 years from now.

2. Thile is a very technically competent player, but he is not an expert in phisiology. I think his advice is irresponsible, in that is out his area of competence and it runs counter to what medical experts recommend.

3. Sometimes the advice of people who are ahead of you is great. But sometimes it is something that works for them at thier high level and is not good for people at lower levels. For instance, I have done myself real damage trying to follow exercise advice of people who are in really great shape. What worked for them did not work for me. Thile may not need stretching. Like most of us, I do.

4. I have gotten wonderful results from the two stretching sets I mentioned above.

[AlanN]

As MJ mentioned, Compton goes into great detail on individual finger stretching in a DVD video he put out. It's a personal thing. I never have done it, I just pick, that seems to get my fingers moving in the way they need to move to play the mandolin.

[Emoore]

I'm a firm believer in Mr. Compton's finger stretching and massage technique. It reduces cramping in the hands and forearms, and gets me warmed up quicker. I start the routine in the car on the way to a session so I can get started jamming right away. It's especially helpful in cold weather...

[Andrew Lewis]

Interesting thoughts. I suspected that his advice seemed a little unfounded, so I reviewed the DVD again and realized that his use of the word stretch may have just been a bad choice of words. In context, he was discussing the tendency for the left hand to get tired when doing movements it is not used to and that you need to give it a break when it starts to hurt or get tired. He then says "...and please be sure not to stretch the fingers..." So in light of the context, he apparently must have been just using the word "stretch" to mean "going beyond the limit." My mistake.

But it did invoke some great advice from you folks. Thanks for the input.

[MandoSquirrel]

Sorry to be so long getting back to this, & I'm about to go to bed, so, quickly, taking the fingers Slowly through their natural range of motion in each direction, Gently to where they want to stop, then hold 1-2 seconds, Slowly back to neutral, then repeat, trying to go just a tad further each time for 6-8 reps should work. Also, especially when exercising or working them, Shake the hand in a lose(rag-like) motion now & then.

Good Night.

[rs31mando]

thanks MandoSquirrel!

I'm in need of info like this, (because of illness).
Ok, and 'old' age too!!! Age is just a number, some tell me...then they go snickering away.........

Regards,

Rick

[Michael H Geimer]

Musicians Health: Article on Stretches

[MandoSquirrel]

Thanks,Benignus, I figured I should go into my stretching manual to post descriptions, but your link shows pretty much the same, without my having to do all that typing!

And, don't overlook the shoulder and arm stuff, those are important for supporting what the fingers, hands, & wrists are doing.

[old coot]

And, don't overlook the shoulder and arm stuff, those are important for supporting what the fingers, hands, & wrists are doing.

That's what I was gonna say. Neck and back too, but one must be particularly careful here. There are some basic yoga moves that are real good. I haven't tried these in particular, but they seem pretty good:

http://www.soundtells.com/YogaSitting/index.html