Death Grip in Fret Hand

[jumpinjeff]

@jcf , The way I read your question, I think you asking about your finger tips on your fretting hand. It takes a week or two to get through the toughening up period (sometimes longer) but they will toughen and callouses will develop. Hang in there and know that the hardest part is behind you. We all go through it and nobody likes it. The good news is you only have to go through it once as long as you keep playing.

[jcf]

Thank you, jumpinjeff. I’m on Day 10 and the fretting fingers are getting less painful. I’m able to hold the G Chord for about a minute now.

[That_Guy]

Once the skin on your fingers thicken you dont seem to need to squeeze as hard. I use mediums strings and at first the would always buzz. Nowadays i barely lay my fingers on them.

[jcf]

Thank you, That_Guy. I changed strings to an extra-soft silk and steel acoustic set. It made a huge difference in pain tolerance, and I’m focused on the lightest touch possible.

[JohnV]

You may also be gripping to hard. Use only enough pressure to make the notes ring clearly. I know as a beginner that clamping down just to get the chord shape is typical. But as you progress, the grips come easier and you can relax your hand more.

[jcf]

Thank you, JohnV. I’m starting each session by strumming a clean G Chord with light finger pressure and no thumb pressure.

[andy_e]

Dear @jcf – I feel your pain – literally. My life experience is that whenever I learn a new physical activity, whether skiing, typing or playing guitar, I always start by using too much muscle. In time, as I develop skill, I reduce muscle effort. Not to sound bombastic but from a neuroscience point of view, new neural pathways form in the brain to support the new behavior – takes a little while. In short, hang in there – it will get better. And my fingers are doing better, both in terms of accuracy and reduced discomfort.

[jcf]

Thank you, andy_e. I agree with you on the plasticity of the brain. I can train it to minimize pain and learn new skills. It’s getting better every day.

[That_Guy]

Also hold closer to the fret to buzz less. Squeezing tighter to stop buzzing isnt aways the answer. If your far from the fret you have to squeeze harder which ends up pulling the note sharp which is also nails on a chalkboard

• This reply was modified 4 years, 7 months ago by  That_Guy.

[jcf]

Thanks, again. If I hear a buzzy note, I move closer to the fret and try again. I can usually get a clear note and relax the pressure.

[tailsawaggin]

This is an ongoing struggle for me as well. I find that when I start to fall out of the groove, my natural response is to tighten up and try harder. This leads to going faster, which leads to tightening up and trying harder, and of course that’s all kind of self-defeating. I have to consciously relax and try to stay slow.

A couple other things that help me with this — stop looking at the fretboard, and mind my thumb. At some point I got in the bad habit of letting my thumb get flat along the neck, pointing at the headstock. My hand and arm are a lot happier if I can get it to hang out more perpendicular to the neck somewhere around the second fret. Figuring out all the geometry for my particular instrument and body seems to be a long-term project.

[jcf]

Thank you, tailsawaggin. I have been concentrating on a loose thumb, palm close to the fretboard, and fingers close to the frets. I have a large hand so it’s difficult to get a clean chord. When I do, it feels so good. I’m on Day 10. After changing strings to extra soft silk and steel, I’m playing longer and becoming more accurate. If I find myself tightening up, I walk away and do something else. When I return, I keep thinking, ‘relax and find the lightest pressure to create a clean chord.’

[Cadgirl]

Tony has a skill called “Better Barre Chords”. It might help you out. I know I used to be afraid I was going to snap the neck off my guitar I’d be holding it so hard. 🙂

[jcf]

Thank you, Cadgirl. The ‘Better Barre Chords’ skill seems a little advanced for me at this point. I am on Week Two of the ’30 Days To Play’ challenge. When I finish that challenge, I will try the ‘Better Barre Chords’ skills again.

[queenkobraxx]

I’m new to this also but I will say I was doing the same and one thing that helped me was stretching my hands and fingers! It’s not stressed enough. Making sure I stretched really improved my range of motion and then I didn’t need to tense as much. Also watching posture and sitting position. Good Luck! Oh, also I’m struggling with tensing with my strumming so what I have done, because I’m really inconsistent and so I tense and then get worse, is just pick it up when I’m watching a movie for example and just strum kind of without paying attention just as a muscle memory type thing and within like 2 days it helped tons. Hope this helps!

• This reply was modified 4 years, 6 months ago by  queenkobraxx.