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  • Sore fingers from fretting

    Posted by andy_e on June 11, 2021 at 5:22 pm

    Dear all, I am troubled by sore fingers after playing for 10 minutes or so. I am trying to press just hard enough to get the right tone but I still probably press too hard. I can feel calluses on my finger tips but they don’t seem super protective. Any insights would be appreciated. Thanks!

    andy_e replied 3 years, 7 months ago 13 Members · 33 Replies
  • 33 Replies
  • GuitarGeni

    Member
    June 11, 2021 at 6:10 pm

    Hi Andy,

    I don’t know how long you’ve been playing, but I bet it hasn’t been that long. I found that in the beginning it helps to skip a day and play every other day. This way your finger muscles and calluses have a chance to rest and recover. After a month or so you can start trying to play a little longer or every day for no more than 20 minutes. If you can’t, then go back to playing every other day for awhile.

    It doesn’t sound like much but it really makes a big difference in my experience. Please give it a try and let me know how you make out.

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 12, 2021 at 9:13 am

      Thanks, GuitarGeni, for your response and advice. I appreciate it!

  • markvguitar

    Member
    June 11, 2021 at 10:08 pm

    I agree with Geni. This will get better with time. The callouses will grow. Its also worth doing the daily stretch technique course early on to help with sore fingers, sore hands, sore neck, etc….

    • Marty73

      Member
      June 12, 2021 at 5:57 am

      👍👍👍

      • andy_e

        Member
        June 12, 2021 at 9:13 am

        Thanks, Mark! I am unaware of the stretch course – I will look for it. Andy

  • Marty73

    Member
    June 12, 2021 at 5:58 am

    It will get better @andy_e Just keep going! 😊🧙‍♂️😎

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 12, 2021 at 9:14 am

      Thank you, Marty, for your encouragement!

  • Alisa

    Member
    June 12, 2021 at 9:07 am

    It took me about a month before my fingers could take more than 10 minutes. You’ll get there soon, have faith. You probably now have the initial superficial callus, but you really need a thicker layer of thick skin on the fingertips. That takes time. You will feel it grow. I find that playing shorter playing periods more often helps. Stop when it hurts and come back an hour later (if that’s possible with your schedule). If you’re only playing chords, try something from the song vault with flatpicking or fingerpicking, most people tend to press on the strings more when playing chords. Plus, you’re consistently putting pressure with all fingers simultaneously, whereas, with flatpicking, the fingers get small breathers in between.

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 12, 2021 at 9:15 am

      Thank you, Alisa – I appreciate your response and your advice. I will work on developing more substantial calluses.

  • Marquita

    Member
    June 13, 2021 at 8:28 pm

    Hi @andy_e,

    It was hard for me to skip lessons everyday because of sore fingertips, so I listened, watched and marked the lesson as a “favorite”, knowing that I needed to try at a later time. I would placed my fingers on the frets but didn’t apply pressure. After a couple of days or even a week, I could go back to the lesson, listen to it and played along with the lesson at the lowest speed. Because I had focused my attention on listening and watching, I understood the lesson better. After a month, I didn’t give it a second thought. I hope all ideas put together will give you something that works well for you.

    • This reply was modified 3 years, 8 months ago by  Marquita.
    • andy_e

      Member
      June 14, 2021 at 10:56 am

      Thanks, Marquita – I appreciate you relating your experience! I will keep your lessons in mind as a progress (I hope)

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 18, 2021 at 4:45 pm

      Thank you, Marquita, for your encouraging words. Luckily (I guess), work is so busy that I do have to skip some days. I appreciate the approach you described. Sounds wise.

  • Cadgirl

    Member
    June 14, 2021 at 5:12 am

    I made sure I never missed a day. Callus will build up on your fingers, don’t worry about that. I picked up an inexpensive 3/4 size Classical guitar (with nylon strings) and I could play for a LOT longer. It saved me 😉

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 14, 2021 at 10:57 am

      Thanks, Cadgirl! I appreciate your reply – I have thought about doing that

  • N-lightMike

    Member
    June 14, 2021 at 1:42 pm

    Hey @andy_e , I didn’t read the advice that was what I needed when I was troubled by this challenge, so I will share it with you.

    Even after I had been playing for a fairly long time I had finger pain. I would get grooves in the tips of my fingers. I learned that if I filed off some of the thick skin around the groove and especially the flaking, peeling skin right in the middle of the callous that got caught on the strings it helped a lot.

    Every now and then, when the callous gets so thick that a groove starts to form, I pull out the nail file and take off some of the callous. Not only does this stop the problems the groove causes but my fingers are actually less sore. It’s the thickened pad underneath the skin that I want, not the build up of old, dead skin on the outside. This is simply part of my regular maintenance so I can play guitar every day way too much of the time.

    MG 😀

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 18, 2021 at 4:48 pm

      Mike, very interesting! Thanks for the tip. I will keep that in mind and follow suit if I note permanent grooves forming.

    • Cadgirl

      Member
      June 19, 2021 at 4:05 am

      thanks, i never thought of that.

  • Bill_Brown

    Member
    June 14, 2021 at 5:12 pm

    Hi @andy_e , my 2 cents if you want to hear it. You’re going to have pain in the tips of the fretting fingers – especially if you’re new to, or haven’t played guitar for a while. You’re going to have to deal with it😱 for now, but it will subside through time. How much time? That’s based on how often you play guitar. I say, play until it starts to really bother you, then stop and give those digits a rest. Don’t over do it, but still try to do something with guitar every day. Eventually, you won’t feel any pain, and you won’t be able to feel anything when you try to find something in your pocket(lol) – I know this from experience🤣 Have fun and play guitar🎸

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 18, 2021 at 4:49 pm

      Funny, Bill (re: not being able to feel what is in my pocket). Thank you for your advice!

  • JohnV

    Member
    June 15, 2021 at 8:51 am

    What kind of guitar do you have? Is the string action low or high (is it hard to fret strings because it may need a professional setup)? What kind and gauge of strings do you have (a coated string or lighter gauge string may be a short term help)?

    Bill_Brown is right, sometimes it just hurts. I still get pain in my fingers after years of playing.

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 18, 2021 at 7:54 pm

      John, my guitar has light gauge strings, good action. Do you mind if I ask about the pain you still get? Does it mainly occur in certain situations?

  • OwenGL

    Member
    June 18, 2021 at 10:57 pm

    Like others have said, the calluses will come with time. Meanwhile, you can practice other skills like strumming patterns while muting the strings, use an open tuning and practice finger picking patterns without fretting any strings, flatpicking while muting strings, playing basic harmonics, etc. Basically, there are lots of skills to learn that don’t involve fretting.

    • OwenGL

      Member
      June 18, 2021 at 11:02 pm

      Oh, and don’t play right after washing dishes or showering. The water softens your skin and the calluses will rub off quickly.

  • andy_e

    Member
    June 19, 2021 at 7:45 pm

    Great ideas, Owen! Thanks for these! And for the warning of soft finger tips after water contact.

  • That_Guy

    Member
    June 20, 2021 at 12:47 pm

    Your prob not drinking enough beer

    • N-lightMike

      Member
      June 20, 2021 at 3:53 pm

      🤣

      • That_Guy

        Member
        June 20, 2021 at 9:11 pm

        Its like playing pool. Ya gotta find the sweet spot

  • Guitargeezer-Jack

    Member
    June 25, 2021 at 6:49 am

    Here’s a cool (pun intended) trick I use if my finger tips are sore/swollen from playing too long or too aggressively – take an ice cube and rub over the calluses for about one minute. Reduces the swelling and discomfort. Agree with others that some times one just has to take a break from playing for 24 hours. After that, play on!

    • andy_e

      Member
      June 25, 2021 at 6:29 pm

      Thanks, GG! I will remember that tip and give it a try – I appreciate it

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