Carpal tunnel syndrome. Tendonitis. Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI). These are the worst nightmares for a guitarist or bassist, whose work requires a great deal of repetitive finger movements and wrist adjustments. Their careers depend on the health of their wrists and fingers, yet this aspect of learning the instruments is often overlooked. With a significant portion of guitarists being at least partially self-taught and some famous bassists like Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers having taught themselves, aspiring musicians may drill in incorrect technique while simply trying to learn or replicate their idols.
A common method of learning to play the bass or guitar is online videos, as they are accessible and free, but often they do not adequately address risks to players’ health. Guitar and bass are hard instruments; a slight overbend of your wrist or wearing your instrument slightly too low thinking you look like Slash from Guns N’ Roses can lead to long-term damage, possibly ending your guitar career. Therefore, it’s crucial to learn to take care of your hands when playing and it all starts with your wrist.
Guitar and bass require players to stretch out their fingers in ways they have never done before as they try to reach four or five frets. In an attempt to ring out notes, beginner players will often make the mistake of overbending or leaning their wrists one way. Doing so may make the notes ring out properly, giving the player a sense of satisfaction that they have mastered the chord. This epiphany of “I’ve got it!” misleads players and leads to injury: the combination of bending your wrist and doing repetitive finger movements pulls the tendon in your wrist over its bones and ligaments, resulting in irritation to the tendon and tendon sheath.
It is inevitable to bend the wrist at some point while playing a chord, as some chords cannot be played otherwise, but straightening the wrist should always be a top priority. As soon as you finish that chord, make sure to align your wrist back to you right away. Mastering these far-stretched chords takes time as your fingers get used to the instrument. However, being impatient and bending your wrist will only stunt your growth.
Concerning long reaching chords, one way to more easily access these chords is to implement a stretching routine before your practice sessions. Not only does stretching increase the flexibility of your hands and fingers, but it also warms up the arm, helping to prevent any tearing or twisting of the muscles while playing. Just a few stretches in the hand, wrist, and fingers can go a long way. Specifically, try movements that target what muscles are used in playing the guitar or bass, like the flexors of the forearms or wrists.
How low you wear your instrument is also crucial in maintaining your wrist health. “I came of age in the 90s and was always mystified by a tendency to wear your guitar between your knees and waist,” says Rigel Crockett, a physics teacher at ASIJ who has played bass since his teenage years and has experience in guitar. “I came to understand that it was cool.”
While it may seem cool and rockstar-esque to hang your instrument low as many famous guitarists do, your instrument’s height has effects beyond aesthetics. It may appear trendy and edgy to wear your instrument down to your knees, but in doing so, your wrist is forced to twist more, thereby straining it. Instead, the instrument should be worn in a way that translates the same height from sitting down to standing up, which typically happens to be in the lower chest area. Doing so also relieves back pain as players are not forced to lean over their instrument trying to hit the frets. When standing with a guitar or bass, the fretboard should not be completely visible. Only the corner of the fret marker should be seen. Wearing your instrument high may seem silly, but many people forget that even legendary guitarists, such as John Lennon, proudly wore their guitars high.
Another habit of many admired rockstars, predominantly guitarists, is to hang their thumb over the neck of the instrument. Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix are just some of the few renowned musicians notorious for wrapping their thumbs over the neck of their guitars. Hooking your thumb over the neck may give the impression of a better grip on the instrument, but in reality, players should not be gripping the neck of their instrument hard at all. Clenching the neck of your instrument is an easy way to add unnecessary strain to your wrist, as well as making it hard to slide up and down the fretboard. A strap can be helpful in carrying your instrument and releasing heavy pressure.
While minimizing wrist strain is crucial in a guitarist’s or bassist’s long-term health, it is also equally as important to distinguish between novice discomfort and pain that could indicate a problem. Some pain is expected when learning to play guitar or bass because most people are not used to the sensation of metal strings driving into their fingertips. Nevertheless, there is a key difference between “good” pain and “bad” pain.
“Good” pain should solely be in the fingertips. A bit of fatigue in the wrist is also typical as your forearms adapt to playing. “Bad” pain, however, is any sort of pain in the wrist, forearm, or hand. This can be a shooting, pinching, burning, or dull sensation. A tingling or numb feeling in the fingers or wrist can be an indication of carpal tunnel syndrome. If any “bad” pain is felt while playing guitar or bass, immediately stop playing. Then, re-evaluate your wrist, hand, and finger positioning. If the pain continues, do not continue playing until the pain has fully gone away. Pain should never be played through.
Taking breaks is another pain prevention mechanism. Making music is fun, but it is important to rest your hands if you want to keep playing. Using the same finger and wrist movements over long periods of time can lead to medical issues like RSI. Taking a break gives your hands and tendons a chance to recover, while also giving your mind a break. New skills are challenging and trying to learn a difficult song non-stop can lead to frustration or burnout.
For both guitarists and bassists, the health of the hands and wrists is vital to be able to continue playing the instruments. Even the smallest changes in wrist alignment or taking just a ten-minute break in a practice session can help prevent long-term injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome or tendonitis. Taking care of your wrist and hand health will reward you with a painless and lasting musical career.
