Feel the burn: getting used to the effects of playing guitar

Having fun learning to play guitar? Glad to hear it! There are some things you may not be aware of though, such as the effects that prolonged playing can have on your hands. I’ve been playing for twenty years now, so my hands are used to the rigours of fretting notes and playing at ridiculous speeds, but I’d be the first to admit that it wasn’t easy starting out.

For a good long while when I was starting to play guitar, I wondered what the hell was going on with my hands and my forearms. When you’re not used to the strain of fretting or hitting notes, you will notice some discomfort in your forearms.

This will pass as your arms adjust to playing for long periods. Make sure you take a rest when you feel this discomfort, as you don’t want to hurt yourself and thus impair your ability to play. Take it steady, and you’ll soon notice the progress you’re making. Perhaps you could try a different right hand technique.

Another thing to take note of is the change in the fingertips of your fretting hand. When you start out you’ll notice that the skin may be sore or split a little. This is normal.

Before too long the skin will harden a little in those fingertips and will stop being painful or splitting when you play. This is a normal thing, and once your fingers are accustomed to fretting, you’ll be able to do so without discomfort forever more.

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Pick it up: Using the right Picks when playing

Something that is easy to gloss over when starting to learn to play guitar is the thickness of your picks (or plectrums, if you’re being posh). Why is this important? Well, different players will require different picks for their own personal style. Various genres of music will also sort of dictate the thickness of the picks you need- after all, you can’t really shred with a clean and clear tone when using very light picks. Something thicker is more suitable, maybe even the super-thick jazz picks, which give you a much better chance of hitting individual notes clearly. If you’re playing acoustic music, then a lighter pick may be the thing for you to strum with. It’s all a question of finding out what is right for you, so try a few thicknesses and pick shapes before settling on a particular kind- you’ll be surprised as to how much difference the right picks can make to you when learning to play the guitar.

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