Slow fingers? Poor Muscle Memory? Musician Finger Speed Solved.
Musician finger speed and reaction times. How quickly do your fingers respond when your brain says go? How precisely are your fingers picking? Reaction times and precision are often chalked up to “muscle memory,” but in fact the muscles have no memory without your brain and it’s control. Your reaction time depends on how efficiently your brain and nervous system are working. Researchers have now published a number of studies that have shown that chiropractic care can actually make a difference to your reaction time. Research has been conducted on the reaction times of the elderly and stepping to gain balance as well as on students and keyboard reaction times. Both studies showed significant improvements in reaction times among participants, and the faster times could mean greater productivity as well as less chance of falling when caught off balance. Another study documented an improvement in elite soldiers and their ability to tap control screens with faster reaction times after chiropractic care. So what does this mean for musicians? Whether you are a pianist, guitarist, drummer, or bass player, your reaction times, speed, and precision may improve with chiropractic care. You need not have pain to receive the benefits of...
read moreConcerns about Labor and Delivery?
What is your greatest concern about labor and delivery? Is it having a natural birth or c-section? Is it pain? Hoping for a VBAC? Birthing at home? We may be able to help you prepare for labor and delivery. Chiropractic care during pregnancy by a board certified perinatal specialist may make your labor and delivery smoother and more predictable. Mounting evidence shows that beyond pain relief, chiropractic care during pregnancy may reduce your risk of a c-section, may reduce your need for medications, and may reduce the likelihood of complications due to pelvic misalignment. All of these would make a home birth less complicated and will take you closer to your goal of a Safe and natural birth with a healthy baby! You have concerns and we have the knowledge to first ease your concerns, then take safe, non invasive chiropractic care to the table to attempt to lower your risk of unwanted issues during pregnancy, labor, and delivery. Dr. Lou was awarded board certification after completing advanced training and examinations to work as a specialist with children and moms before, during and after pregnancy. This board certification was awarded by the Academy Council of Chiropractic Pediatrics and The International...
read moreSleep. The Best Position For Musicians.
Best Sleep Position For Musicians Your sleep position as a musician matters more than you think. How your head and neck are positioned, your arms, shoulders, hands, and wrists. Your low back will also suffer if your sleep position is less than ideal. Stomach Sleeping Stomach sleeping is arguably the worst position. It requires that you turn your head to one side or another. If you sleep 6-8 hours a night, this could mean that your head is turned to one side for a long time. This head position puts a strain on your neck, head, and shoulders, and may lead to headaches, neck pain, shoulder pain, numbness, tingling, weakness, and even frozen shoulder. There is no ideal pillow for this position. The position, while it may feel comfortable, is too flawed to be helped by a pillow. Additionally, if you are on your stomach with a leg up, you are sleeping in the “Crime Scene Position.” The Crime Scene Position The crime scene position is halfway between stomach and side sleeping. It looks like a crime scene because it is a crime scene. The one leg up twists your low back and puts pressure on your hips and...
read moreBass Guitar Injuries. Prevention and Healing.
The Bass Guitar & Injuries Tools to fight arm and hand injuries. You are today, the sum of all your experiences, practices, gigs, accidents, stressors, and jobs. One of the biggest mistakes when working to prevent or resolve playing injuries is sometimes focusing too much on the instrument, it’s balance and position, and not enough on your day to day activities. “Good practices” are not as simple as warming up, taking breaks, and cooling down after play!!!” PRMD’s or “playing-related musculoskeletal disorders” are common among guitarists of all types. In bass players, repetitive stress injuries of the forearm, shoulder, neck, elbow, wrist, and hand are especially common. The length of the neck, string tension, and action, the weight of the guitar, arm and hand position, fingering techniques all make the bass guitar a moderate to high-risk instrument. From Carpal tunnel syndrome, and trigger fingers, to tennis elbow, there are many controllable factors and methods for reducing your risk of injury that you may not be aware of. Thinking beyond warming up, taking breaks, and cooling down after play. Warming up, taking regular and restful breaks, as well as cooling down after playing, much like in an athlete, have great...
read moreElbow Pain in Guitar Players – Lateral Epicondylitis.
Lateral Epicondylitis – Guitar Elbow – Tennis Elbow Cause. Solution. Healing Plan Execution. Much like tennis players who put tremendous repetitive strain on their elbows, musicians often suffer from “tennis elbow.” Musicians who play guitar, bass, banjo, ukulele, merlin, lute, or other stringed instruments, push their strumming elbow and connecting ligaments, tendons, and muscles to the limit, often leading to painful inflammation, restriction, and inability to play. If caught early, understood, and strategically addressed, the dysfunction that causes the inflammation and pain can be addressed, getting you back to playing while getting stronger and more resilient. PRMD’s or playing-related musculoskeletal disorders are common in string players of all kinds. They tend to build over a long period of time with repetitive stress, and then, seemingly out of nowhere, a “straw” breaks the camel’s back and you are unable to play comfortably, or at all. If this type of injury gets out of control, injections, medications, and even surgery may be recommended. Most musicians I work with can neither spare the recovery time nor risk their futures as musicians if something goes wrong or gets worse. It’s often a life or death of the music situation. The first thing to...
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