Overuse injuries among studio pros?

Mark Hepler · Post by **Mark Hepler** » 12 Jan 2020 11:45 am

Franklin, Bouton, Hinson, Beavers, to name a few, have had long careers playing fast as blazes hour upon hour.

So, my questions is: what measures, if any, do studio pros like them take to prevent overuse injuries? Do they just play and let the chips fall where they may?

Maybe they have some advice about musiciansâ€™ physical longevity . . . ?

Ian Rae · Post by **Ian Rae** » 12 Jan 2020 4:27 pm

Some sportsmen and -women are more injury-prone than others. Whether it's just a question of physical robustness or whether the mental instinct for self-preservation comes into play I would be interested to know.

If a steel player has good posture, and joints and tendons that don't tend to get inflamed, then their fitness will be unlimited. It's probably genetic - most things seem to be.

Steve Hinson · Post by **Steve Hinson** » 12 Jan 2020 5:25 pm

Well,I don't know how much"blazing" I'm guilty of...

...but I did the majority of my studio work in my 30s,40s,and 50s,and I didn't have any problems with that sort of thing...

Now(in my 60s),if I do a session or two and happen to have a live gig at night,my right foot might bother me
a little right at the angle where it sits on my gas pedal...other than that-all good...

SH

Mark Hepler · Post by **Mark Hepler** » 12 Jan 2020 6:55 pm

Thanks for the reply, Steve. All I know is that your tone on songs like Danni Leigh's "I Feel A Heartache" is as big as a house: it sounds like you dig in when you pick.

Interesting take, Ian. Some tennis pros never have issues--others like Nadal run into problems.

But our thumbs, fingers, ankles, knees get a serious workout: lots of RPMs even in an hour of practice at home.

Earnest Bovine · Post by **Earnest Bovine** » 12 Jan 2020 8:41 pm

Overuse injuries among studio pros?

I think you get a lot more wear & tear doing 5 nights at the Cadillac Lounge than in 5 days in the studio.

Ian Rae · Post by **Ian Rae** » 13 Jan 2020 12:29 am

Good point.

Mark Hepler · Post by **Mark Hepler** » 13 Jan 2020 5:56 am

Pickers like Lloyd Green still play the bejesus out of steel at fairly advanced ages.

I was putting in 3-4 hours a day at 70, practicing set lists, speed picking, and playing out lots of weekends.

A year and a half ago my thumbs started to hurt; I thought I could work through it but it just got worse. The doc said it was tendonitis: standard overuse.

So, I backed off to an hour a day, using “deliberate practice” techniques: my playing’s improved, I think. I warm up with stretches first. Also, switching to Ernie Ball’s medium weight chrome bar has made a difference. Every night, watching TV or whatever, I slather on extra strength Bengay (the house smells like old man and dog-ha), followed by ice packs. But I didn’t have to quit playing and my thumbs hardly ever hurt enough to notice.

So I just wondered how guys we respect have managed to stay in the game so long and maintain such high levels of craft (think Tom Brady in the sports world).

Bill Terry · Post by **Bill Terry** » 13 Jan 2020 6:42 am

Ernest wrote:I think you get a lot more wear & tear doing 5 nights at the Cadillac Lounge than in 5 days in the studio.

EB, are we still talking about hands and feet??? LOL..

Mark Hepler · Post by **Mark Hepler** » 13 Jan 2020 7:14 am

Bill Terry wrote:EB, are we still talking about hands and feet??? LOL..

Ian Rae · Post by **Ian Rae** » 13 Jan 2020 7:51 am

True fitness includes the whole body.

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 13 Jan 2020 8:32 am

Does a fried brain count?

Mark Hepler · Post by **Mark Hepler** » 13 Jan 2020 9:07 am

Richard Sinkler wrote:Does a fried brain count?

Dude, with beer like Moose Drool and Cold Smoke on tap, how to you Montana guys avoid wrist damage from hoisting those iced mugs?

I was out there in the spring: between the beer and the buffalo steaks it was hard to keep it between the buoys.

Since I started the thread, I get to declare no limit on topic drift . . . until bOb cuts us off

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 13 Jan 2020 11:16 am

I have only been here since September and haven't even gone to any clubs, brewpubs or anything. So, I have yet to try those brews. I have tried a few canned/bottled Montana brews, and haven't been real impressed. But microbrews always taste better to me, out of a tap.

Mark Hepler · Post by **Mark Hepler** » 13 Jan 2020 11:38 am

Nothing here can touch 'em, though Beltway Brewing knows its way around a keg.

Enjoy Montana--it's a pretty place.

Erv Niehaus · Post by **Erv Niehaus** » 13 Jan 2020 11:48 am

Wasn't Buddy Emmons having some problems with his hands?
Erv

Mark Hepler · Post by **Mark Hepler** » 14 Jan 2020 1:24 pm

Erv Niehaus wrote:Wasn't Buddy Emmons having some problems with his hands?
Erv

Yes. He had to quit for almost two years to let them heal, I believe.

What can we do to prevent injuries? Ian has a point about staying fit, no doubt.

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 14 Jan 2020 3:14 pm

Ernest wrote:I think you get a lot more wear & tear doing 5 nights at the Cadillac Lounge than in 5 days in the studio.

Tell me about it! Playing five 40-minute sets, five nights a week in a bar, and practice sessions and day gigs on top of that, does make you feel a little fatigued.

Dick Wood · Post by **Dick Wood** » 16 Jan 2020 6:35 am

I should have overuse injuries from playing the same tired licks over and over.

Mark Hepler · Post by **Mark Hepler** » 16 Jan 2020 10:04 am

Dick Wood wrote:I should have overuse injuries from playing the same tired licks over and over.

You're not alone, brother

John Lacey · Post by **John Lacey** » 16 Jan 2020 10:54 am

I got a trigger finger problem from lifting my gear. Didn’t affect my playing (middle on right hand) but has been bothersome. Won’t see a surgeon for 10 months.

Bob Hoffnar · Post by **Bob Hoffnar** » 16 Jan 2020 11:19 am

I'm having problems with my hip flexor on my right hip that was starting to impact my lower spine and cause nerve damage in my legs and feet. I got an MRI and then went to physical therapy where I learned a series of exercises that have stopped the problem before any degeneration happened. I was lucky to catch it soon enough. I have a few full time steel playing friends that are currently unable to play or play with great difficulty because of what seems to be a similar problem that has manifested in there feet.

Stay or get in shape people ! This stuff is very painful and debilitating and it's right around the corner.

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 16 Jan 2020 11:52 am

John Lacey wrote:I got a trigger finger problem from lifting my gear. Didn’t affect my playing (middle on right hand) but has been bothersome. Won’t see a surgeon for 10 months.

Last year, I had surgery to alleviate trigger finger in my right middle finger. Surgeon said it was the worst he had ever seen. At the same time, he had to do a radial tunnel release, as my radial nerve was being crushed. I still have pain in my hand and arm, but the trigger finger is gone. I had to take a year or year and a half off, as I lost control of my middle finger, and the pain in the hand was fairly bad. My original right hand/arm injuries occurred from working on a car assembly line for 5 years. Already had carpal tunnel release surgery, tendon in elbow reattachment, and ulnar nerve transposition (moving funny bone nerve from back of elbow to the front of the arm), in my right arm, years ago. Playing is what triggered (pun intended) this last round of surgeries.

Paul Strojan · Post by **Paul Strojan** » 16 Jan 2020 1:27 pm

I think having a guitar that can be played in a comfortable position is important as well.

Jacek Jakubek · Post by **Jacek Jakubek** » 25 Jan 2020 3:52 am

Paul Strojan wrote:I think having a guitar that can be played in a comfortable position is important as well.

This is a very important topic, especially for Pedal Steelers. Playing steel, you are forced to ALWAYS sit in the same position: Upright, hands, feet, knees, always in the same position. It can lead to injury if you're not sitting comfortably. With other instruments such as 6-string guitar, you can lean back in your chair to practice, then stand for a bit, sit on the floor, change your position when you get uncomfortable and still go on practicing. With pedal steel, you can't. I find this is THE single reason I haven't been able to practice as much as I wanted to and get as good as I wanted to.

Ever since I got my PSG, playing it for longer periods gave me upper shoulder/neck pain. At first I ignored it (No pain, no gain

) and soldiered through it. Eventually it got so bad, I couldn't get out of bed for a month and had to take a break from playing. I ended experimenting with modifying my knee lever/pedal placements to make the guitar more comfortable. It helped a bit but the pain still returns when I play for more than an hour at a time.

It's important to NEVER ignore any pain that playing may give you and modify your guitar (if possible) and sitting position, or simply take more breaks when playing.

Now when I practice, I go for like 15mins to 30mins max before taking a little break to stand up, do some stretches, movements, and so on.

I'm also curious what some of the pro players mentioned in this discussion have to say about this topic, since they must have put a ton of practice time to get to the level they're at. My guess is that a lot of it has to do with good genetics (as Ian Rae mentioned.) Just being lucky to have inherited and maintained a properly working body.