Stretching Before Playing The Drums
You can chose to stretch before, or after the warm up; both are equally effective. Stretching is very important for drummers, and it takes very little time to do! Keeping up with this is what allows drummers to play well into their senior years. These are just a few stretches I will show you, feel free to experiment with your own, or whatever feels right.
This stretch works your fingers as well as your wrists. Make sure your palms are facing up - with your other hand, simply pull your fingers towards your body. Feel the stretch? If it hurts, STOP. You're not supposed to feel pain, just a stretching sensation.
This stretch will work your wrists only. It is a very basic stretch. Simply hold onto your stick with both hands, and roll your stick upwards and downwards. Again, make sure you do not hurt yourself.
These feet stretches are very self explanatory. You simply want to place your foot up against the wall, and lean into it. This will stretch the tendants around your foot and ankle, allowing for better movement on your pedals. Try both ways for variety!
There you have it! A few warm up practices and stretches to try out. If you get into a habit of doing these before you play, you will definitely be able to see and hear the difference, plus you will not hurt yourself. There are many different varieties of stretches and warm ups you can do, these are just examples. For instance, you can warm up to practically any drum rudiment you want, i chose to show the main three. For stretching, do what feels right. If these stretches do nothing for you, try something else. However, like i always say, make sure you do not injure yourself!
By: Dave Atkinson
