hand gets tired easily

[Esenino]

well i started playing bass like 2 months ago and i finger pick, but every time i do finger pick my hand get's tired easily just by 1 or 2 songs. any1 have any ideas as in to why? or i may be doing something wrong

[somegeezer]

Practise. 2 months is nothing. Just keep doing it.

[thatbasskid597]

Just be sure you are playing with correct left hand technique. If your hand gets tierd, give it a short break. Eventually your hand(s) will get stronger and this won't happen. You may also want to try some quick wrist and hand streches before you start playing. Hope this helps!

[fearceol]

+1 to the advice so far.

Once your technique is ok, then it is just a case of building up endurence. Play for short periods at a time and gradually increase the time. Warm up with gentle stretches, and dont launch headlong into full playing exertion at the start. Give your fingers and hands time to warm up (about 10 minutes IMO). Check You Tube for warm up exercises.

[Marginal Tom]

Have your teacher or a working bassist watch you play, and ask them if they see what you're doing wrong. Are you trying to poke the strings through the fretboard?

[Li Shenron]

I never bought the endurance thing... I am just a beginner with bass (which does indeed require more strength so might be different), but at least with other instruments like the guitar and the piano there is no practical limitation to how long you can play, you'd probably fall asleep earlier than have really tired hands.

Unless you're playing with a lot of tension, which is in fact a common problem for most beginners, and also for many long-time players who never really address the problem. Tension is a major block when playing any instrument, definitely something that every beginner should investigate and try to solve as early as possible.

Otherwise there can be other physical problems in beginners (or generally in people who don't play often enough) that force you to stop playing after a while: issues like blisters forming or fingers cutting from the friction with the strings. These problems go away after a while, when the fingertips have got used to the friction (usually by growing some calluses), but may resurface later if you go back to play only rarely.

[JimmyM]

yeah, i think you have some tension in your hand that's causing it. try to relax a little and maybe lighten up a little on your touch.

[Chris K]

Originally Posted by Marginal Tom

Have your teacher or a working bassist watch you play, and ask them if they see what you're doing wrong.

A must.
Avoid developing bad habits that may cause injuries in the long run.

Use a consistent right hand plucking & muting technique.

My preference:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPVMBPmrblU

[Scottgun]

Try lighter gauge strings (.40-.100), use a very light touch and like others said, play relaxed.


P.S. Practice slowly and allow yourself to make mistakes (if you are trying to play perfect every time at tempo, this will cause stress and stiffening which will mean pooping out quickly and possibly pain). Ditch the metronome if you are using one. Speed will come latter.

[notdavey]

Just keep practicing. It does take some time for your hands to build up strength. It's a new repetitive action and it takes time for your hands to build up strength. At the same time, make sure your bass is properly set up (strings too high off the fretboard can be an issue with off the shelf instruments not set up properly ) and maybe try lighter gauge strings.

[Plissken]

Try turning the volume up and playing lightly. I used to pluck hard with my volume down. Now I play lightly with my volume turned up and my plucking fingers dont' get tired anymore.

[KingRazor]

I actually go the opposite way. I like having a bass that's difficult to play (due to string gauge or action) for strength building.

As long as you are using proper technique, I believe this is a good way to build up your dexterity to the point you want more quickly. Then, you can switch to a lighter gauge/lower action and it'll be easy.

[cosmicpimp2]

Practice a bunch. I use rubber bands on my right hand still when I practice for more tension. I get sore if I take time off so I think its just playing everyday that helps the most

[barbarbass]

You might be hitting the strings a little too hard. I know when I started bass the first thing that happened was that I wore the ends of my picking fingers clean off -- like, I actually had to tape my fingers for my first three gigs.

After a while, I figured out that the key was to lay off a bit. You're not plucking really so much as you're rolling the fingers over the strings, like a brushing motion. Like the difference between a piano's "hammer" action and a harpsichord's "tangent" action.

[will33]

There is no substitute for repetition. It's like a horn player, you're mouth has over 100 different little muscles all around it, most of which are never used to speak or sing, but you need them to play a horn. Your hand is the same way, it has a bunch of muscles that usually aren't used in day to day life, but you need them to play a bass.

Don't overdo it all at once to the point of swelling, strain or inflammation but gradually build stamina. If you don't use it, you lose it.

It's like the electrician who puts up light fixtures all day. To the old hands, it seems like nothing while the new guys gets it in the shoulders from working above your head and in the calves from keeping your balance on the ladder. That's why there are 50 year old's who can outwork/outplay 20 year olds.

[tobie]

Originally Posted by notdavey

Just keep practicing. It does take some time for your hands to build up strength.

++1, combined with the importance of proper technique on both hands.

Take regular breaks (e.g. 20 minutes practice, 10 minutes rest).

Most important: Do a search for nice warm up & cool off exercises and do not skip them for any reason whatsoever. Leave speed excercises for much later in your bass endevour.

[Esenino]

lol well yea i do hit the stings hard so maybe that was the problem, and

[crow01]

you gotta this before playing:
http://www.stopwristpain.com/images/...exer-multi.gif
hand stretching

practice a lot so your finger tips are harder than titanium

[fearceol]

Originally Posted by crow01

you gotta this before playing:
http://www.stopwristpain.com/images/...exer-multi.gif
hand stretching

All good exercises in the above link...except the gripping one. The strength needed to fret a string is the opposite to that required in gripping. It is in the opening of the hands (i.e. the lifting of the fingers off the fretboard from one position to the next) which is the important thing. The actual strength needed to press down a string is minimal.These gripping gadgets may have their uses, but playing the bass is not one of them.

[Esenino]

Originally Posted by crow01

you gotta this before playing:
http://www.stopwristpain.com/images/...exer-multi.gif
hand stretching

practice a lot so your finger tips are harder than titanium

thnx so man =) ima try that out, if anyone has any other ideas, please post