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The powerball is pretty good tool for your wrist strenght excercises. Anyone here using it? I use it but as long as not over using it, it really is good for my wrists. As for the vid, no the balls aren't all flashy and not only for hardcore masturbators
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to tele)
Often the solution to muscular imbalance is to do less.
Doing more and more and more often offers brief moments of respite whilst compounding the problem.
This is a toy and if anyone fancies playing with it then they should go ahead. If the want to use it resolve problems then I would of course wish them luck but suspect that it could offer a lengthy cul de sac in their rehabilitation process.
Here is a link to the last time it was recommended.
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to tele)
Greetings Tele,
I've used one of these. I was extremely skeptical when it was recommended but I found it to be very useful - particularly as an antidote to mouse/keyboard stresses on my forearm and shoulder. Glad to hear it's working for you too.
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to guitarbuddha)
quote:
ORIGINAL: guitarbuddha
Often the solution to muscular imbalance is to do less.
Doing more and more and more often offers brief moments of respite whilst compounding the problem.
This is a toy and if anyone fancies playing with it then they should go ahead. If the want to use it resolve problems then I would of course wish them luck but suspect that it could offer a lengthy cul de sac in their rehabilitation process.
Here is a link to the last time it was recommended.
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to tele)
I am currently suffering from tendonitis in the left wrist due to push ups. I feel like such a moron for not listening to my body and taking better care of my hands. It does not help that despite the clear signs I decided to learn a bunch of new things in the last three weeks of my vacation. The guitar playing definitely aggravated it.
I showed the physiotherapist who has me doing a few exercises the handmaster, and he liked the product. I have been using it a bit every day (the softest one) in addition to some other exercises to strengthen the forearm and wrist. The pain is like 2-3 out of 10, but after over a month and about three weeks of physio it is not too much better.
_____________________________
"I'm just a poor crazy man in love with his art." Santos Hernandez
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to Harry)
I guess I am not just grumpy. I have genuine concerns about these kind of products.
Look at it like this one set of muscles are overclenching. To fix it you start pulling harder with the antagonistic muscles. You end up tenser and tenser. Excercise will encourage blood flow and mobilise any swollen tissues so there will be times when you feel good, in particular when you are 'warm'.
But really you have initiated a rat race with yourself.
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to guitarbuddha)
quote:
ORIGINAL: guitarbuddha
I guess I am not just grumpy. I have genuine concerns about these kind of products.
Look at it like this one set of muscles are overclenching. To fix it you start pulling harder with the antagonistic muscles. You end up tenser and tenser. Excercise will encourage blood flow and mobilise any swollen tissues so there will be times when you feel good, in particular when you are 'warm'.
But really you have initiated a rat race with yourself.
Often the solution to muscular imbalance is to do less.
Doing more and more and more often offers brief moments of respite whilst compounding the problem.
You have a point there. Altough if one uses it only a bit, like 2 minutes a day, I don't think it could hurt the muscles and wrist? One guitarist said that his hands were getting some damage from the gym and he used the ball to help his wrists and it helped. This was a review in finland that I read.
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to tele)
Being aware of the tension and "letting go" is very helpful but you have to have some discipline. There are some guided meditation audiobooks (or something like that) to help on this matter.
Anyways, I would really like to know if this powerball thing helps or if there are any specific exercises that one could do. The powerball as the advantage of being an object and you can just use it and forget about it.. although quick fixes arent usually the best way to go.
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to Harry)
quote:
I am currently suffering from tendonitis in the left wrist due to push ups. I feel like such a moron for not listening to my body and taking better care of my hands. It does not help that despite the clear signs I decided to learn a bunch of new things in the last three weeks of my vacation. The guitar playing definitely aggravated it.
I showed the physiotherapist who has me doing a few exercises the handmaster, and he liked the product. I have been using it a bit every day (the softest one) in addition to some other exercises to strengthen the forearm and wrist. The pain is like 2-3 out of 10, but after over a month and about three weeks of physio it is not too much better.
Thats interesting, I started doing push ups again because all the sitting and playing guitar over the years made me loose 2/5 of my muscle volume and made me look skinny. Besides that I found that they make my wrists stronger for certain loud rageo. But doing push ups is actually dangerous for developing tendonitis? Could you tell me more about it?
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to Sr. Martins)
I have noticed that it's quite pointless to rotate the ball quickly like in the video, it can cause lots of strain and even temporary damage. I found the best way is to rotate it about 1 rotation per second. It could be that it doesn't really help at the guitar but it's the best wrist excercise I found so far as it's relatively light thing to do.
Rmn: I have heard many people saying that lifting weights and doing hard excercises like pushups was the worst thing they have done for their wrists, even when some started doing them to improve their wrist strenght.
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to Rmn)
quote:
ORIGINAL: Rmn
Thats interesting, I started doing push ups again because all the sitting and playing guitar over the years made me loose 2/5 of my muscle volume and made me look skinny. Besides that I found that they make my wrists stronger for certain loud rageo. But doing push ups is actually dangerous for developing tendonitis? Could you tell me more about it?
If you do something really well then you are unlikely to cause harm. But there are some obvious things to look at.
Avoid machines which force you to move in a single trajectory (all weight machines). So press ups offer more potential for variety of movement and you have to at least have some coordination to keep good form. My personal choice these days is walking on my hands, it really is great fun. But I am not recommending it to anyone who didn't learn how as a child.
But much better than all that if you want a quick fix join a yoga class or a Tai Chi class run by someone who isn't a middle aged sociopath. Or play badminton or learn to juggle or jump rope. Basically anything that you haven't seen an advertainment for.
On a final note. I have never met a healthy adult male or female who did not have way more physical strength than they needed to carry out everyday tasks. Humans are really very very strong. It's our coordination that lets us down.
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to tele)
Now lets talk straight.
If you are not playing at pro level (aka average forum playing skills) you dont have to care about any fancy practicing technique because it has no impact AT ALL on your amateur playing skill. The same is true for good guitars.. If you play like ****, your playing wont be any better with a good guitar.
And last but not least. The only thing how you can make your bad playing sound good is sound engineering and video editing with multiple camera angles..cutting and pasting best scenes out of 200 and stich it to 1 perfect appearing piece. But the truth is..you cant play really good.
Just pick your guitar every day and play. That’s the only thing that matters. Forget about fancy tools, guitar gimmicks and recording fakes. PLAY!
This text is not a start point to discuss. What I say is the truth, because I wrote it!
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to Rmn)
quote:
Thats interesting, I started doing push ups again because all the sitting and playing guitar over the years made me loose 2/5 of my muscle volume and made me look skinny. Besides that I found that they make my wrists stronger for certain loud rageo. But doing push ups is actually dangerous for developing tendonitis? Could you tell me more about it?
Well I think the main issue with the push ups was that I overdid it perhaps, and that my hands were probably not enough at the shoulder level. Because of this there was strain on the wrists, and since the left side is not my dominant side, and I spent a few weeks playing for many hours (I was learning Soledad by Tomatito and his Minera), I developed the tendonitis in the wrist. The point of pain is the top of the left wrist, around the middle and the pain is at its worst when I bend the wrist up with the palm facing down (same position as for a push up).
For push ups I really recommend finding a way to do them with the wrist in a neutral position. Perhaps you do this already. In general though, I am done doing push ups! I think I will stick to swimming for now. Meanwhile, the physio has recommended not playing guitar until the pain is gone to speed up the recovery. It has been over a month and I am getting very upset and discouraged.
_____________________________
"I'm just a poor crazy man in love with his art." Santos Hernandez
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to Harry)
Greetings Harry - I had an injury years ago and I made it worse by not resting. I'd let a couple of days go by and I'd think, "hmmm... I wonder if it's better now?" and I'd pick up the guitar and all I achieved was to prolong the injury. Hindsight, eh? If only I'd rested properly. I could have been going again in a matter of months instead of years. I sympathise with your predicament but maybe you could look at the effort it takes to rest as an investment in the future of your playing?
RE: Anyone here using the powerball ... (in reply to changue)
quote:
Greetings Harry - I had an injury years ago and I made it worse by not resting. I'd let a couple of days go by and I'd think, "hmmm... I wonder if it's better now?" and I'd pick up the guitar and all I achieved was to prolong the injury. Hindsight, eh? If only I'd rested properly. I could have been going again in a matter of months instead of years. I sympathise with your predicament but maybe you could look at the effort it takes to rest as an investment in the future of your playing?
Very best of luck.
thanks very much! I am indeed determined to just follow the physiotherapist's exercise regime and take a break from playing. It has been pretty devastating to my peace of mind and is even affecting me at work and everything. But as you say I would hate to turn this into something truly chronic. That fear is what is keeping me away from the guitar right now. I am however, practicing the right hand techniques on muted strings just to keep the right hand nimble at least!
_____________________________
"I'm just a poor crazy man in love with his art." Santos Hernandez
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