My Practice Schedule

[Nik276]

I made a practice schedule to make sure I use my practice time efficiently.
The the short practices are for times when I don't have too much time to practice or when my final exams are near.

Is there anything else I should include in there???

[Nik276]

oh btw, the "work on singles/doubles" part is just working on single stroke speed and double stroke speed and the "pedal consistency" is working on accurate and clean bass drum strokes.

[jordison515]

Optional practice should be made mandatory

[bloodylipp]

thats way to much structure for me, i would do it for 2 weeks and then think its not fun anymore. dont get me wrong, if you have been playing for a couple years and you have a goal, this is perfect. but if your just starting out and this is your plan, its gonna feel like excersize instead of fun. ive been playing over 20 years, this is close to what i do, but without the plans, i have kids, i dont get to have plans....

[Nik276]

thats way to much structure for me, i would do it for 2 weeks and then think its not fun anymore. dont get me wrong, if you have been playing for a couple years and you have a goal, this is perfect. but if your just starting out and this is your plan, its gonna feel like excersize instead of fun. ive been playing over 20 years, this is close to what i do, but without the plans, i have kids, i dont get to have plans....

Yeah that's sorta what I was thinking. Not enough jamming.
Would you call about two years drumming starting out??
Also when you say structure, you mean like the rudiments, control, speed and stuff like that right?

[bloodylipp]

i wouldnt say starting out, wouldnt say your done learning. but it sounds like your to the point where this is important to you. which means if this is what you want i think you have a great plan.

i would have atleast 10m of free time, i always warm up for @5-10, then just put ear plugs in and just have fun for @10, then move on to playing with music, then back to @10 messing around again.

[TURTLINATOR]

Working on rudiments and that stuff is really good, and if you are disciplined enough to make yourself do that then more power to ya! Personally I find that I just sit down behind my kit and say, "I need to work on speed today" and I play some really fast music, like Blink 182, Iron Maiden and stuff like that. If I need to work on double bass, I play music with fast double bass in it, I find that that is the best way to get myself to work on any specific thing. Because practice pad exercises drive me crazy after about ten minutes. Songs however, I can play for hours and hours and never get tired of it.

[rabidpenguin45]

Usually my practice schedule depends on my mood. If i am tired and not feeling too good, I'll usually just play along to some songs, and then have an end of session jam.

If I am feeling good and have time, I'll usually work on some double strokes around the kit, double bass, learning songs/beats/fills, and playing more difficult material. In my opinion, practice should always be enjoyable and not a chore.

[funkyruss]

what these guys said.............

[MCcoolio]

you should do practice soloing too

[Scottie_Guns]

Start with your goals, and work backwards from there. Are you trying to learn jazz, rudiments, samba patterns, etc?

How fast, slow, loud, quiet do you want to play them? Certain songs or grooves you want to play? Gear your practice breakdowns toward achieving those goals. You are definitely on the right track - just tweak what you have.

[sheoth]

Working on rudiments and that stuff is really good, and if you are disciplined enough to make yourself do that then more power to ya! Personally I find that I just sit down behind my kit and say, "I need to work on speed today" and I play some really fast music, like Blink 182, Iron Maiden and stuff like that. If I need to work on double bass, I play music with fast double bass in it, I find that that is the best way to get myself to work on any specific thing. Because practice pad exercises drive me crazy after about ten minutes. Songs however, I can play for hours and hours and never get tired of it.

yeah i do that i think i dont have the discipline to sit there and try and learn the rudiments so i think "hmm i need to get my double bass going well in breakdowns" so i'll put on some asking alexandria or a day to remember to practice with works for me my band sees a difference and can always tell when i've prcticed a lot during the week because something will come back a lot better than it was the week before