Re: Getting older, joint pain, playing drums
Although I am still young I have been knocked around enough playing baseball in my youth (and have a family history of arthritis) that I try to be proactive with how I approach drumming so it DOESN'T cause me problems.
I take Glucosamine HCl supplements, which are supposed to help. You may want to look into them.
I also wear compression knee braces, my right knee is particularly troublesome. I try to stretch and stay hydrated as well.
Concerning the kit, I've been trying to pay closer attention to my posture. I've found that has been an issue in the past. I've tried to make it so that things absorb the energy instead of sending it back up my arm- so no toms on snare stands, and even the snare is on the rack now. I keep my cymbals loose, I keep my tuning medium, and I try to play with more finesse than sheer brute force.
Due to shoulder pain I had to drop my ride down and then bring everything in closer, so much so that you may have seen my Whitney kit now and how it allows me to get everything low and in close enough to respect the limits of my body. Plus, moving it from place to place is a lot easier.
I also started exercising more and that has helped as well.
A simple, elegant design is good engineering.
Axis | Ayotte | Evans | Gibraltar | Ludwig | Pro-Mark | Remo | Roc-N-Soc | SKB | Taye | Vic Firth | Whitney| Yamaha | Zildjian
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