Exercise (and not just practicing paradiddles!)

[bongobro]

kaosotis and some of our ... uh ... more well-seasoned DrumChatters, yours truly among them, were discussing the trials and tribulations of growing older (aches, pains, stiffness, etc.)...

I decided to search up the word "EXERCISE" in all our previous posts, which is why I clarified the title the way I have. We have plenty of tips and tricks on "keepin' the beat goin'," but few that I could find on keepin' the drummers goin'!

In short, what do you do to keep in shape or to fend off the effects of aging (stiffness, soreness, lack of flexibility)?

Share them with us here!

[marko138]

I have to get a good stretch in before I hit the stage. If I don't I'm mega sore the next day, my legs, my back, my arms, neck. Everything. I take a good few minutes and try to get loose. Then take both sticks in one hand and shake my wrist kinda like a propeller to get them loose.

If I do that I'm usually good to go.

Also, due to some health issues I've been having lately, I've had to change my diet and stop drinking. I've lost 10 lbs in 3 weeks!

[Drumbledore]

A few finger and wrist stretches, sometimes sit on a chair and rotate and loosen my ankles a bit. Or standing up doing leg stretches. I hardly need to do back stretches as my posture has been pretty good over the years and it's something I pass onto students on a regular basis. I walk regularly as well, it's much better on your leg joints and feet than jogging or running any day. But maybe in a few years time I'll seriously look at doing some form of yoga, a hand drumming mate of mine Kevin has been doing that for years. It's also good for your mind as well he says.

[slinglander]

I walk 2 mi./day, use big muscles to mow the lawn(not a riding mower), cut/trim bushes and trees around the house and only hit the practice pad for sporadically for 1/2 hr/day for rudiments. Concentrating on certain rudiments causes major neck and shoulder pain after more than 1/2 hr straight. Loosen up with shoulder shrugs, wrist flexes twisting the sticks in both hands. Slowly build up speed in everything I do at the kit. So far...Seems to be working.

[Doc_d]

I'm a cyclist (road and mountain bike). It's awesome exercise and can be a lot of fun.

After getting in shape to road race, I doubt my heart rate ever hits 60 bpm sitting behind the kit.

Age is no excuse. I'm no spring chicken (41). Many of the fastest guys I ride and race with are in their 50s. Some are also triatheletes and are probably in better shape than 95% of the 18 year olds.

[drummer]

I get on the floor and stretch quite a bit on a regular basis. I also walk a lot. The more active you are, the easier it will be to keep up stamina-wise on the drums.

[SpecialAnthony]

I lift to keep the muscles toned, and recently started swimming - much easier on the joints and amazing cardio.

[rickthedrummer]

Walking my dog gets my walking in. After that, it's lifting the remote control and a scotch glass.

Taking a sip of scotch and swirling the ice cube around while working the DVR controls is a great help for coordination.

My Jessica Alba in a bikini poster is also good for some cardio exercise.

Actually, I had a Bodysmith weight bench with a 310lb weight set, but had to leave it behind. I'll get something here for some exercise.

[wr_stix]

kaosotis and some of our ... uh ... more well-seasoned DrumChatters, yours truly among them, were discussing the trials and tribulations of growing older (aches, pains, stiffness, etc.)...

I decided to search up the word "EXERCISE" in all our previous posts, which is why I clarified the title the way I have. We have plenty of tips and tricks on "keepin' the beat goin'," but few that I could find on keepin' the drummers goin'!

In short, what do you do to keep in shape or to fend off the effects of aging (stiffness, soreness, lack of flexibility)?

Share them with us here!

Hey BB for the best real answer... I'll share what I have found out from my own trials, reading ( a lot of reading) on aging without the effects of age and from people that are inspiring because they seem to defy age.

Number one is commit to strength training for(ever). Not a muscle head but once or twice a week strength training program that builds lean muscle in your body. Science on that today says it helps delay aging, helps balance, helps memory and cognitive ability, releases chemicals in our bodies that reverse aging. You feel better, look better, can play longer for years, etc.
I do a program that only takes 30 minutes a week yet build muscle every session.

Number two, Aerobic exercise 4 to 5 days a week. (are you nutz?) really look at doing 2 days of hard aerobic exercise with maybe 2 or three days of easy (walking, easy bike ride, etc.).

Number three what you eat; eating right, i.e. your fruits and veggies, not 2300 calories a day for a 50's guy. Salad is your friend, one chicken breast not a bucket, broiled not fried... etc. Folks we all know what we should be eating.

Number last, love, live have passion! Be connected and commited to something. Pastor Bob would tell us people who have faith live longer than those who don't. People who have something to get their feet on the floor every day no matter if they work or don't full time, they live longer. The top three won't mean much if your outlook is sour and you are isolated. Places like drumchat helkp us connect.

doc_d old??? heck man I'm 58 in chronilogical age but don't feel it. I felt worse at 45 yrs with extra 30 lbs huffin' and puffin' to make a flight of stairs.

for all those sayin' yea but I can't.. change that to "but I am not willing" and see how that sounds, say it out loud. I just finished an assigment being out of state every week Monday to Friday for 5 months, whirlwind weekends at home and I still found a way to keep up my commitments to me. *

More and more doctors and health professional are speaking up about the fact that most cancers are lifestyle related, most serious diseases affecting us today are preventable by lifestyle changes, etc.

So there it is BB. It may not sound easy but after almost 60 years on the ground here I'm not finding anything worthwhile is easy, like say learning to play drums. I have a plan to be drumming for another few decades and living strong into and past my 80's.

* For you guys that have been injured and limited I understand you have challenges but everyone can do something where they are.

[Northern Redneck]

Martial arts 4-6 days a week.

[rickthedrummer]

Hey BB for the best real answer... I'll share what I have found out from my own trials, reading ( a lot of reading) on aging without the effects of age and from people that are inspiring because they seem to defy age.

Number one is commit to strength training for(ever). Not a muscle head but once or twice a week strength training program that builds lean muscle in your body. Science on that today says it helps delay aging, helps balance, helps memory and cognitive ability, releases chemicals in our bodies that reverse aging. You feel better, look better, can play longer for years, etc.
I do a program that only takes 30 minutes a week yet build muscle every session.

Number two, Aerobic exercise 4 to 5 days a week. (are you nutz?) really look at doing 2 days of hard aerobic exercise with maybe 2 or three days of easy (walking, easy bike ride, etc.).

Number three what you eat; eating right, i.e. your fruits and veggies, not 2300 calories a day for a 50's guy. Salad is your friend, one chicken breast not a bucket, broiled not fried... etc. Folks we all know what we should be eating.

Number last, love, live have passion! Be connected and commited to something. Pastor Bob would tell us people who have faith live longer than those who don't. People who have something to get their feet on the floor every day no matter if they work or don't full time, they live longer. The top three won't mean much if your outlook is sour and you are isolated. Places like drumchat helkp us connect.

doc_d old??? heck man I'm 58 in chronilogical age but don't feel it. I felt worse at 45 yrs with extra 30 lbs huffin' and puffin' to make a flight of stairs.

for all those sayin' yea but I can't.. change that to "but I am not willing" and see how that sounds, say it out loud. I just finished an assigment being out of state every week Monday to Friday for 5 months, whirlwind weekends at home and I still found a way to keep up my commitments to me. *

More and more doctors and health professional are speaking up about the fact that most cancers are lifestyle related, most serious diseases affecting us today are preventable by lifestyle changes, etc.

So there it is BB. It may not sound easy but after almost 60 years on the ground here I'm not finding anything worthwhile is easy, like say learning to play drums. I have a plan to be drumming for another few decades and living strong into and past my 80's.

* For you guys that have been injured and limited I understand you have challenges but everyone can do something where they are.

Can't argue with any of that.

I get about a mile of walking in a day at a fairly brisk pace thanks to my pup. I also do between 150-200 push-ups a day. Not all at once, 25 in the morning, and 20-30 several times a day. I'm debating about what kind of equipment I want to buy for my exercise.

I know a man up in Jersey from the bowling alley I went to. Met him about 10 years ago. I thought he was in his mid-60's. He would bowl 10-12 games 5 days a week, and I mean bowl, not just bounce the ball down the lanes. The man was a 200 average bowler.

As of when I moved, he was still going there everyday, bowling his 10-12 games and still would average around 200. He is 95 years old. He is in better shape than I am, and I'm 30 years younger.

[wr_stix]

Good deal rickd.. try planks sometime they will just kick your butt (abs and back really). Need to have a mirror or an honest spotter checker to keep the form right.

Sometimes it just about keepin' movin'.

[fullcollapse325]

No soda!. Its amazing how much my playing abilities have changed since I've become more careful. I always stretch really good before a gig. Sometimes even just throughout the day leading up to the gig. I want to be loose, i want to wake up feeling good. Sometimes I get bad "charlie horse cramps" in my hips during a gig. well i used to. I make sure to streth that part of my body the most.

[late8]

I ride a stationary bike and lift weights as a excercise routine. During the work day, I walk for at least 30 minutes a day during my lunch hour. The weekends are toughest to squeeze a workout due to gigs, band practice or family commitments.

[jgraham798]

Walking my dog gets my walking in. After that, it's lifting the remote control and a scotch glass.

Taking a sip of scotch and swirling the ice cube around while working the DVR controls is a great help for coordination.

My Jessica Alba in a bikini poster is also good for some cardio exercise.

Actually, I had a Bodysmith weight bench with a 310lb weight set, but had to leave it behind. I'll get something here for some exercise.

Talking about the scotch....

I suffer from arthritis and all his kinfolk on a regular basis. I have been prescribed all kinds of anti-inflams and they just don't do the trick.

Scotch will stop the pain better than anything else i've had....and I don't even have to drink that much for it to work.(but I always do just in case).

Since it has been raining here all day and most of yesterday, today might just be a scotch day!

[Pearl MCX Man]

I run after my dog cause she ain't gonna give me the ball once she gets it in her mouth. LOL just a game to her. She is using reverse psychology on me and it works.

[kyle102565]

im a mechanic in a very large shop, my wife had a pedometer that i used one day.
at the end of the day i had walked over six miles!!
that plus drumming keeps me in shape.
i also eat alot of pasta
lately my right knee has been hurt and ive been playing for months with a broken hand (boxers break)
im 47, 6 ft tall and 180 lbs. i cant expect to be in the same shape as i was at 27 years old.
getting old sucks.
play drums smarter, not harder

[wr_stix]

im a mechanic in a very large shop, my wife had a pedometer that i used one day.
at the end of the day i had walked over six miles!!
that plus drumming keeps me in shape.
i also eat alot of pasta
lately my right knee has been hurt and ive been playing for months with a broken hand (boxers break)
im 47, 6 ft tall and 180 lbs. i cant expect to be in the same shape as i was at 27 years old.
getting old sucks.
play drums smarter, not harder

hey man like I was saying above there are changes we all can make that stop the typical effects of aging which is really effects of being sedentary and getting older. My wife is a massage therapist and works on one of our good friends that is a mechanic and he works off a lot calories but ends up with some strained joints and muscles from all the twisting and contorting. I know how some of that feels I was a machinist, 5th class years back.

We don't have to feel bad as we get chronilogically older. Like doc_d said too.