What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

everdrone

everdrone

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I want to avoid any tendonitis or carpal tunnel, yet be in shape and somewhat strong. Any comments or insights at all are appreciated :)

Ok, so Petrucci and Lynch are musclebound guitar gods. What type of upper body weightlifting should I do? I have been doing 15 reps or more, and 4 sets of each. I stretch out before and after extensively. I do 5 minutes of cardio before weightlifting to warm up, and do warm up sets before lifting heavier movements starting up. Here is my workout for the last 4 months:

Mon-Thurs: 30 min of cardio if possible

Friday: Back and Biceps workout

lateral pulldowns: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
back pulls: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
peck deck reverse back muscles: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
back extensions: 4 sets of 8-10 reps
straight bar curls: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
machine prayer bench curls: 4 sets of 15-18 reps

Saturday: Lower body workout

cardio 30 minutes always, then:
leg press: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
leg curls: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
leg extensions: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
calve raises: 4 sets of 15-18 reps

Sunday: Chest and Triceps workout
bench press: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
peck deck bench press: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
bench incline press: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
tricept extensions: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
preacher tricep extensions: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
military press: 4 sets of 15-18 reps
shoulder chicken extension movement: 4 sets of 15-18 reps

ha! I just need some guitar tips from dudes in the know really, but any insights or comments are appreciated, cheers :14:


here is an article by a doctor about guitarists that weightlift: http://www.musicianshealth.com/weight.htm
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Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

Can't say much about Petrucci but Mr. Scary lost nearly all that mass, last I saw him...

...I hear tell it's because his doc says he's too old to be roiding it up like he was.
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

I do 12 ounce curls
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

Perhaps the best thing you can do is NEVER STOP PLAYING. Many players do not begin to experience problems until they 'retire'.

Lifting weights won't improve your odds of avoiding carpel tunnel or repetitive stress disorder, but keeping your spine flexible WILL; all those nerves are connected someplace. :)

Proper posture when practicing and playing is key. Walk frequently and have some kind of stretching routine.
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

TwilightOdyssey said:
Perhaps the best thing you can do is NEVER STOP PLAYING. Many players do not begin to experience problems until they 'retire'.

Lifting weights won't improve your odds of avoiding carpel tunnel or repetitive stress disorder, but keeping your spine flexible WILL; all those nerves are connected someplace. :)

Proper posture when practicing and playing is key. Walk frequently and have some kind of stretching routine.
Click to expand...
thanks brutha :) I appreciate your tips! my cardio is either elliptical or walking / speedwalking. I read "Three Minutes to a Pain Free Life" and do those spinal stretches etc every day. definitely trying to keep my wrist straight and using my fingers as hammers, cheers :beerchug:
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

What kind of goals are you wanting to meet? Do you want to put on mass, maintain muscle, build strength or lose fat? All 4 goals require different strategies IMHO.

Putting on mass means lots of calories, lots of sleep and heavy compound movements that utilize the large muscles of your back, chest and legs... some bodyfat accumulation is normal when putting on mass.

Maintaining muscle is basically not that hard to achieve and any ol' workout will go pretty far in maintaining your current muscle mass.

Building strength is very similar to putting on mass but requires less calories since an increase in bodyfat is undesirable.

Losing fat pretty much means that you are going to get a bit weaker due to lower energy levels from the decreased caloric intake... losing fat while building muscle is pretty much built around building strength while keeping your calories ti a minimum but still consuming enough calories to maintain proper energy levels with which to meet your strength goals. Losing fat while building muscle is a sloooooooow process which means that your strength gains will not be met that rapidly and your fat loss goals will take longer to achieve.... BUT, the weight you lose you will LOSE and the strength that you gain is strength that you will KEEP. Losing fat slowly is the desirable method anyway.

As far as doing machine work... it's okay but I would try and move towards the free weights if at all possible. Stay away from "shaping" movements that don't build any muscle and that just tax your ligaments and tendons. Chest work like cable crossovers, pec deck stuff and even dumbbell flys are for bodybuilders doing steroids. Likewise, concentration curls and tricep kickbacks are also worthless unless you are genetically gifted to putting on muscle and or on steroids.

The stuff that builds muscle are: Deadlifts, Squats, Cleans, Barbell or T Bar Rows, low Cable Rows (to a somewhat lesser extent), Bench and Dumbbell Presses, Shoulder presses with dumbbells or bar (dumbbells are always safer for this movement), Dips, Barbell or dumbbell curls, Hammer Curls, Upright Rows and Barbell or Dumbbell Shrugs.

Stuff like Cable Tricep Extensions are great tricep exercises for people with bad shoulders or elbows... not the best muscle builder but they DO build muscle if performed properly.

I would pick squats over leg presses since they work your quads, glutes, hamstrings, calves, lower back and abs better than just about any other movement and STIMULATES testosterone.

That is what is great about compound movements... they stimulate testosterone release naturally. Leg extensions and curls don't cause your body to produce more T, but squats DO.

Leg presses are for people with injuries that prevent them from doing squats and are a decent substitute but just that... a substitution for the REAL things.

lat pulldowns don't stimulate Testosterone but T Bar and barbell rows DO. The exercises that stimulate Testosterone I have listed above as exercises that build muscle.

You need Testosterone to build muscle and get leaner.

Look into the Hardgainer workouts and the Paleolithic workouts... great stuff there.
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

**** weightliftling, go windsurfing.
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

I just do 10 reps of bench, deadlift, and squats. I bench 200 usually, deadlift 445, and squat 300. If I do curling bars, I can do at most 20 pounds. It seems to work well for me, and although I don't have any muscle mass, I don't have much fat either.
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

Just lift.

Find out what your body type is, learn about nutrition, proper form then adjust your work outs and diet around that towards your goal.
Most injuries and sprains can easily be avoided with proper form. If you can't get the form right for an exercise, drop the weight down and keep dropping it down until you nail the form. Then start upping the weight again.
Balance it out with rest, cardio and core, as well as good stretching and some flexibility.
Research any supplements you want to use to make sure they're not just powdered promises in a slick package, and will actually work for you.
There's a lot of stuff on the market that, unless you're training hard, will not deliver enough benefit to justify the expense.
And that stuff gets expensive quick.

Don't worry too much if your not pressing as much as the guy next to you.
He doesn't have to heal for you and really when you consider a lot of gyms are mostly filled with guys - is your main goal to impress a bunch of sweaty men?
You can usually tell the ones that don't know what they're doing as they have work outs that make no sense, are all over the place, rest way to long (usually to admire themselves in the mirrors) and are using terrible form trying to throw too much weight.

Shake your routine up every so many months to avoid plateauing and mostly - just enjoy yourself.
Throwing on the headphones, zoning out and getting a sweat going is a great brain flush.

~edit~ Question about your workout:
I see that you're doing back the day before you do legs, and you put cardio before lifting on leg day.
One thought that came to mind was tiring support and erector muscles during back day and possibly having a fatigue injury while working legs while those muscles are being used to back up your leg muscles.

Also curious about the higher reps.
Generally speaking, it's usually high reps with lower weight for toning and lower reps with high weight for bulking.

Not an attack on your routine, just curious why you set it up that way.
 
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Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

lol :) I used to own that Arnold Pumping Iron VHS video ;)

I do 15+ reps cause I do not want any injuries, and I am not supposed to lift heavy since I have a little tendonitis in my frethand fingers. it seems the experts say heavy lifting and musician stuff do not mix http://www.musicianshealth.com/weight.htm

"While weight training, musicians should concentrate on high repetition, low to medium weight exercises. Each set of exercises should consist of 15 repetitions. If you feel that you cannot attain 15 “reps” then you are working with too much weight. Different musicians will need different exercise regimens due to specific needs. Drummers need a great deal of arm and leg strength, while cello players need overall upper body strength. So your routine should be tailored to the type of instrument you play."

my goal in lifting weights is just for functionality, to stay in shape, and some rehab for minor injuries. I have not been active in the last 10 years, so me working out over the last 6 months has been kicking my but! the government says 2.5 hours of cardio, and my job and lifestyle have always been sedentary...

when I do leg workouts, they are all sedentary sit down lifts, and I have a tiny bit of knee troubles so I am thinking of doing more different types of leg strengthening. Since I made this thread about a month ago, I just bought rubber bands and a green stretch out band for physical therapy type stuff, and one of the rollers for massage benefits, so I will see how it goes. really highly rated on amazon.com anyway:

bands: http://www.amazon.com/Aylio-Bands-E...&qid=1372730169&sr=8-8&keywords=stretch+bands

stretch green band: http://www.amazon.com/Stretch-Out-S...l-booklet/dp/B00065X222/ref=pd_bxgy_sg_text_y

I use stuff for my finger/guitar tendonitis and tennis elbow and that has really been helpful (I am curling 50 pounds doing four sets of fifteen reps). stuff I use are planetwaves varigrip, mydfx.com gyroball, handmasterplus, flextend, and ultrasound 3.0 khz
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

Oh, okay.
I was wondering if there was a training goal or med reason.

It sounds like you're working with your doctor to work around a few things which is good.
Maybe seek out a good trainer to develop a routine that incorporates that with your goals.
Having someone work with you that is trained and can spot the things your doing can go a long way towards achieving your goals.
You just gotta really make sure you check them out though.
Some of the qualifications and criteria to become a trainer can be a joke.
The really good ones will cost more, (sometimes a lot more) but getting a good trainer that really knows their stuff can be money well spent.
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

I have noticed since I put on a ton of weight over the past 20 years my guitar does not sit on my body as well as it did when I was thin. The belly angles the body and neck towards the ceiling making reach more difficult. Reach is also impaired when attacking the higher frets. I have since lost 20 lbs and have a ways to go to get back to my 29 inch waist I rocked during my heavy gigging days. I am looking to lose another 20 lbs hopefully 30. I am doing tons of cardio, light lifting and eating very clean.

If you look at Johnny Hiland you can see what I am talking about with the belly and the reach and no I didn't get that big.

johnnyhilland.jpg
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

This guy prolly knows haha
 
Re: What type of weightlifting at a gym for a guitarist? Petrucci Lynch etc...

Justin Read said:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=H2Diy0RNe_c
Click to expand...
Fixed. Dude that cracked me up! Ever see the Tsunami one? that's hilarious.

Here's the gym edition while we're at it

.
 
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