TromboneChat

When you start to lose focus on your practice, and need a break to feel fresh and able to come back to practicing again, what are your methods that work best for you?

Here!

...Geezer

I take a practice break as part of my practice schedule. After a sort-of-warm-up/sort-of-fundamentals I just drink water and stretch and breath which is almost a break. I have the Phil Teele bass bone book that I work through and oh boy it's easy to lose focus so I watch a show I've seen before on mute with subs on. Also almost a break. And if my brain goes fuzzy after woodshedding charts I'll take a real break and listen to music or text some friends.

I play solitaire or watch the late night comics on youtube.

Mostly I take a coffee.

Leif

My morning pre-work 45 minute routine is broken roughly into 3 minutes play, 1 minute workout (various stretches and calisthenics). 

I do drink a lot of coffe.

Working days: Breakfast, train, tromboneforum, ebay, work, coffee, tromboneforum, eat, work, coffee, tromboneforum, work, train, tromboneforum, ebay, eat, practice, coffee, practice, coffee, practice, tv, tromboneforum, ebay, sleep (or practice, or ebay, or tromboneforum)....so it goes, and now and then life comes on visit 

Refresh my self? 

...maybe be a poet.

My practice breaks have varied in length from 10 years to  an hour depending on the period of my life, my current break is just under 3 months so I have done all on your list and a whole lot more in. The breaks !!

I take a lot of short breaks...3 or 4 minutes, often even less...especially when I am doing Caruso-style exercises. I try to do something mildly mindless like surfing the web. Anything other than something that demands deep concentration or much physical movement.

Works for me...average practice day, 4 or more hours.

S.

Quote from: sabutin on Oct 14, 2017, 07:05AMI take a lot of short breaks...3 or 4 minutes, often even less...especially when I am doing Caruso-style exercises. I try to do something mildly mindless like surfing the web. Anything other than something that demands deep concentration or much physical movement.

Works for me...average practice day, 4 or more hours.

S.

On top of that practice time is a pretty robust gig schedule, I would imagine. So that is quite a load!

My mindless breaks are this Forum and FB. Lol Break over!

...Geezer

For most of us the breaks in  practice are longer than the practice. For most of my adult life my practice breaks have been long enough that during the breaks I could fit in working a daily job 8 to 12 hours a day, catch enough sleep to keep me sane, raise three kids including all of their soccer and schooling etc., and then right back to the practice.

bwa hah hahahha hahha h hahah ah haahaha

Like a few here I also like to surf the web and catch the long running soap opera of most young players here.( They report a lot.)

Quote from: bonesmarsh on Oct 14, 2017, 07:45AMFor most of us the breaks in  practice are longer than the practice. For most of my adult life my practice breaks have been long enough that during the breaks I could fit in working a daily job 8 to 12 hours a day, catch enough sleep to keep me sane, raise three kids including all of their soccer and schooling etc., and then right back to the practice.

bwa hah hahahha hahha h hahah ah haahaha

Like a few here I also like to surf the web and catch the long running soap opera of most young players here.( They report a lot.)

And I am personally glad they do! I think they keep us fresh!

I see that the term "practice breaks" are defined two ways:

1) breaks between exercise or song efforts and
2) breaks between practice or play sessions.

I try to keep my breaks between practice or play sessions so that I have about equal rest between sessions. IOW's, I like an early morning session of about 2 hours. Then a break until evening when I have another session for about 2 hours. Then sleep. I have often thought about an afternoon session, but it would have to be kinda short and very easy, as far as muscular effort is concerned. Mid-range multiple-tonguing might be a good candidate.

...Geezer

I do around an hour every day, but with no long breaks. I use a practice mute exclusively, and take short breaks of a few seconds as and when. Those moments are often spent talking to the dog..

Quote from: Pre59 on Oct 14, 2017, 08:19AMI do around an hour every day, but with no long breaks. I use a practice mute exclusively, and take short breaks of a few seconds as and when. Those moments are often spent talking to the dog..

I find that necessary when I practice high range. An hour and I am gassed. Time to rack the horn and rest up!

When the dog leaves the house, the IQ level inside the house goes up?    

...Geezer

Quote from: Geezerhorn on Oct 14, 2017, 08:35AM
When the dog leaves the house, the IQ level inside the house goes up?    

...Geezer

Hey! Wait a minute, I need to think about that one!..

Quote from: Geezerhorn on Oct 14, 2017, 07:08AMOn top of that practice time is a pretty robust gig schedule, I would imagine. So that is quite a load!

My mindless breaks are this Forum and FB. Lol Break over!

...Geezer

I don't practice like that when i am working hard gigs. I always say that if it hadn't been for the relatively slow times after the winter holidays and the dog days of summer I would have never learned how to play the trombone. On a gig day I usually just warm up at home enough to feel like I have a good balance.

Like any good athlete. 

S.

Quote from: sabutin on Oct 14, 2017, 01:36PMI don't practice like that when i am working hard gigs. I always say that if it hadn't been for the relatively slow times after the winter holidays and the dog days of summer I would have never learned how to play the trombone. On a gig day I usually just warm up at home enough to feel like I have a good balance.

Like any good athlete. 

S.


Okay. That seems like a down-to-earth approach. I pretty much do the same thing.

But I have heard of guys who practice till their gums bleed (an exaggeration, of course) and then go out on their gig. It always seems odd to me to leave the best playing in the studio on gig or hard rehearsal days, though. And yet I have also heard of some athletes who take a very hard workout on the morning of an evening game. At my age, a hard workout the morning prior is a 20-minute warm-up! lol

Ah, but  - yes - balance! That is a nice concept for warming up the morning prior.

...Geezer

When I worked as a music teacher AND raised two kids I found I had little time for practice. I did try to practice at least one hour a day, besides any gigs and any playing with students. During one year I had a note-book where I kept record of every practice session, what I did, any discoverys, and for how long I practiced. When the year had passed I divided everything with 365 and got the result of 40 minutes a day. Lesson learned. If you are not a working pro musician and have a everyday job and raise two children I think it is not possible to demand more of any person. During this time I often felt I needed to do more of everything; more work at home, be more with the kids, practice more, prepare work more, sleep more. In short I felt I needed to take care of things better. This was a time of conflicts.

During this thime in my life I did only ONE session that I timed. I played as long as I could and aimed for at least one hour, and then it was a long break until next time and that could be another day. Life was in between.

/Tom

A lot depends on how and what you practice, and also what stage of competence you're at. If you're practicing below your abilities then that is going to result in a lot of padding and wasted time. But if after a reasonable warmup, you get stuck in and try to achieve a small tangible improvement, that is good practice. Going through the motions and not getting any benefit is falling behind in real terms.

A lot depends on how and what you practice, and also what stage of competence you're at. If you're practicing below your abilities then that is going to result in a lot of padding and wasted time. But if after a reasonable warmup, you get stuck in and try to achieve a small tangible improvement, that is good practice. Going through the motions and not getting any benefit is falling behind in real terms.