Thank you! I am an occupational therapist who treats hand and arm pain, and you are teaching perfectly by the ergonomic principles and joint protection strategies I introduce to my patients, nice work!
That’s awesome to hear!!! I would actually be very interested to learn more from someone who actually knows what they’re talking about on safe technique for playing different instruments and preventing injury, definitely an underdiscussed topic IMO
I can speak as an "expert"on this, because when I was starting out, I played exactly the way he said NOT to. I played thru wrist pain (DON'T!), and wound up having to have corrective surgery. I only wish my 1st teacher noticed that, and corrected me. To this day, I still have some moments of pain. Good luck.
@chesterburnett3466 I actually played the way he suggested for years, and then started guitar lessons recently to move to a more advanced level. My guitar teacher immediately corrected me from my thumb going off at an angle, and now I'm getting pain at the base of my thumb. So now I need to either tell him I'm going to do it the old way or get a new teacher.
2 years later and this guy still saving new players life’s! This made playing so much easier but as a kid I have small hands so curling my fingers without touching the wrong string is still a bit hard.
I'm so glad I'm watching this in the early stages of learning. My wrist already hurts and I figured I'd just get used to playing and it would go away. But now I know how to fix it! Thank you!
Good you caught it. I just started and thought so as well, that the wrist pain will just go away with practice. Sike, now my wrist hurts all the time when i bend it in weird ways. Always try to keep a straight wrist even if it seems harder in the beginning!
I just started learning and this video solved my biggest problem. My wrist hurt so bad trying to learn chords, but this slight change in thumb position straightend my wrist while playing. Thanks!
Awesome! I'm so glad that you got that issue resolved. I will say that I'm jealous of you because it took me WAY too long to learn this, it would have been so much better if I learned it when I started like you did!
@@Jamsville I'm a super beginner right now. I started learning the A and D chords. I'm hoping to learn and drill the technical aspects of playing before getting into what type of style I want to pursue. My goal is to focus on the fundamentals as best as i can.
Awesome, well I wish you success! Please let me know if you have any questions that I can help you with. Getting the fundamentals down is super important! What made you want to start playing guitar?
Same I’m new and struggled with this for so long I recently had to stop for 2 weeks due to wrist pain and today I decided to give it another go but wanted some advice first so this video may just save my left hands life
It seems like EVERY other video tells you to have your thumb perpendicular to the neck. that caused me so much pain after a few weeks. doing it like this is the best way for sure! all pain is gone!
I am a beginner and my left thumb naturally pointed to the head stalk as you are advising in your video that people do but then I noticed that some of the teachers (some well known) on you tube are advising against it stating that "it reduces range and motion". I then started to readjust your grip until I found this video of yours. Thank God I found this video of yours
I’ve been playing guitar for like 6 fucking years. And have dealt with this stupid pain for so long, until I found your video and it was immediately solved. Thank you
Sorry to hear about the tendinitis, but really glad that this technique helped you! It's funny how much of a difference a tiny change in the position of your fingers and hand can make huh?
There are some stretches and massages you can do yourself ,it helps. If you can afford it consider getting a real massage. Even chair massages are usually fairly cheap, they massage the muscles in your neck ,your arms . one of your tendons that runs through your hand also runs up your neck
My wife recently started learning and she has started feeling a lot of pain and stiffness in her wrist, thumb and forefinger. I've been playing for 20 years and couldn't quite explain how to achieve wrist neutrality in such a simple way. 20 years of my own bad habits probably doesn't help matters. Thanks for this video, it's renewed her hope for playing, and she was ringing through F and Bm chords like a pro after this simple adjustment, without the tension and pain she was getting before.
Thanks for your comment Marcelo! Glad it helped. I felt the same way when I found out about it lol. Definitely saves your hand when you’re playing barre chords for song after song
This must be the only UA-cam video promising that something will happen "instantly" that actually works! Superb advice - I particularly liked the bar chords part, many thanks!
I’m glad I came across this video! My other problem is that I feel like my fingers aren’t flexible enough… will that come with time? As I’m new to guitar
going to give this a try. I've been playing about 10 years, and this recently became an issue for me. Found I had a death grip with my thumb going and didn't even realize it until I developed something called "trigger thumb" where it began locking up. I had a procedure to fix that and now I have pain in the center of my hand and most recently....the wrist. I have it wrapped up for now and will put your techniques to the test! Thanks for the video. Of course, going nuts not being able to play today!
I just got my first electric guitar yesterday and my left wrist has been aching like crazy, I can't even learn new songs now that I finally have something to learn on 😭. Hopefully, this will help because every other video says put your thumb in opposition to your index finger etc. etc.
Just started playing a month and was getting bad pain in my wrist. This was the exact reason (the thumb pointing up behind the fret board). Did what you showed and its made a big difference, thank you 👏. And when I get to bar chords I'll be sure to try your trick for that too.
Since my hands always hurt (hypermobility crap), I'm in a 2-3 days of rest from playing, so I'll give it a try in a couple of days. But thank you for this! Any advice like this may make a difference.
Man. This is one of the best guitar videos I have ever watched. I’ve heard to have your thumb never go horizontal, but this makes so much more sense and actually has science behind it.
It's been 4 years and it's crazy I had to scroll quite a lot to find this video, man. I have weak wrists from a medical condition, and I've been unable to practice for a while due to wrist pain. This video helped so much. Thank you.
my guitar playing instantly became better as soon as I applied your "hack,"and it will never be the same. I always stopped playing due to my wrist hurting rather than my fingers. life changing video
I've been playing for over fifty years without a problem. But playing a new guitar had me playing pretty much all day for the last two weeks and my wrist started to hurt. Painful enough that I thought I might be developing a serious problem affecting both my wrist and hand. Couldn't find what was wrong. But your fix helped right away. II'm retraining my hand for barr chords after a half-century of playing them in the old way. It's taking a bit but happy to do it as it ought to let me keep playing for the rest of the ride. So deep thanks to you.
I’ve been playing guitar, self-taught, for two years, and wow! the barre chord technique instantly decreased the pain! thank you so much for putting this video out!
Man, this has helped me so much, thank you. I have suffered from radial nerve pain between my index and middle fingers for a couple of years - I work at a desk, and probably didn't have the right setup for a while. I noticed it started to affect my guitar playing, too. Something I love is that you articulate the position of both the thumb and use of arm muscles, because no one naturally points their thumb towards the ceiling.
Great solution for wrist pain on the fretting hand! Everywhere I look for how to fret chords, I'm told to have the thumb parallel (vertical) to your fingers. It's just natural to have the thumb pointed toward the headstock. I was just thinking that I couldn't play chords while sitting, now I'll try this THANKS!
Damn usually with these titles of videos “instantly do this and you get this” normally it’s not like that. No lie instantly changed how I played thanks so much for making this quick and straight to the point. New sub
Holy shit. I took classic guitar lessons for years, then switched to electric guitar and got wrist pain after a some weeks of playing... This made my jaw drop, and it worked so well, thanks!
Thanks. I am retired now and have time to improve my guitar skills, still an advanced beginner.I have been fighting to play with my thumb behind my fingers because that is what most UA-cam videos teach and tell you to not get in a bad habit of your thumb facing the head stock.I just tried your way and to me it just feels natural.Thanks again.I will let you know how its going useing your advice at a later date.Jerry
Man, using the weight of your arm and shoulder to apply pressure on the strings rather than using the fingers is such a natural solution. I can't believe I never thought of it. It seems so obvious now, after realizing. Thank you so much for the great tips!
This fixed my pain. My pain had gotten very bad and still isn’t completely resolved 4 months later. But, at least I can keep playing. Excellent advice. Ty
Omg this made my wrist pain go away instantly. My palms near my thumb (the area you pointed out) was always sore whenever I played guitar and you are right, there's so much tension in that pinch position but right now with this neutral position I can do chords, even the barre ones pain free. Thank you so much!
i learned the guitar when i was 8. im 23 now. i tried to improve for years but there were so many things i just couldn’t seem to do right, and my wrists would always hurt. 15 years later i finally figured out what i was doing wrong from this video. THANK YOU!!!
This makes guitar so much more fun thank you!! Wow, I was taught the exact opposite and my tendons would “pop” sometimes, like they were grinding together or something. This is much more ergonomic and natural.
Thank you so much! I play cello so I automatically did the wrong way since that’s how I was taught on the cello, thumb directly under the fingers. You immediately helped the pain go away. Thanks.
@@Jamsville I tried 12+ yrs ago & got disheartened. Recently (3 weeks) ago, picked it up again and made more progress in 3 weeks than ever before, partly thanks to your YT video. Thanx!
I was struggling with thumb muscle on a guitar and wrist pain on a uke, i thought i have to practice more and strenghten the muscles and it would get better. I am pretty sure i've watched other videos about hand position with a thumb right in line with other fingers without mentioning potential problems and genuinely thought this is the one right way. Thank you so much for the video, i think i played barrre chords first time in years without putting more pressure!
I used to play with my thumb pointing towards the head, and then i tried to "correct" it and changed my grip to my thumb pointing up. It was also the same time i noticed i got pains in my wrist more easily. It seems like i should to go back to my old way! Thank you so much for the video and explaining why it works!
I have been playing guitar for a year and I have learned this with Justin Guitar and Fender Play. I am indeed playing with my thumb in extending the neck of my guitar. I have bought a strip card for 10 guitar lessons since last week. He says that this is pertinent and that I must keep my thumb in the middle of my thumb as you show in the beginning of the video. This makes me really notice that I feel a lot busy on my wrist and that I can't get my nuts anymore. I'm going to learn the E5, A5, D5, G5, C5, F5 in my way. So with the thumb in the extension of the neck :-)
It's really nice to know that I'm not alone! So many guitarists say to place your thumb adjacent to your middle and ring finger. I just can't play like that. Great video!
Thank you so much, I was trying to learn some fundamental classical guitar techniques and my wrist hurt really badly, I almost thought I had carpel tunnel, but this helped a lot, thank you so much!
Glad to hear that!! :) was your pain like a very fast electric shock? I am experiencing this type of pain recently when stretching my two fingers too far apart on one riff I wrote, while holding the fretting hand wrong as shown in the video and then I feel like a short but sharp pain shocking my wrist... :(
I bought a 7 string and to reach my low b string I had to stretch so much and use so much tension that I just had to stop because my wrist hurt so bad and all the muscles in my hand to but this really helps, pushing your guitar a bit forward is not only for bar chords it helped me just to play way calmer thank you so much
This makes so much sense! I was exaggerating my movement because I have a bad habit of having my thumb over the top of the neck and taking my hand and just flipping it definitely fixed my pain!
Legit started teaching myself again as of this Sunday . And I notice quickly how fast my wrist and forearm were hurting and told myself this isn’t right and I felt a difference doing that thank you
I tried playing the guitar when i was younger and didn't stick with it because it hurt. I recently thought i wouid really like to try again to play the guitar, but after about 3 days of practice i was quickly remined why i stopped playing. I decided to search UA-cam for tips and this video came up. Everything you said makes perfect sense and I am definitely going to make these changes... I'm 50 by the way, so I need all the help i van get. 😅. I know this is sn old video, but thank you for posting and i will like and subscribe. 🎸
I was always confused when i heard the "Put your thumb behind the fingers" I would try to do it, and would fail miserably everytime because my wrist just wont allow it. So i kind of naturally drifted into holding it like you explained and it did help a lot
This is brilliant! Thank you so much! After the last 3-hour-long rehearsal with my band my hand was so sore and tense that I had to give up on playing for a few days just to give it a rest. I even had a numb feeling right where you've pointed, under thumb muscles, couldn't feel it for a while after playing. Simply pointing your thumb in the other direction makes all the pain go away! I'll need a while to get used to it after years of playing "the old way", but I'm sure it's worth it. Thanks again!
So glad to hear! It does take a little getting used to, but the effects are so immediate it's one of the easiest technique changes that you'll ever make, in my experience. It's just the natural position your thumb wants to be in, but for some reason we all assume that we're supposed to put it in an unnatural position. Took me probably a week to get used to. It's also worth noting that you can't play literally everything with your thumb pointing to the headstock, but it just gives you a more relaxed baseline position for most things.
Hi, may I ask how long did you need to adjust to the new thumb position? I'm playing for 15 years now and I don't have other choices than to adapt this technique and I'm worried that it will be like learning a new instrument... thanks in advance
Ah wow...can't thank you enough...I thought it was all due to my small hands...now I'm thinking otherwise...I got a bullet mustang that is supposed to be easier to play but I was srill struggling with pain...I was getting relief by pointing my thumb towards the head stick, I naturally figured it out and this vid validates I was onto something, plus all these other points. There is hope for me! Thx.
Thanks for this tip. I will give it a try tomorrow. My wrist has been killing for a few weeks and only getting worse. Been playing about 8 months and now that my fingers and skill allow me to play for long periods of time , I’m guessing with wrong form, technique, I’ve been destroying my wrist… hope this helps, thanks again!
Thank you very much,you solved a great problem in my mind,I naturally got that same thumb position which u suggested,but forced my thumb to look straight but didn't work out
Thank goodness I found this I’m new to playing the guitar and just had a common guitar injury due to wrist pain so this should help me a lot since I’m now able to get back to playing
So why do so many guitar instructors teach “thumb perpendicular to the neck” method? It. Just feels so counter intuitive and it hurts like hell. Thanks for making the case for thumb parallel to the neck and proving why it is better. Much appreciated!
i think instructors look over the fact that as humans we can have different physical features. what works for them might not be comfortable for others. this was one of the main reasons i kinda slowed down on learning guitar since my thumb muscles and wrist hurt to the point that i would groan in pain while playing. this video helped a lot, i hope it did for you too man
@@Jamsville I’m so glad man! 😆 & I’ve been playing for about a year seriously! But right now I’m sacrificing a lot hoping I can build a career for myself to make more time to do things I love 😇 how did you first get into guitar?
@@alexcantsleep_ Awesome! You can definitely make it happen if you work hard! Hopefully next year will be a little bit more normal for us musicians lol. I’ve been playing since I was 9 I think, but I would say I didn’t start practicing super seriously until I was 18 and starting music school. Spent too much time playing video games in high school 😭
@@Jamsville thank you so much for the words of encouragement man! Sometimes I truly feel crazy for chasing a life that I could design ya know? & HAHA totally relate to that! That’s awesome that guitar has always been a part of your life though! I wish you many more successes in your life and I will ALWAYS be a loyal sub and maybe one day a friend 😇
I've seen this video many months back and learned to place my thumb just the way you showed in this video. However I've been learning from other really proficient guitar players (Bernth, Paul Davids, HowtoPracticeGuitar here on ytb) and many of them said that placing the thumb in this position is a mistake that prevents a lot of player from increasing their speed when doing legato, arpeggios, solo etc. They're saying that you should place your thumb towards your middle finger. That's really confusing. I find that placing my thumb towards the middle finger changes the orientation of my hand and makes a lot of things much easier. However as you said it's really not as comfortable as you said in your video. I'm so confused as to what I should do lol
Well... The answer is there's a tradeoff to everything, like most things in life. I haven't experienced what you described, and I feel keeping my thumb in the way describing this video actually helps my speed (which I discussed in the video.) It results in my fingers automatically lining up with one string. Some things I do have to alter the position of my thumb but I just let it happen naturally. I find that forcing yourself to strictly stick to almost any technique/way of doing things is a mistake. There's a time and place for everything and I've found this technique is a good starting point, but it can be modified as necessary.
@@Jamsville Yes I totally agree with you. There's no one size fits all when it comes to technique. It's just that i'm self taught and I didn't want to get into bad habits that would slow me down later on. However I find that holding the thumb the way you showed in this video is way more comfortable and easier on the wrist, so i'll keep doing that. Thanks for your reply and your video !
Holy shmoly, the amount of pressure this took off my wrist is incredible. Can’t wait to start using this technique. My wrist has been hurting and making me hate bar chords more than I already did so thank you so so much for this :).
Yep. It’s amazing how making a small change can have remarkable results. It’s also a testament to how sensitive our bodies are to being in weird positions lol
See thats how I've always wanted to play, with thumb to the side. But my guitar teacher back in highschool would get so angry. However it is so much more comfortable not only for my wrist but also my sideways thumb. Thanks!
@Jamsville, Thanks for taking the time to make this awesome video! I had wrist surgery and I have to say, your advice works great, especially for barre chords! 💯
Thank you! I am an occupational therapist who treats hand and arm pain, and you are teaching perfectly by the ergonomic principles and joint protection strategies I introduce to my patients, nice work!
That’s awesome to hear!!! I would actually be very interested to learn more from someone who actually knows what they’re talking about on safe technique for playing different instruments and preventing injury, definitely an underdiscussed topic IMO
@@Jamsville Sure! Once I feel more knowledgeable about the topic I’ll try to speak on it more. :)
I can speak as an "expert"on this, because when I was starting out, I played exactly the way he said NOT to. I played thru wrist pain (DON'T!), and wound up having to have corrective surgery. I only wish my 1st teacher noticed that, and corrected me. To this day, I still have some moments of pain. Good luck.
@chesterburnett3466 I actually played the way he suggested for years, and then started guitar lessons recently to move to a more advanced level. My guitar teacher immediately corrected me from my thumb going off at an angle, and now I'm getting pain at the base of my thumb. So now I need to either tell him I'm going to do it the old way or get a new teacher.
2 years later and this guy still saving new players life’s! This made playing so much easier but as a kid I have small hands so curling my fingers without touching the wrong string is still a bit hard.
I'm so glad I'm watching this in the early stages of learning. My wrist already hurts and I figured I'd just get used to playing and it would go away. But now I know how to fix it! Thank you!
Awesome!! I'm SO glad you caught this early! I'm jealous of you 😁
Good you caught it. I just started and thought so as well, that the wrist pain will just go away with practice. Sike, now my wrist hurts all the time when i bend it in weird ways. Always try to keep a straight wrist even if it seems harder in the beginning!
I just started learning and this video solved my biggest problem. My wrist hurt so bad trying to learn chords, but this slight change in thumb position straightend my wrist while playing. Thanks!
Awesome! I'm so glad that you got that issue resolved. I will say that I'm jealous of you because it took me WAY too long to learn this, it would have been so much better if I learned it when I started like you did!
What kind of music are you learning to play?
@@Jamsville I'm a super beginner right now. I started learning the A and D chords. I'm hoping to learn and drill the technical aspects of playing before getting into what type of style I want to pursue. My goal is to focus on the fundamentals as best as i can.
Awesome, well I wish you success! Please let me know if you have any questions that I can help you with. Getting the fundamentals down is super important!
What made you want to start playing guitar?
Same I’m new and struggled with this for so long I recently had to stop for 2 weeks due to wrist pain and today I decided to give it another go but wanted some advice first so this video may just save my left hands life
It seems like EVERY other video tells you to have your thumb perpendicular to the neck. that caused me so much pain after a few weeks. doing it like this is the best way for sure! all pain is gone!
Yeah man. I think it comes from classical guitar technique like I said. But it doesn't work holding the guitar the modern way!
I am a beginner and my left thumb naturally pointed to the head stalk as you are advising in your video that people do but then I noticed that some of the teachers (some well known) on you tube are advising against it stating that "it reduces range and motion". I then started to readjust your grip until I found this video of yours. Thank God I found this video of yours
I’ve been playing guitar for like 6 fucking years. And have dealt with this stupid pain for so long, until I found your video and it was immediately solved.
Thank you
I just developed tendinitis and couldn’t do barre chords, this stopped any pain I had. Thank you!!
Sorry to hear about the tendinitis, but really glad that this technique helped you! It's funny how much of a difference a tiny change in the position of your fingers and hand can make huh?
There are some stretches and massages you can do yourself ,it helps.
If you can afford it consider getting a real massage.
Even chair massages are usually fairly cheap, they massage the muscles in your neck ,your arms .
one of your tendons that runs through your hand also runs up your neck
My wife recently started learning and she has started feeling a lot of pain and stiffness in her wrist, thumb and forefinger. I've been playing for 20 years and couldn't quite explain how to achieve wrist neutrality in such a simple way. 20 years of my own bad habits probably doesn't help matters. Thanks for this video, it's renewed her hope for playing, and she was ringing through F and Bm chords like a pro after this simple adjustment, without the tension and pain she was getting before.
Wow!! I’m super happy to hear that, Thomas!
dude that bar chord trick is insane!! I never thought about it before thanks!
Thanks for your comment Marcelo! Glad it helped. I felt the same way when I found out about it lol. Definitely saves your hand when you’re playing barre chords for song after song
This must be the only UA-cam video promising that something will happen "instantly" that actually works! Superb advice - I particularly liked the bar chords part, many thanks!
I'm so glad it helped you! Was your wrist hurting a lot?
I wish I could give you a big hug! My wrist tension was sooo frustrating and I couldn't play anymore. Now I am back to playing. Thank you!
I'm so glad that I was able to help you out Matthew! What kind of music do you listen to/play?
I dont understand how this doesnt have 8 billion views. Thank you dude, jesus i thought i was just weak/broken for 15 years
incredibly helpful, not only helped my wrist and hand pain but elbow pain as well. Can't thank you enough
Awesome, super glad it worked for you! What kind of music are you trying to play?
I’m glad I came across this video! My other problem is that I feel like my fingers aren’t flexible enough… will that come with time? As I’m new to guitar
The bar chord trick was good. The first trick that you point your thumb on headstock is hard for me, but the second trick helped me a lot. Thanks
Dude, thank you. I have been playing for 20 years, I was needed this desperately.
going to give this a try. I've been playing about 10 years, and this recently became an issue for me. Found I had a death grip with my thumb going and didn't even realize it until I developed something called "trigger thumb" where it began locking up. I had a procedure to fix that and now I have pain in the center of my hand and most recently....the wrist. I have it wrapped up for now and will put your techniques to the test! Thanks for the video. Of course, going nuts not being able to play today!
I just got my first electric guitar yesterday and my left wrist has been aching like crazy, I can't even learn new songs now that I finally have something to learn on 😭. Hopefully, this will help because every other video says put your thumb in opposition to your index finger etc. etc.
I’ve been struggling so much to learn guitar, and the wrist pain has been my biggest hindrance. I’m going to try this!
Hey Lisa, how's it going with your guitar playing? Did this strategy help you out?
I'm taking a break from playing because of wrist pain...
I'm slowly losing my mind, but really looking foward to try this technique!
Just started playing a month and was getting bad pain in my wrist. This was the exact reason (the thumb pointing up behind the fret board). Did what you showed and its made a big difference, thank you 👏. And when I get to bar chords I'll be sure to try your trick for that too.
Since my hands always hurt (hypermobility crap), I'm in a 2-3 days of rest from playing, so I'll give it a try in a couple of days. But thank you for this! Any advice like this may make a difference.
No video has ever helped me like this one!! You just changed my playing and life thank you so much! ❤️
That's incredible!!! So happy to hear that. Keep on playing and expressing yourself with music!!
Man. This is one of the best guitar videos I have ever watched. I’ve heard to have your thumb never go horizontal, but this makes so much more sense and actually has science behind it.
I play naturally like this as I play metal and dealt with issues and over time developed this style too.
Works brilliant so good on you for showing it
It's been 4 years and it's crazy I had to scroll quite a lot to find this video, man. I have weak wrists from a medical condition, and I've been unable to practice for a while due to wrist pain. This video helped so much. Thank you.
So happy to hear you’re getting back to playing! Cheers!
my guitar playing instantly became better as soon as I applied your "hack,"and it will never be the same. I always stopped playing due to my wrist hurting rather than my fingers. life changing video
I've been playing for over fifty years without a problem. But playing a new guitar had me playing pretty much all day for the last two weeks and my wrist started to hurt. Painful enough that I thought I might be developing a serious problem affecting both my wrist and hand. Couldn't find what was wrong. But your fix helped right away. II'm retraining my hand for barr chords after a half-century of playing them in the old way. It's taking a bit but happy to do it as it ought to let me keep playing for the rest of the ride. So deep thanks to you.
I’ve been playing for 2 months and started getting wrist pain. This is exactly what I needed!! Thank you so much!
Amazing, thank you. My thumb pain has been keeping me from playing lately. Wish I saw this sooner.
I’ve been playing guitar, self-taught, for two years, and wow! the barre chord technique instantly decreased the pain! thank you so much for putting this video out!
Man, this has helped me so much, thank you.
I have suffered from radial nerve pain between my index and middle fingers for a couple of years - I work at a desk, and probably didn't have the right setup for a while. I noticed it started to affect my guitar playing, too. Something I love is that you articulate the position of both the thumb and use of arm muscles, because no one naturally points their thumb towards the ceiling.
fixed my wrist pain instantly, as described. this dude knows what he’s talking about 🤙
i've been playing guitar for years and just now i saw this... this wrist pain is no joke. implementing this now
Thank you, brother. I have instant relief from my wrist and thumb
Great solution for wrist pain on the fretting hand! Everywhere I look for how to fret chords, I'm told to have the thumb parallel (vertical) to your fingers. It's just natural to have the thumb pointed toward the headstock. I was just thinking that I couldn't play chords while sitting, now I'll try this THANKS!
Damn usually with these titles of videos “instantly do this and you get this” normally it’s not like that. No lie instantly changed how I played thanks so much for making this quick and straight to the point. New sub
Cool! Thanks for your comment, Mark! Glad to have helped. I’m sure you will also get value from the other videos on the channel. Cheers!
Holy shit. I took classic guitar lessons for years, then switched to electric guitar and got wrist pain after a some weeks of playing... This made my jaw drop, and it worked so well, thanks!
Thanks. I am retired now and have time to improve my guitar skills, still an advanced beginner.I have been fighting to play with my thumb behind my fingers because that is what most UA-cam videos teach and tell you to not get in a bad habit of your thumb facing the head stock.I just tried your way and to me it just feels natural.Thanks again.I will let you know how its going useing your advice at a later date.Jerry
Thank you! Wish I had seen this 20 years ago! My playing improved dramatically and without pain its actually fun!
you’ve fixed years of wrist pain. Thank you
Man, using the weight of your arm and shoulder to apply pressure on the strings rather than using the fingers is such a natural solution. I can't believe I never thought of it. It seems so obvious now, after realizing.
Thank you so much for the great tips!
Dude you're a life saver
I just changed my finger positioning and woooow....i love the new feel. Thanks for this.
This fixed my pain. My pain had gotten very bad and still isn’t completely resolved 4 months later. But, at least I can keep playing. Excellent advice. Ty
Omg this made my wrist pain go away instantly. My palms near my thumb (the area you pointed out) was always sore whenever I played guitar and you are right, there's so much tension in that pinch position but right now with this neutral position I can do chords, even the barre ones pain free. Thank you so much!
I'm so glad you found relief, it's great to hear that you're now able to play pain-free!
i learned the guitar when i was 8. im 23 now. i tried to improve for years but there were so many things i just couldn’t seem to do right, and my wrists would always hurt. 15 years later i finally figured out what i was doing wrong from this video. THANK YOU!!!
So happy for you!!!! If you don't mind me asking, what style do you play?
The amount of difference this made is insane thank you so much
I’ve been playing for years and can play Shape of Your Heart without pain for the first time ever. Thank you!!
So happy for you! 🙂
This makes guitar so much more fun thank you!! Wow, I was taught the exact opposite and my tendons would “pop” sometimes, like they were grinding together or something. This is much more ergonomic and natural.
So glad that it helped you out!
Thank you so much! I play cello so I automatically did the wrong way since that’s how I was taught on the cello, thumb directly under the fingers. You immediately helped the pain go away. Thanks.
Man, you are a life saver for beginners struggling like me!
Awesome to hear, John! How long has it been since you started playing?
@@Jamsville I tried 12+ yrs ago & got disheartened. Recently (3 weeks) ago, picked it up again and made more progress in 3 weeks than ever before, partly thanks to your YT video. Thanx!
i struggle with mobility due to circulation issues, and this causes joint pain, thank you sm!!! you’re a lifesaver!!!
So happy that to help it be easier to play guitar!!
I was struggling with thumb muscle on a guitar and wrist pain on a uke, i thought i have to practice more and strenghten the muscles and it would get better. I am pretty sure i've watched other videos about hand position with a thumb right in line with other fingers without mentioning potential problems and genuinely thought this is the one right way. Thank you so much for the video, i think i played barrre chords first time in years without putting more pressure!
You and nick manoloff saved me after 2.5 years of struggling with guitar . Thanks a lot🌹🌹🌹🌹👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Oh my god, i found the solution. I used to have pain very quickly playing Barr chords. Now I just need to be used to with ways you showed. Thanks man
So glad to have helped you out, Sadekur!
I used to play with my thumb pointing towards the head, and then i tried to "correct" it and changed my grip to my thumb pointing up. It was also the same time i noticed i got pains in my wrist more easily. It seems like i should to go back to my old way! Thank you so much for the video and explaining why it works!
I have been playing guitar for a year and I have learned this with Justin Guitar and Fender Play. I am indeed playing with my thumb in extending the neck of my guitar. I have bought a strip card for 10 guitar lessons since last week. He says that this is pertinent and that I must keep my thumb in the middle of my thumb as you show in the beginning of the video. This makes me really notice that I feel a lot busy on my wrist and that I can't get my nuts anymore. I'm going to learn the E5, A5, D5, G5, C5, F5 in my way. So with the thumb in the extension of the neck :-)
This is actually helpfull. I experienced a tremendous amount of pain whenever I played for a long time. Thank you!
It's really nice to know that I'm not alone! So many guitarists say to place your thumb adjacent to your middle and ring finger. I just can't play like that. Great video!
For sure! Nothing is a hard and fast rule but I think this is a good starting point 😄
Thank you so much, I was trying to learn some fundamental classical guitar techniques and my wrist hurt really badly, I almost thought I had carpel tunnel, but this helped a lot, thank you so much!
Glad to hear that!! :) was your pain like a very fast electric shock? I am experiencing this type of pain recently when stretching my two fingers too far apart on one riff I wrote, while holding the fretting hand wrong as shown in the video and then I feel like a short but sharp pain shocking my wrist... :(
@@arminbasha it wasn't a short electric shock kind of pain, it was like a throbbing pain afair
I bought a 7 string and to reach my low b string I had to stretch so much and use so much tension that I just had to stop because my wrist hurt so bad and all the muscles in my hand to but this really helps, pushing your guitar a bit forward is not only for bar chords it helped me just to play way calmer thank you so much
This makes so much sense! I was exaggerating my movement because I have a bad habit of having my thumb over the top of the neck and taking my hand and just flipping it definitely fixed my pain!
Legit started teaching myself again as of this Sunday . And I notice quickly how fast my wrist and forearm were hurting and told myself this isn’t right and I felt a difference doing that thank you
I tried playing the guitar when i was younger and didn't stick with it because it hurt. I recently thought i wouid really like to try again to play the guitar, but after about 3 days of practice i was quickly remined why i stopped playing. I decided to search UA-cam for tips and this video came up. Everything you said makes perfect sense and I am definitely going to make these changes... I'm 50 by the way, so I need all the help i van get. 😅. I know this is sn old video, but thank you for posting and i will like and subscribe. 🎸
This has to be the most useful video I have seen about this
im three years late but this helped me a lot, tysm dude youre definitely an angel
I’ve been playing for years with pain in my fretboard wrist and arm….you have solved it for me. Thanks so much!
Ive been playing so long with bad form, i needed to see this, rhanks
I was always confused when i heard the "Put your thumb behind the fingers"
I would try to do it, and would fail miserably everytime because my wrist just wont allow it. So i kind of naturally drifted into holding it like you explained and it did help a lot
best info I found yet on this topic. thank you!!
I haven't been able to play for months now after falling and injuring my hand. I'll give this a try. Thanks.
Sorry to hear about that, William. I wish you a speedy recovery!!
This is brilliant! Thank you so much! After the last 3-hour-long rehearsal with my band my hand was so sore and tense that I had to give up on playing for a few days just to give it a rest. I even had a numb feeling right where you've pointed, under thumb muscles, couldn't feel it for a while after playing. Simply pointing your thumb in the other direction makes all the pain go away! I'll need a while to get used to it after years of playing "the old way", but I'm sure it's worth it. Thanks again!
So glad to hear! It does take a little getting used to, but the effects are so immediate it's one of the easiest technique changes that you'll ever make, in my experience. It's just the natural position your thumb wants to be in, but for some reason we all assume that we're supposed to put it in an unnatural position.
Took me probably a week to get used to. It's also worth noting that you can't play literally everything with your thumb pointing to the headstock, but it just gives you a more relaxed baseline position for most things.
Hi, may I ask how long did you need to adjust to the new thumb position? I'm playing for 15 years now and I don't have other choices than to adapt this technique and I'm worried that it will be like learning a new instrument... thanks in advance
Thank you so much i didnt realize that this was why my wrist hurt so much. (Im a beginner).
Appreciate you brother, this helps with pain and also speed and dexterity. Very smart!
Ah wow...can't thank you enough...I thought it was all due to my small hands...now I'm thinking otherwise...I got a bullet mustang that is supposed to be easier to play but I was srill struggling with pain...I was getting relief by pointing my thumb towards the head stick, I naturally figured it out and this vid validates I was onto something, plus all these other points. There is hope for me! Thx.
Thanks so much man, you're video is exactly what I've been waiting for. I thought no one understands my pain. You're the best buddy. Instantly better!
So glad to hear that, Patrick!
Thanks for this tip. I will give it a try tomorrow. My wrist has been killing for a few weeks and only getting worse. Been playing about 8 months and now that my fingers and skill allow me to play for long periods of time , I’m guessing with wrong form, technique, I’ve been destroying my wrist… hope this helps, thanks again!
Glad you checked the video out then! Did you try it out? How did it go?
Subbed!! Excellent video! Gonna go play around on the Ibanez now!
Thanks for the sub! Cheers!!
That was a good tip for those three things you showed. My wrist was really painful. Now i just have to practice that
Thank you very much,you solved a great problem in my mind,I naturally got that same thumb position which u suggested,but forced my thumb to look straight but didn't work out
THANK YOU! I am gonna try this! My fretting hand is always hurting when I am doing my shredding lessons.
Thank goodness I found this I’m new to playing the guitar and just had a common guitar injury due to wrist pain so this should help me a lot since I’m now able to get back to playing
So why do so many guitar instructors teach “thumb perpendicular to the neck” method? It. Just feels so counter intuitive and it hurts like hell. Thanks for making the case for thumb parallel to the neck and proving why it is better. Much appreciated!
i think instructors look over the fact that as humans we can have different physical features. what works for them might not be comfortable for others. this was one of the main reasons i kinda slowed down on learning guitar since my thumb muscles and wrist hurt to the point that i would groan in pain while playing. this video helped a lot, i hope it did for you too man
aghhhh thanks G, been practisin too many barred chords lately this makes perfect sense
But what if I have a classical guitar? Playing barre chords kinda mutes the lower strings 😆. But this tutorial did help. Thanks a ton!
These videos are pure gold. Keep it up Adam! 🙌🏾🙏🏾🔥 & happy holidays!
Thanks Alex, you made my day! I really appreciate the encouraging words😀
How long have you been playing guitar for?
@@Jamsville I’m so glad man! 😆
& I’ve been playing for about a year seriously! But right now I’m sacrificing a lot hoping I can build a career for myself to make more time to do things I love 😇 how did you first get into guitar?
@@alexcantsleep_ Awesome! You can definitely make it happen if you work hard! Hopefully next year will be a little bit more normal for us musicians lol.
I’ve been playing since I was 9 I think, but I would say I didn’t start practicing super seriously until I was 18 and starting music school. Spent too much time playing video games in high school 😭
@@Jamsville thank you so much for the words of encouragement man! Sometimes I truly feel crazy for chasing a life that I could design ya know?
& HAHA totally relate to that! That’s awesome that guitar has always been a part of your life though! I wish you many more successes in your life and I will ALWAYS be a loyal sub and maybe one day a friend 😇
Thank you so much!! My wrist was hurting whenever I even tried to do anything on the guitar and this really helped.
So happy it helped your wrist pain!
This was so incredibly helpful!
thank you so much!! watching this while taking a break to let my wrist heal x.x
oh my god I've been playing for a while now and this solved my problem thank you very much!!!
Brand new on guitar and had intense pain on my wrist. Definedly will try this. Thank you 🙏
I’ve been playing for 12 years never had a problem until recently i guess this fixed it man
I've seen this video many months back and learned to place my thumb just the way you showed in this video. However I've been learning from other really proficient guitar players (Bernth, Paul Davids, HowtoPracticeGuitar here on ytb) and many of them said that placing the thumb in this position is a mistake that prevents a lot of player from increasing their speed when doing legato, arpeggios, solo etc.
They're saying that you should place your thumb towards your middle finger. That's really confusing.
I find that placing my thumb towards the middle finger changes the orientation of my hand and makes a lot of things much easier. However as you said it's really not as comfortable as you said in your video. I'm so confused as to what I should do lol
Well... The answer is there's a tradeoff to everything, like most things in life. I haven't experienced what you described, and I feel keeping my thumb in the way describing this video actually helps my speed (which I discussed in the video.) It results in my fingers automatically lining up with one string. Some things I do have to alter the position of my thumb but I just let it happen naturally.
I find that forcing yourself to strictly stick to almost any technique/way of doing things is a mistake. There's a time and place for everything and I've found this technique is a good starting point, but it can be modified as necessary.
@@Jamsville Yes I totally agree with you. There's no one size fits all when it comes to technique.
It's just that i'm self taught and I didn't want to get into bad habits that would slow me down later on. However I find that holding the thumb the way you showed in this video is way more comfortable and easier on the wrist, so i'll keep doing that. Thanks for your reply and your video !
This is great! I had to stop playing for a couple of weeks due to over working my fretting hand. Why am i only learning this now in my 40s!
Better late than never! 😬
Holy shmoly, the amount of pressure this took off my wrist is incredible. Can’t wait to start using this technique. My wrist has been hurting and making me hate bar chords more than I already did so thank you so so much for this :).
Thanks for this video! These small adjustments really made a difference.
Yep. It’s amazing how making a small change can have remarkable results. It’s also a testament to how sensitive our bodies are to being in weird positions lol
See thats how I've always wanted to play, with thumb to the side. But my guitar teacher back in highschool would get so angry. However it is so much more comfortable not only for my wrist but also my sideways thumb. Thanks!
@Jamsville, Thanks for taking the time to make this awesome video! I had wrist surgery and I have to say, your advice works great, especially for barre chords! 💯