# Warm up exercises



## bryguy9 (Jul 13, 2007)

Hello:

I read the thread about practice regimen. A couple of posters mention warm up exercises.

Can someone post a link to some of their recommended or suitable warm up exercises? Or maybe is there a book on practice techniques someone could recommend?

All the best
B
:smilie_flagge17:


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## Guest (Mar 19, 2009)

For books take a look a Petrucci's Rock Discipline. The first chapter is all about the warm up exercise and they are quite good and stretching out your hand, limbering up those muscles.

I've used a 4-note pattern for many, many years that was given to me by Chris Bartos when I was taking lessons from him. The key here is consistent, even, note-to-note sound. It should sound like a long, continuous run up and down the notes. Always with a metronome, starting slow and then working your way up.

The pattern is simple:

```
E  1 2 3 4 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
A  - - - - 1 2 3 4 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
D  - - - - - - - - 1 2 3 4 - - - - - - - - - - - -
G  - - - - - - - - - - - -  1 2 3 4 - - - - - - - -
B  - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 2 3 4 - - - -
e  - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 2 3 4

E  - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 2 3 4
A  - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 2 3 4 - - - - 
D  - - - - - - - - 1 2 3 4 - - - - - - - - 
G  - - - - 1 2 3 4 - - - - - - - - - - - -
B  1 2 3 4 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
e  - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
```
It's so simple I'm not going to write it out in full again -- I think the idea will be obvious. So the first time through you play that ascending, descending pattern. Then you change the leading finger. So the second time through you play:


```
2 3 4 1
```
Third time:


```
3 4 1 2
```
Foruth time:


```
4 1 2 3
```
And now you switch it up:


```
2 1 3 4
```
And:


```
3 2 1 4
```
And:


```
4 3 2 1
```
And another pattern switch:


```
3 1 2 4
```
And another:


```
3 1 4 2
```
And so on. The point is to strengthen your weaker fingers so you can lead with them. We have a tendency to start licks with the index and middle finger because they tend to be stronger, more flexible. This pattern stuff lets you buff up your pinky and your ring finger so leading licks with them gets easier.

If you find the stretch at the 1st first fret tough with this exercise at first just move up the neck and do it around the 7th fret. Move backwards over time as you get more flexible, stronger hands.

And when you tire of the straight up and down try string skipping with the patterns: E -> D -> A -> B -> G -> e


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## seadonkey (Feb 9, 2008)

+1 on the stuff Ian mentioned.
Another useful one I use to do to loosen up and strengthen my fingers was to hammer-on starting with the low E string and then ascending using your index, middle and pinky finger.

E 1 2 4
A 1 2 4 
D 1 2 4
A 1 2 4
D 1 2 4
G 1 2 4
D 1 2 4
G 1 2 4
B 1 2 4 
G 1 2 4
B 1 2 4
E 1 2 4

then descend the same pattern with 2 3 5. Everytime you hit a high or low E string you shift forward all the way up the neck. Then start over with 1 3 4 using your index, ring and pinky all the way up the neck then 1 3 5 etc.


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