3 Point Practise Plan

How much should you practise playing guitar? This is surely a question that faces most of us- be we aspiring musicians, or just hobbyists. The problem is, unless you are already working as a musician, you probably don’t have much time to play guitar. I want to help you solve this riddle by teaching you a way to use whatever time you have most effectively. It stands to reason: if you use the time you have in the best way possible, you will get the most benefit from it. Overall this will lead to you becoming the guitarist you can be, rather than the guitarist you dream about being.

Efficient Use of Time

So, the real question here is: “how can your time be used most effectively?”. Well, the trick is to make the most out of the time, right? You need a plan- some kind of routine. You could design one yourself, but where do you start? That is why I’ve designed the “Three Point Practise Plan” for whatever time you have available, and as a guide to eventually creating your own routine. The whole thing is a combination of focused learning time, and “messing about” time- and its up to you how much time you spend on each! Although please remember that if you spend less on a certain area you will get less from it. With that in mind, the three steps are as follows:

1)Warm Up

You should always start any practise session with this. Not just for the obvious medical benefits (helping you to avoid injury etc…), but because once your muscles have warmed up they will work better for you. Especially when you start trying more technically demanding techniques, but also for anything new you try to play- cold finger muscles simply wont work to their best.

This is the section of the routine that includes all the guitar exercises (find them here) and usually lasts between ten and fifteen minutes- although it can last up to an hour (or more!). This is also the time you can spend working on your technique and speed (see this post for more on technique and finger muscles). You can also spend this part of the time revising what you already know- scales/chords etc,. Its really just to get you thinking and acting like a guitarist again.

2)Directed Learning

Now, you’re all warmed up- good. Its time to get down to some serious study. Spend fifteen minutes to half hour working on new material. It doesn’t have to be completely new, but the idea is to spend this part of your time practising what you are currently learning (in lessons etc,). Once you’ve warmed up its the perfect time to push yourself in understanding and ability, while your muscles are ready and your brain is still focused. If you spend 15 minutes on warm-up, and 15 minutes on this you should be able to manage half an hour of guitar a day- easy!

3)Relaxed Learning

Great, you’ve done all the hard work, now for the fun bit. When you’ve finished with the “hard work” and “study”, its time to play. Put your guitar on a stand (not locked away in the case), that way every time you see it you can just pick it up and play. This is the time you get to work on improvisation, or anything you want! The rule is: it must be enjoyable. You don’t really even need to do it after the first two steps (but I recommend at least warming up first!).

The goal of this practice plan is to allow you to have fun playing guitar, and generally “messing around” with the instrument, but also allow you to learn and improve. Many people make the mistake of only completing the third point- which sure is fun, but you will find that you don’t progress as fast (i.e. you are not making the most of your time). By following this plan you should begin to see that more and more from the second point “blending” into points 1 and 3- so that your fingers get more agile (from the warm-up), and your improvisation and musicality become better and better (from the last point). End result being: your overall guitar playing will improve.

Remember: this plan is only a suggestion. Ideally you will form your own routine focused around what you want to learn and how well you are learning it.

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September 29, 2009 at 6:53 am | Guitar Technique and Exercises, Practicing and Practice Routine | 4 comments

4 Responses to “3 Point Practise Plan”

1. Chainsaw Guitar Tuition » Sowing the Seeds of Success says:

   02/01/2010 at 3:55 pm

   [...] know I’ve talked about how to structure your practice routine before, in my Three Point Practice Plan, but I didn’t really talk about the specifics of how to best practice the technical exercises [...]
2. 10 Reasons why You need a Metronome! | Chainsaw Guitar Tuition says:

   08/02/2010 at 9:28 pm

   [...] So, I talk about it almost every time I mention practice routine, or speed building, or guitar technique…the list goes on and I’m sure you get the point [...]
3. 3 Point Practice Plan (part 2) | Chainsaw Guitar Tuition says:

   11/02/2010 at 5:30 pm

   [...] Yes, OK, it’s been a while since part 1, but I always planned to return to this topic as how you practice is essential to how good [...]
4. How to Play with Confidence | Chainsaw Guitar Tuition says:

   01/03/2010 at 4:28 pm

   [...] going to start by outlining the “Three Point Practice Plan” (which, in case you haven’t heard about it, is my guide to organising your practice [...]

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