Resting During Practice Sessions

Mark Heuer · Veteran Member Joined: 23 Nov 2001 Posts: 232

I've heard that during practice sessions "you should rest as much as you play". Why? I've heard people say "you want to always be in a state of building, not breaking down". But if I practice just 30-45 minutes a day and play primarily between low C and high C, who needs to rest? I guess it's whatever the individual needs. Me? I don't want to waste time with the horn off my face. I want to play the horn, not hold it and take rest breaks.

[ This Message was edited by: Mark Heuer on 2002-06-01 12:40 ]

walter · Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2002 7:02 am Post subject:

[ This Message was edited by: walter on 2002-09-20 08:34 ]

Lex Grantham · Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2002 9:56 am Post subject:

Mark:

I try to practice in the afternoon for awhile, and then most evenings are set aside from 9:00 to 10:30 P.M. for more practice. That way, I know the evening time is dedicated to my practice. I almost feel giulty if I do not practice then...unless something else has come up.

I find myself playing for about 15 minutes, and them I rest for 4-5 minutes and continue. During the time I am practicing, I will rest about 4 times, which is no more than about 15-20 minutes total, but I have also played about an hour and 15 minutes, too. The rest periods never seem a waste of time for me, but rather a chance to have the lips be ready for additional workouts.

Sincerely,

Lex Grantham

wildebrook · Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2002 10:01 am Post subject:

I know it might seem like a waste of time to rest during a practice session. However, I think it is essential. I'm not talking about big breaks....A rest, more me, is often just 5 seconds. Especially if your lip is tired, damage can be done by playing past a certain point. You need to make your practice sessions rewarding, but it is better to have a good training session which accounts for a little rest, than a bunch of non-stop playing just for the sake of filling time. Some things just shouldn't be rushed. I remember a long time ago when I first worked on the Colin flexibility studies and encountered the concept of resting 5 seconds between exercises. That really improved my playing and I could tell from the start it "felt good" to incorporate the small rests.

dwm1129 · Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2002 10:43 am Post subject:

Alot of my practicing is done off the horn...there is no need to have the horn in your face all the time.....I will go through things mentaly many times before I even play it and when I do play it...It's goes very well and I do not actually have to play the piece that much because I have already played it in my head so many times. You have to learn how to practice smart not hard.... and almost all the improve practice I do is done at the piano not on the horn.

[ This Message was edited by: dwm1129 on 2002-06-01 21:31 ]

EBjazz · Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2002 12:19 pm Post subject:

Hello Mark; Sounds like what you are doing is fine. Heck if you only practice 30 minutes a day, then you are resting for 23 1/2 hours between sessions which is fine.
On the other hand, I'm sure the horn isn't glued to your face for the 30 minutes either, so I think you're fine.

Eb
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Mark Heuer · Veteran Member Joined: 23 Nov 2001 Posts: 232

Thanks. That helps.

[ This Message was edited by: Mark Heuer on 2002-06-01 20:25 ]

Quadruple C · Heavyweight Member Joined: 28 Nov 2001 Posts: 1448

[ This Message was edited by: Quadruple C on 2003-12-19 14:28 ]

vivace · Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2002 8:35 pm Post subject:

I usually rest about 24 hours between my band rehersals.......
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pedaltonekid · Heavyweight Member Joined: 15 Nov 2001 Posts: 1711

If you are playing 45 minutes a day, it is not a major issue. I like to break my practice into 20 minute sessions. I vary from 2 to 6 sessions per day, depending on time, upcoming performance requirements, etc. The breaks between the 20 minute sessions can run from a couple of minutes to several hours.

This works really well for me when I am trying to increase my playing time.
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trjeam · Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2002 3:37 pm Post subject:

The idea about resting is like lifting weights or like when you are working out. The idea is to build muscles not to crush them.

In my personal fitness class during the weight room classes we would go to go lift weights every other day. The teacher explained to us that if we did it everyday we would never build muscles because we aren't letting them build up and get stronger. If you do it everyday they are just going to get worn out and get weacker. So by going every other day to the weight room we were giving our muscles 24 hours of rest to build back up and get stronger.

So when you rest you are giving your muscles time to build back up and strengthen.

The same things goes with the chops if you don't give them the proper amount of rest you aren't building any muscles. You're just making your chops weaker.

And you should choose how much rest you're going to give your self by how much playing you did. If you just warmed up you should give your self about 5 minutes of rest. If you just got done playing carnival of venice and all of arbans characteristics then you should give your chops allot more rest then 5 minutes.
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