Nutrition for Recovery

Thanks, I'm pretty much running on "Spirit" and Lyrica !!! I've died a few times on stage in my life but those were younger days, when I'm done playing I'll limp away and be very satisfied. I made a good living singin and play Blues music and now that thats over I'm enjoying playing covers from the Beatles to Lil Feet (my lil 3 piece rock band). Also covering tunes that used 2 drummers and a percussionists is a challenge. Do you play the front running drum part or do a mixture of all the beats and accents happening???? I like it, its a good time. The Allman Bros. is a challenge and I never played any tunes by them but remember seeing them at the Fillmore in NYC and they were a pretty good jam band playing some Freedy King type parts and using a back beat drummer was very interesting to hear in a blues/rock band. I could never imagined Doctor Dirt playing "Feel a Whole Better" by the Byrds a few years back but here I am hahaha!!! Its a strong tune!
Doc
 
How loud are you guys playing? I imagine it would be tough for you if you're playing extra physical. But since you're playing The Byrds ... I'm guessing that you're playing mellower these days.

I've gone mellow too and funnily enough I also find myself playing a Byrds song (FFS) ... Going Back. Nice tune, but I've played tons of music over the years that I wouldn't listen to ... you know, the drummer has to going along with the singer and guitarist and their taste for twee music lol

Still, going mellow is a nice means of self preservation, without the need for prep and recovery that heavy hitters sometimes have to do after losing the invulnerability of youth. I enjoy the challenge of playing light while keeping the energy happening. Takes a lot of practice ...
 
Never mind the diet and work on your hands. Many Professional Symphony players play into their 70's . They play over 80 or more musicians with no microphones. Playing timpani is easily as demanding on the hands as playing the drumset, moreso on some nights. Crashing 20 inch hand cymbals is also not an easy task. They have to continually practice to keep their hands in shape.
 
I think weight lifting has helped me a lot. That, and just healthier eating habits. I never have a heavy meal before I play, and I opt for a cup of coffee instead of a beer.

As far as recovery after playing, my biggest problem is cramping in my kick drum leg after a long session. I used to think I needed more potassium so I ate a banana, but what I found out is that it was the beer dehydrating me. So, that's when I switched to coffee.
 
wow doc. that's a lot. thanks and i wish for a lot of goodness and love in your life. maybe the bar maid will give you some healing kisses...

pol-stay cool. i hope you get some more gigs as soon as possible.

bigd- you're right- in the old days, i saw buster bailey playin snare in rehearsals with the n.y. philharmonic, and it put everything into perspective for me. wow. and there's no option other than keeping your hands in shape through daily work, which i'm doing. i'm just saying i feel my returns aren't matching my investment. had i been practicing like this as a young man, i'd be experiencing better results, that i'm sure of.

Midnite Zephyr-so beer's a dehydrator? i drink coffee, but not for thirst- i like it super strong, so i can just sip it, like a sipping whiskey or guiness...always sipping. my recipe for gigs or heavy playing is a pitcher with 1/3 cranberry juice, 2/3 club soda-just flavored water basically. weight lifting for mass isn't good for my drumming-totally throws me off. weight lifting for speed and endurance is better for me. running is my favorite cardio.
 
My son studies with pro symphony players and the one teacher has this saying.

The first day you don't practice you notice.
The second day you don't practice your section notices.
The third day you don't practice the conductor notices.
The fourth day you don't practice YOU'RE FIRED!!!!!!

Words of wisdom from a person who makes his living as a real professional percussionist.
 
[/QUOTE]Midnite Zephyr-so beer's a dehydrator? i drink coffee, but not for thirst- i like it super strong, so i can just sip it, like a sipping whiskey or guiness...always sipping. my recipe for gigs or heavy playing is a pitcher with 1/3 cranberry juice, 2/3 club soda-just flavored water basically. weight lifting for mass isn't good for my drumming-totally throws me off. weight lifting for speed and endurance is better for me. running is my favorite cardio.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, I never drink when I weight lift either, and I agree with you, we need to exercise for speed and high endurance, which I do. For practices I have a coffee beforehand, but for gigs (which are rare for me lately), I like a Red Bull w/ good vodka right before we start. I don't get to practice at home so I strum the songs on guitar and sing them. I have to listen over and over to the songs and do a lot of mental preparation because I just don't get the time on the set. So when I do finally get to playing the drums, I have to run through a couple of songs just to warm up to where I feel relaxed and free flowing again, if you know what I mean.
 
i'm not trying to prolong the life of this thread unnaturally thru life support- no, really!! just gotta answer the last replies, and if no one's firing direct nutrition info after that, let it r.i.p.

pol- listened and watched. bruford was a practicer and he's got extreme orginizational skills. i've said it before, but it takes a lot of effort to get to the seeming effortlessness in his and others' great playing. but that's exactly what we're shooting for. side note- i received a great compliment from the producer of the roundabout album years ago at a club in greenwich village.i'm still getting fueled from it.

bigd-heard that once, probly from you. of course at that level, you wouldn't dare go so long.

Midnite Zephyr-i get the relaxed, free-flowing thing, and that's cool. but practicing on the pad translates exponentially on to the set so don't miss that opportunity!
 
PollyAnna we have a wide variety of tunes and the volumn varies accodingly which I enjoy very much. Playing Blues music for so long teaches musicians that volumn should not be abused and it is a very important ingrediant to use as an effect. One of the first thing you learn when putting together a good Blues set is how to utilize dynamics. The old sure fire "highs & lows" using dynamics to keep the people focussed on you can't miss when its worked correctly. So we try to use that philosophy when setting up a song list. The guitar player is a seasoned musician who grew up in this area so he has a built in knowledge of what flies and whats waste. The trio can sing so using voicings as another instrument allows the music to accompany us and in turn the volumn level stays harnessed. We will come forward when the dance floor starts to build and the guitarists does have that rocker mentality to "out do" the dancers. Sometimes that hurts!!!! HA! But what the hell when they go sit down to catch their breath we'll play 2 and sometimes 3 ballads in a row. You know "rest time" hahahaha!!!
Where are you at? And is the market healthy or hurting? I'm just south of Sarasota and its hurting here, or gigs are at established bars that aren't going anywheres but they can back off if they need to. One of them I used to work my Blues band at and I've held the room for 10 or 12 years now. Do you have solid dates that are secure? Doc
 
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