EricT43
Senior Member
Hi everyone.
Over the last few months I have been having trouble with my left elbow. Based on the Googling I did, I believe I have medial tendinitis, commonly called golf elbow, as opposed to the more commonly known tennis elbow. Basically, the inside of my left elbow hurts. It hurts a lot more after playing a gig, so much so that it makes putting my gear into the car somewhat difficult.
Based on what I've read, I believe this comes from strain on the tendons from hitting my snare drum. The leader of the band I'm in is a big fan of playing loudly, and has pushed me from Day 1 to beat the drums. Over time I've developed a harder playing style, but I think I may be pushing it a bit. I find that I really focus on putting power into my playing, and I don't know if that's something I should really have to think about during a performance. We're not playing metal, and I'm always amplified, so honestly I'm ready to tell the band leader to stick it up his ass and that I'll play how I'm want.
I have gigs Friday and Saturday this week, and I'm planning to try playing at a moderate volume to see if that helps. I'm also going to loosen my snare head a bit, as I've read that a tight head will aggravate the issue. I'll be practicing my downstroke technique as well.
I'm wondering if you guys think using heavier sticks would help? I use 5A normally, thinking about 5B to get more volume with less effort, but I don't know if that might cause other complications for me.
Over the last few months I have been having trouble with my left elbow. Based on the Googling I did, I believe I have medial tendinitis, commonly called golf elbow, as opposed to the more commonly known tennis elbow. Basically, the inside of my left elbow hurts. It hurts a lot more after playing a gig, so much so that it makes putting my gear into the car somewhat difficult.
Based on what I've read, I believe this comes from strain on the tendons from hitting my snare drum. The leader of the band I'm in is a big fan of playing loudly, and has pushed me from Day 1 to beat the drums. Over time I've developed a harder playing style, but I think I may be pushing it a bit. I find that I really focus on putting power into my playing, and I don't know if that's something I should really have to think about during a performance. We're not playing metal, and I'm always amplified, so honestly I'm ready to tell the band leader to stick it up his ass and that I'll play how I'm want.
I have gigs Friday and Saturday this week, and I'm planning to try playing at a moderate volume to see if that helps. I'm also going to loosen my snare head a bit, as I've read that a tight head will aggravate the issue. I'll be practicing my downstroke technique as well.
I'm wondering if you guys think using heavier sticks would help? I use 5A normally, thinking about 5B to get more volume with less effort, but I don't know if that might cause other complications for me.