What determines "good days" and "bad days" ?

[Wizard7]

Everyone has good and bad days of guitar playing, Is there any reason for it?

 

On Tuesday, I was playing for an hour before I was fully warmed up, and still I was playing like crap.

 

After a few days off, I picked up the guitar today and was loose within about 10-15 minutes, I was playing fine and shredding away.

 

 

Is there any exact science to this, or is it just sort of random? Anyone have any insights or thoughts about it, lets hear it...

[1001gear]

Many of the systems involved might be too unobtrusive to be identified; nevermind placed under control and you'd still need to define the target states, ... IF you go by NASA, and to answer this question I would, yes it is an exact science.

Sorry if this is not that damned helpful.

[bardsley]

It can be random, but it is very common to feel much better after a few days off. The trouble is that you can't keep doing this, and get better. Other than that, I don't know. Some days are better than others.

[Little Dreamer]

It seems like if I'm having a bad day, it's probably because I didn't get a good night's sleep. Even if I feel fine, it's just screws me up.

Or else I just get burned out and lack motivation. It would probably be best at that point to completely change the exercises and the songs I'm working on - it's not like one specific exercise or song is the only way to gain a particular skill or something.

Sometimes I'll be playing like absolute crap, put down the guitar and go outside and mow the lawn or something, and when I come back in I'm playing great. Must just have needed to get the blood flowing or something.

So, get a good night's sleep, revamp your practice routine at regular intervals, and spend 20 minutes on the stair-stepper before picking up a guitar. That should eliminate bad days.

Ah, hell, I have no idea

[PRSnotPOS]

Sometimes I think it's just something in the air... but a good nights sleep does usually help.

[Raths]

Bad day... kids are crying/fighting, 3 year old comes up and puts her hands on the fret board and says "no daddy, don't play", can't get my headphones plugged in right, can't get the rp80 to sound like it did last night (with the same setting), I'm out of beer, got stuck by several needles at work on the middle finger (my main bending finger, even makes it hard to type), the wife wants me to stop and start the grill, the dog wants to go for a walk as I'm getting into a groove, can't find a song I want to play, I'm out of beer, getting hungry, guitar was in tune last night when I put it up and now its 3/4 of an octave out, string breaks as I'm tuning guitar, 2 tuners read a full step off each other, wife says I'm playing too loud (with headphones) and she can't hear "Survivor", and I ran out of beer.

Good day... Someone says "Play that again, I know the words!", and I have beer.

You got to live for those good days!

L8R

Raths

[BenoA]

Raths you made my day!!!

Rock on!

[nylon rock]

I don't have nearly the distractions you guys have so here are my observations.

Good nights sleep and play early in the morning and you will always sound good. Maybe not perfect playing on the first go around, but always sounds good.

Play for 30 minutes and put the guitar down. Come back later and you will sound head-and-shoulders-above better. (Why do you think the second sets of concerts are always better? They're warmed up, and it only fades like a half life during the break.)

Playing after work, you need a beer or very little smoke. Just enough to take the edge off, lower your stress level, and allow you to buffer the outside world. This is why musicians get addicted to heroin. Allows 'em to internalize and focus. (Highly not recommended, go with a good night's sleep, instead, and no, not speaking from experience, just from what I've heard.)

[ZeppelinPie792]

My bad days usually happens when I get little sleep, am physically tired (hunger, too much physical activity, no sleep), and people start getting mad at me. Basically, when I am grumpy.

One time, my band played at my drummer's garage sale, and I had like 3 hours of sleep, and i was bummed out that no one showed up when we invited a few people that said they would come (one person we invited came hte next day, but that was it and she only stayed for 10 minutes) so I was playing horrible. My other guitarist was doing great, but I sounded like crap when I was trying to crank out good stuff that just wouldn't come out. So my bassist walks over and tells me to start playing actually good. I got a little angry, and he told me that in sports they tell you to play better or don't play at all. Let's just say I almost threw my guitar on the ground ( ,something I would never do) and quit.

On the good days, people tell me my solos are awesome, and I actually play good.

Me and one of my friends simply call it mojo, we have it one day, but not the next, and you can loose it or gain it in a day.

[bdemon]

It's just like mood, isn't it? Sometimes you're just in a bad mood, got up on the wrong side of the bed. Nobody did anything bad to you, you're just irritated with EVERYTHING! Then you fast forward to the next day, where you're in a great mood even though nothing particularly special has happened.

Rainy days can be a drag, but at least they help you appreciate the sun when it comes out.

[keshav dhar]

If I find that my playing sucks even after half an hour of playing, I just put the guitar down and do something else. The next time I pick it up I usually amaze myself

[derekfarreal]

it has to do with your motor strip (records & sends messages through your body to your hands), central nervous system (carries a part of the message), circulation (also carries part of the message) & emotional weight you carry to the table (this effects how it travels & what comes with it).

caffeine effects you central nervous system
cigarettes effects your nervous system & circulation
bad posture has a very negative effect on your nervous system
bad diet can make your circulation fluxuate from day to day
video games between practice sessions seems like it might help but according to these people it hinders because it overworks your motor strip

your motor strip uses the central nervous system to communicate to your muscles/fingers. bad posture doesn't allow your CNS to work as efficiently as it should, same with bad circulation.

bad diet can also effect cell receptors that take in vital proteins. by damaging these cr, through polypeptite strands that are carried in your blood, your fingers actually process slower and cause even more frustration because your cells actually get used to a certain "arrangement" of those polypeptite strands.

ever heard the phrase "practice does not make perfect, practice makes permanent, so start every lick as slow as you need to play it perfectly, and then gradually build up." this is why. it takes the cell a given amount (depending on you = the cell) to adjust to a brand new encoded message from your brain (a brand new arrangement of polypeptite strand; like computer code).

your emotions work the same way sortof. when your brain takes in new information (especially troubling stuff) your brain nuero-net actually can reconfigure itself by firing new snapsies. well its all dependant on your perception of the reality your brain thinks is taking place. after you process this new information your brain arranges brand new polypeptite strands and sends them your cells. this strand actually cause the cell to reconfigure itself based on the shock of the new information it has just recieved. it is also carried in the blood in much the same way your motor strip is sending messages.

there is much more to it, but i think this brief description might give you an idea that there are a million things going on within you, and you just have to let the bad days remind you that the good days are that much sweeter.

however i would suggest do not smoke, do drugs, take in caffeine, eat poorly, etc, etc. but for a much bigger reason than guitar...for your health. besides chance are the people we all immulate did all of the above so????

[Virgman]

I think it's like lifting weights.

Your body and CNS needs some time to recover.

Playing guitar is an athletic event.

[identity]

i play better when i drink, smoke, and use drugs. the rest of my life goes to {censored}, though.

[The*Ataris]

This question is easy...

A good day is when I can play exactly what's in my head...

[identity]

that just means you need to work on your mind.