Odd happening

**deacon Mark** · 07-07-2024, 02:04 PM

I post in another place about breaking my right 4 and 5th metacarpals in a road bike gavel fall. I had 4 pins in my right had to keep fracture in line for 30 days. I would actually play the guitar with a pick just nothing fingerstyle. I am a hybrid picker I use the pick, pick and fingers, and just the fingers. However, these past 6 weeks only the pick and my right hand considerably under duress and swelling.

I got pins out last week and sure enough i can manage playing with the fingers again although not up to speed but actually ok to perform and played one easy gig. They did want me to not use my fingers as much right now let them go gradually and I do PT. Well, here is the odd occurrence. My picking has really got much better and smoother and faster. My routine is to warm up and play bebop tunes instead of any patterns or scales. So daily I run down Donna Lee, Ornithology, Billie's Bounce and ect... My speed on these tunes has gone up all under what would be a time of healing and reset. In fact, I now start Donna Lee off at a 15 bpm pace faster than I did before the hand break. d

The human body and adaption are quite incredible. Take something way and sometimes we do other things better. I don't want to give up the fingers but right now I am pretty happy.

**Mick-7** · 07-07-2024, 02:25 PM

Interesting.... I just hope that some enterprising surgeon doesn't read your post and start promoting that particular surgical procedure to improve one's guitar playing technique.

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**RJVB** · 07-07-2024, 05:17 PM

Nothing odd here. You had several weeks to concentrate on your picking, focussing in particular on minimising the stress in your hand. That's never bad. Plus you had to do all that with a probable handicap to your natural, unhindered range of motion (and maybe some added weight). That/those handicap(s) are gone now, and that alone can make your pick fly (or create the impression it does).