Being Gig Fit (Like Match Fit in football)

[Rosie C]

9 hours ago, Chienmortbb said:

As someone of a certain age, and having Bronchiectasis (think COPD but not self-inflicted) I am interested whether any of you do anything to stay fit enough for gigging?

 

I joined my local gym. Not something I EVER thought I'd do, but my doc gave me a choice of meds or NHS part-funded gym membership. The strange thing was after a few weeks I started to really enjoy it and missed it if I couldn't work out for a few days. Nothing too strenuous - treadmill, cycle machine, and some weights and there's big TVs to watch so the time goes quickly. My formal exercise goals include "carrying my bass amp"    

 

The NHS bit was quite important for me - I have a special coach who went through my medical history and designed a suitable programme and keeps tabs on my progress. 

 

Edited Wednesday at 23:11 by Rosie C

[Stub Mandrel]

I've started swimming. after a 30 year break.

Edited Wednesday at 23:13 by Stub Mandrel

[BigRedX]

13 hours ago, Steve Browning said:

I confess that I do nothing really. I do walk regularly but that's not specifically to stay in shape for gigs. 

 

I gig pretty regularly and don't have any mobility issues. I use lightweight gear now, but more because it's more convenient rather than lighter. 

 

As for practise, I haven't really ever practised, other than to learn new songs. 

 

I'd probably be half decent if I'd made any effort at all. 

 

This is pretty much me too.

 

I walk every day, although not as much as I used to when I didn't work from home. The band has ditched all our backline but we still have a couple of weighty items notably the flightcase that holds the gear which replaces having a drummer, and the synth player's 2-tier stand. Our rehearsal space is a fair walk from where it is possible to park the car for unloading and involves a flight of stairs if the lift isn't working, so carrying the gear for that and for gigs tends to be a decent work-out.

 

I used to be a member of a gym but once the novelty wore off I found it pretty boring and after Covid I didn't bother re-joining. Despite being the oldest in the band by about 15 years I'm probably the fittest and most healthy.

 

Musically I play 3 times a week once for writing, once for a rehearsal with my band and once for a gig. If I have a week when we're not rehearsing and/or gigging I'll get extra writing or recording sessions in. I've never practiced for the sake of it, it's always been because I have something specific that I need to play and my fingers aren't up to speed.

[JoeEvans]

I was discussing this with my partner yesterday - we're both in our fifties and the point has come where regular exercise is compulsory not optional if we want to continue doing the things we enjoy for a decent amount of time. I personally intend to continue to enjoy the pleasures of an active life well into my eighties so I'm trying hard to eat well and do daily exercise that includes cardio, strength, mobility and flexibility over the course of each week.

I personally find that exercise is as important for my mental health as for my physical health, or perhaps that mental and physical health are really just aspects of the same thing.

[peteb]

9 hours ago, Norris said:

That's one of the reasons I got an exercise bike. It's virtually no impact unlike running and a lot of other fitness activities. My exercise bike can connect to my tablet via Bluetooth and I run a free virtual cycling app which makes it much more interesting. No gym fees either 👍

 

I'm afraid that I find exercise bikes deadly boring. I really need to get out on the MTB again, even if its just on the canal towpath. The trouble is that I find even the slightest hill a bit of a problem now. 

 

Lifting weights is the best thing to do, especially as you get older and you start to lose muscle tone and your bones become weaker. I pay £16 per month in gym fees these days, which by any account is very good value! 

 

Edited yesterday at 09:02 by peteb

[Burns-bass]

I’m a little you get but the gym has been transformative for me. Especially as I was lucky enough to get a trainer to design a plan.

 

Resistance bands, too, are really fantastic exercise.

[Leonard Smalls]

I don't do owt specifically to be gig-fit...

However, in order not to be completely broken when I reach my late 60s (not too long now!) - also having two herniated discs - I do a morning routine of exercises involving crunchies, press-ups, Pilates stuff, Yoga stuff, Mars Bars and a Flake plus squats, some weights etc. And about 5 times a week I walk up our local hill, which is about 1000' climb.

And when I can be bothered I go out on the mountain bike, and go climbing and/or mountain walking.

Bass wise, I do various hand and wrists stretches as part of my routine, as well as doing an hour or so practice every couple of days.

[diskwave]

I can testity that doing a festival on a stinky hot day with a bad chest infection is/was madness. Vid of me looking like a drowned rat I was sweating so much....But I did it for the band (said the hero)..haha. Shuffled off the stage, jumped straight in the car - home. But yes it definitely pays to keep fit and positive when there's a line of gigs on the horizon.

Edited yesterday at 09:00 by diskwave

[tinyd]

General fitness is obviously never a bad thing and certainly helps with stamina on gigs, but I find that to be good on the night at playing bass (particularly DB), I have to specifically train beforehand beforehand by....playing bass. I can have a really nice active month between gigs with plenty of cycling etc, but if I don't spend some time working the "bass muscles" then the next gig can be a bit hit-and-miss.

[jezzaboy]

We only gig about once a month. I do sod all exercise really but am trying to do more walking as I now deal with all the pa gear and am starting to feel it in my bones. Being a truck driver sitting down for long periods isn`t helping either.

 

My main problem when gigging is the first 2 fingers on my right hand. As we play pretty hard and fast (too fast sometimes thanks to drummer boy) my fingers end up chewed after the first set (we usually play for 2.5 hours). I`m trying to get used to playing with a pick but find it hard to get the speed and keep it consistent. 

[Mykesbass]

Point of order, not all COPD is self inflicted.

[chris667]

21 hours ago, Chienmortbb said:

As someone of a certain age, and having Bronchiectasis (think COPD but not self-inflicted) 

 

Mrs667's dad was a miner. See what happens if you say COPD is self-inflicted to him or one of his former colleagues.

 

But this isn't what your thread is about.

 

I have very extreme relationships with everything. I used to ride bikes to the level  where I believe it was unhealthy. I had a resting heart rate of 43 and rode 300+ 

miles a week. I would routinely drop 16 year olds on mopeds. It took over my life.

 

I fell out of it after a crash, then a summer of booze and depression. I have a much better relationship with excercise now, and I'm mostly off the booze. Just do the right thing 75% of the time and you're ok.

 

I really love my electric bike. There are impressive hills in the peaks - you still have to excercise with the ebike but it effectively levels the hills. I still get a workout, but I'm not knackered. It was a kit that cost about £500. I genuinely believe electric bikes are one of the best inventions of this century.

 

Add to that gardening and a bit of yoga. I used to do a lot of walking but my dog is now really old and walking isn't the same without a dog. In the future there will be another dog so hiking will be back in.

[JoeEvans]

Re electric bikes - yes, what isn't always immediately obvious is that they let you choose how much effort to put in, and you can still put in just as much effort as on a non-electric bike, only you go farther and faster. My observation is that people tend to use them for a wide range of different reasons - to shift a heavier load than you could without (especially a load of kids and their bags etc); to do a longer commute than you'd fancy on a non-electric; to keep on cycling when age, injury or progressive disease might otherwise have stopped you; etc. I think they're really helpful for people to get a bit more exercise and have a bit more fun in daily life.

(Total thread derailment but I read the recent reports about the political desire to clamp down on illegal electric bikes for safety reasons, and the desire to make companies like Deliveroo to employ their delivery riders instead of forcing them to work self-employed. It would be great if regulation could instead force delivery companies to provide riders with decent electric scooters rather than leaving them to source their own ramshackle bodge-jobs.)

I recently got another bike (non-electric) to use as a round-town cargo-carrier, with front and rear racks, hub gears and so on. I'm now getting a useful amount of extra exercise just in the course of a normal week, because I'll jump on the bike to nip down to Lidl or wherever and grab some shopping rather than driving.

[Chienmortbb]

1 hour ago, Mykesbass said:

Point of order, not all COPD is self inflicted.

That is something I had hoped to make clear in the original post, and I believe why the classification of Bronchiectasis came into being. As for how the lung damage happened, my "Asthma" started at 1 year of age. At exactly the same time as the Great Smog (Dec 1952). The Great Smog lasted 6 days and the air contained sulphur dioxide plus moisture. Mix those two and you have dilute Sulphuric Acid to breathe. 

[TimR]

I usually spend at least an hour revising the set in the afternoon before a gig.

 

So by the end of a gig day I will probably have spent close on 4 hours of playing. 

 

I'm wondering how many of us do 30minutes a day of practice. 

[Stub Mandrel]

1 hour ago, TimR said:

 

I'm wondering how many of us do 30minutes a day of practice.

 

On average, more than that.

[chris667]

2 hours ago, TimR said:

I usually spend at least an hour revising the set in the afternoon before a gig.

 

So by the end of a gig day I will probably have spent close on 4 hours of playing. 

 

I'm wondering how many of us do 30minutes a day of practice. 

And I'm the opposite to you! when I'm about to play I spend 20-30 minutes doing scales and noodling, but no practice of the set on the day.

 

All told, l average about 7 hours a day of whatever I'm working on  on normal days though.

Edited 19 hours ago by chris667

[Norris]

9 hours ago, peteb said:

I'm afraid that I find exercise bikes deadly boring.

So do I, which is why I have an app on my tablet and a Bluetooth connected bike. I'm always trying to beat my time or trying to overtake someone or trying not to be overtaken. It takes your mind off the tedium.

 

It's like when I was younger I hated running (still do), but put a map and compass in my hands and I was actually quite good at orienteering as it turned out - 3rd in the county for my age class one year

[tauzero]

I do no exercise because I'm lazy. I do do a bit of practice.

 

The day after a gig, I used to feel as if somebody had been giving me a going over with a baseball bat. I changed to lightweight gear, including the PA - no single item weighs more than 10kg except for my monstrously heavy 11.5kg 2x12 cab. Plus the other band members give me more of a hand lugging gear than in previous bands. As a result, I feel fine the next day.

[Stub Mandrel]

Gutted as I got rung up before my swimming lesson... cancelled due to a kid gaving an 'accident'. 💩

 

Rung up again a bit later as I'd booked lane swimming for afterwards. 

 

Edited 14 hours ago by Stub Mandrel

[Delberthot]

15 hours ago, TimR said:

 

I'm wondering how many of us do 30minutes a day of practice. 

 

I vividly remember reading an article in Guitarist magazine with Jack Bruce and he said that he didn't pick up his bass unless he was writing a song. At the time I couldn't imagine this as the first thing I did when i got home from school was plug in and play until tea time. Fast forward 38 years and I don't pick up my bass unless I have something to learn. Last year I took a year out after 30 years of constant playing and maybe picked up my bass a handful of times, only to make sure that I could still play.

 

Regarding losing muscle mass as we get older - this is called sarcopenia and is though to begin when we're in our 30s. They can't work out if it's due to not moving as much in adult life as we did when we were kids or if it's just an age thing but it's a huge issue.

 

This is why I train at the gym. I don't want to be Arnie and walk around like I'm carrying a roll of carpet under each arm, I'm doing it as a preventative measure to try to avoid being frail with arms like knitting needles and not able to walk the length of myself when I get old.

 

This is another reason why protein is so important for everyone, not just people who go to the gym, as it can help slow this down as well. Just remember to eat plenty of fibre to keep it moving otherwise you can end up getting bunged up 😫🥴

 

I'm grateful that approaching 50 I am not on any medication as I know a lot of people, some younger than me, who are already rattling with what they have to take. I do currently take Turmeric & black pepper tablets in the morning, Creatine at 11am, fish oil and magnesium bisglycinate at tea time and zinc monomethionine before bed.

 

Once great exercise I like to finish with at the gym is the farmer's walk. For me it's picking up 2 16kg kettle bells and walking as far as I can with them. Sounds crazy but if you think about it, we all do the farmer's walk carrying gear in and out of gigs so it keeps me in practice between gigs to keep the strength.

Edited 7 hours ago by Delberthot

[bassbiscuits]

The late nights and long drives are what finishes me these days. I do a fair few gigs which are 2-3 hour drives and I really feel it now (I’m 51). 
 

Gigs themselves are not the problem - I always find energy once I’m up there. 
 

Away from gigs I’ve swum a mile every weekend for several years now, and try to go for a jog around my village (when I can be bothered, which isn’t often).
 

Sadly I’ve put weight on this year from being desk-bound writing university work so my next job is to get into shape again - hopefully will get a bit more energy in doing so. 

[Leonard Smalls]

1 hour ago, Delberthot said:

farmer's walk

I do this a lot at work!

Though for me it's bags of compost; I often have to carry bags to customer's cars so it's 50m with a 50l bag in each hand. Finding a good grip on the plastic bag makes it into a grip strength double exercise. And the hardest of all is once a month we get 2 15kg bags of dog food delivered to work. I try every time to carry both to the car 200m away - so far I've not got past 120m without having to put 'em down!

[jonno1981]

I think a lot of it is mental, make a rehearsal as much like a gig as you can. 
 

Standing during rehearsal before a gig helps. Don’t face each other, throw a coat in the corner and say that’s your audience. If you’ve never done it, you’ll cut down on gaps between the songs, play with more energy, carry more confidence into the gig. 

[MichaelDean]

I'm 38 and need to lose a 3 or 4 stone. It's hard when you have a young family. I'm mainly just walking to/from work and nursery. Oh, and working on the gun show by pushing my daughter on the swing 😅 I made a rod for my own back there by pushing her higher and higher and now no-one else pushes hard enough! I used to do a lot of road cycling and I quite liked the gym if it was quiet when I lived closer to one. Bit of weights followed by 20/30 minutes of cardio three times a week and I was pretty darn fit. 

 

Strength training can have a massive effect as you age too. There was an article in the Guardian a while ago about a group of care home residents in the 80s, most of whom required help doing things like standing up from a chair or going to the toilet. They did some strength training, built muscle mass and were then able to do most of those things that they previously required help for. It's never too late to do a bit more exercise.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/wellness/2025/mar/11/older-adults-strength-training

 

I think I'm going to get some kettle bells now 😂