Having a good posture on the drums is one of the first things you should learn as a beginner. Not only will good posture help you stay healthy, but it will also improve your technique.
When playing drums, you use a lot of your muscles, such as the shoulder muscle, tricep muscle, forearm muscles, calf muscles, and shin muscles, among others. Naturally, it’s very important to have good posture so you don’t strain and stress your muscles which can lead to health problems.
Many drummers have back problems, probably because of poor posture and not setting up the drum kit and the drum throne correctly. When we start learning a new skill, especially one that is so fun, like drumming, our mind does not think about proper posture whatsoever. And this might feel fine until we start feeling pain in our back, which can be really difficult to fix if it becomes chronic.
The sooner you realize that you need good posture, the sooner you can become a better, well-rounded drummer and save yourself a lot of pain. Let’s take a look at some things you should do to improve your posture while drumming.
1. Adjust the Drum Throne
One of the most important modifications you should make is adjusting the drum throne height. In general, your drum throne should be the same height as the top of your knee while standing next to it. When you place your feet on the kick and hi-hat pedals, your legs should be slightly inclined downwards.
There are also many different types of drum thrones on the market, and the ones to avoid are the drum thrones with backrests. These drum thrones promote bad posture, something that can be hard to fix if you haven’t done it correctly for many years. Instead, try to get a normal drum throne without a backrest. When it comes to rotation, some of them do rotate, but this comes down to personal preference.
2. Sit Up Straight
Now that the drum throne is set up correctly, half the work is done. The second important thing is that you have to sit up and not sit on your tailbone. This will ensure that the hamstrings are stretched correctly and you won’t strain them.
3. Positioning Your Feet on The Drums
The next thing you should work on is positioning your feet on the pedals correctly. Your hi-hat pedal and kick pedal need to be reached comfortably without any movement constraints. And the most important tip I can give you here is that playing the pedals with the foot must be comfortable for you.
If you are making a bigger effort than you should while reaching for the pedals, then it’s time to move them closer or further away from your sitting position. Always remember to continue positioning and making small tweaks until you find a perfectly comfortable position.
Health Benefits And Problems of Playing Drums
There are a lot of benefits to playing drums, but if not done correctly, you might experience problems as well. Two really important problems are the ones that I talked about, where you develop a bad posture that leads to back injuries and pain, and the other one is hearing loss. So, you should eliminate the problems and enjoy the benefits by having a good posture and wearing earplugs or noise-isolating headphones.
Some studies show that playing drums reduces stress and anxiety, which are very common problems these days. Drumming promotes overall well-being while also improving your mood. Playing drums also burns around 300 calories per hour depending on your exertion level while drumming. So it can also be considered a workout, and it’s one of the most fun workouts there are.
Conclusion
If you are a self-taught drummer or maybe a beginner, this topic might have slipped your mind, but as soon as you start thinking about good posture on the drums, the better. Sometimes it can be hard to adjust the way you play after you get used to it after years and years of playing the drums. Also, keep in mind that not only does good posture promote healthy well-being, but it also helps with technique, making you a better drummer.
