This might sound pretty obvious, but taking care of your body will help your trumpet playing. Eating well, drinking lots of water, exercising, getting enough sleep – all of these things will help your trumpet playing. More than you might think.
As I get older I’m starting to realize that I can’t treat my body like I used to when I was in my teens and twenties. I still have a pretty high metabolism and plenty of energy, but I’ve noticed that if I eat crappy for a day or two and maybe drink a couple of beers, well, my gut actually gets bigger. And my energy goes down a little bit. So I’m trying to be good. I’m lucky because a few days of being good makes my gut get smaller.
But the main new thing I’ve noticed lately has to do with sleep. I typically can get by without a lot of sleep. I’m a night owl - but I have kids so I also have to be a morning person. So, yeah sometimes not a lot of sleep. This used to be ok, but as I’m getting older I’m recognizing that the amount I sleep has a direct effect on my trumpet playing. Not much sleep for several days in a row = frustratingly crappy trumpet playing. This makes sense. The body repairs itself when it sleeps. All of the physical work and trauma on lip tissue that goes into playing the trumpet all has to be fixed and renewed at night. Eight hours of sleep is enough to fix most normal issues (if you smashed your shops at a gig then you might want to take a whole day off). But not getting enough sleep can really be detrimental. So that’s my new vow – at least for the time being – I’m going to try to take care of my body so that my body will let me play my trumpet better. And there’s the whole added benefit of living longer with a higher quality of life, blah, blah, blah.
But the main new thing I’ve noticed lately has to do with sleep. I typically can get by without a lot of sleep. I’m a night owl - but I have kids so I also have to be a morning person. So, yeah sometimes not a lot of sleep. This used to be ok, but as I’m getting older I’m recognizing that the amount I sleep has a direct effect on my trumpet playing. Not much sleep for several days in a row = frustratingly crappy trumpet playing. This makes sense. The body repairs itself when it sleeps. All of the physical work and trauma on lip tissue that goes into playing the trumpet all has to be fixed and renewed at night. Eight hours of sleep is enough to fix most normal issues (if you smashed your shops at a gig then you might want to take a whole day off). But not getting enough sleep can really be detrimental. So that’s my new vow – at least for the time being – I’m going to try to take care of my body so that my body will let me play my trumpet better. And there’s the whole added benefit of living longer with a higher quality of life, blah, blah, blah.
Eat properly, drink water, exercise, get some sleep, and practice. Seems simple enough.
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