Category: Health and Fitness
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Overpracticing: don’t compound the problem
This morning when I turned on my Cuisinart coffee maker, one of those that grinds the whole beans before brewing, I thought all was good, but later, when I came back, coffee was everywhere on the countertop and floor. I had forgotten to empty out the carafe from the previous day, so it overflowed! I…
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Rudd’s “Side by Side:” keystone habits
I recently read about keystone habits in Wiff Rudd’s wonderful new self-published book, Side by Side: Building and Sustaining an Effective Community in the Music Studio. Wiff, trumpet professor at Baylor University, is a voracious reader, referring to many inspiring books throughout. One of them is The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, and from…
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Practice style changeup
Ninety percent of the time, trumpeters need to keenly focus on their practice. But every now and then, a practice in front of the TV, while watching something not too gripping (like sports), allows for a great changeup in practice habits. Change can be refreshing and a growing experience. This evening, I HAD to watch…
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Happiness, testosterone and great performances
Testosterone, that famous anabolic steroid, is closely linked to performance, muscle growth and energy. Testosterone is closely linked to confidence, creativity, focus and memory. It is important to peak performance for both men and women. If you can get your testosterone levels higher, then your performance on trumpet, both physically and mentally, will be better.…
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How important is sleep?
Sleep seems to slip by as a sort of luxury that ambitious people (for instance, trumpeters wanting to win a job) have to do without. And yet, study after study points to the importance of getting good sleep, so that you can perform BETTER. Athletes have been shown to perform 6%-9% better with one more…