Alternate muscles feeling

Playing Technique
#1

Hi there
I have read/seen/heard and understand that to avoid stringhopping and tension, then we need to have alternate muscles working. However what does this feel like?

For example:

  • if you are trying to do ulnar deviation/extension, should I feel the muscles on the ulnar side of my arm pulling the pick down and away?

  • if I am trying to do forearm rotation to pull the pick back up, should I feel the muscles on the radial side of my wrist pulling the wrist back up and rotating?

I’m asking because I think when trying crosspicking, I am trying to use my radial muscles to push the pick down, and up again, which feels very slow and tight in the radial area. Well, that is what it feels like, I don’t even know if this is possible, but it certainly feels that way

But then I can pick smoothly and really fast with a downstroke escaping motion where it feels like I am using my ulnar muscles to pull the pick down, and then my radial muscles to pull it back up.

Just asking if I am understanding this correctly. It may be to crack crosspicking I need to get this feeling of:

  • below the string, pull away with ulnar muscles
  • above the string, pull up with the radial muscles

Apologies if creating a new thread not the thing to do here - happy to transfer this to another one if told.

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#2

im going to go out on a limb and say you are overthinking it all slightly lol

I dont think youll be able to feel this or that different muscle working on different strokes etc because in general all the muscles have to work TOGETHER all the time. They oppose each other even as they all work together.

if you think about the gym, when you do a leg extension its the thighs, right? When you do a leg curl, its the hamstrings, right? Well what about squats? When you do squats its the thighs AND hams both working together in a complicated give and take thing. Same as running, its not thighs on/hams off followed by thighs off/hams on. Somehow they work together even as they also oppose one another

So im not too sure you will be able to think of the picking motion in terms of one specific muscle working while another one relaxes. i have a feeling its way more complicated than that and that they work together

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#3

There is a difference in the feel of stringhopping and alternate picking. Stringhopping feels more strenuous. The problem is that you don’t know what correct alternate picking actually “feels like” and no one can really tell you.

#4

Definitely overthinking this big time. OP don’t go down this path.

When I play it doesn’t “feel” like anything. It just happens. I know, I know, these sorts of responses sound like cop-outs, but any time I’ve seen this question on here and the person posts a playing update it’s like 4 months later and the person is playing the same thing at the same speed with no improvement. Or posting 400 updates of themselves staring into the screen of their camera trying to “make” a movement. You can’t analyze your way to great guitar technique. Most of these adjustments are happening on the micro-level and are near impossible to control.

To elaborate what you should be looking to do is get the motion in a gist. Yes, a mirror or camera might be helpful here but it’s more for observational purposes then trying to “force” or a strong-arm a movement. These movements are incidental and you don’t want to end up in a position where you “try” to do anything. The whole What should it feel like? question is gets into the weeds of the metaphysical aspects of the instrument and for that reason the question can’t be answered. If it could be answered, everyone would be shredding at 200 BPM. There’s no way to step inside of someone and show them, so largely it becomes a process of trying to get a motion somewhat fast to begin with and ironing it out over time.

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#5

Okie dokey,
Thanks all, that has prevented me from doing down an unnecessary rabbit hole.
Ill keep searching for this smooth motion.
Cheers all!

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