Right hand locks up / overcontrol? Can’t perform even basic picking motions

Technique Critique
#1

Hi everyone,

I’m working on rebuilding my picking motion and struggling a lot with my right hand.

For context, I’ve been playing with a lot of tension in my picking hand for at least 10 years, and for the last 8 months I’ve been trying to relax and relearn the motion, but I feel like I’m not really able to make progress. At this point, I honestly feel quite desperate.

Also, I should mention that I’m left-handed for writing, but right-handed for many other things, and from the very beginning I learned guitar as a right-handed player.

I’ve also been trying to approach this from a USX perspective, but I’m not even able to properly perform the “primary motion” tests — my hand just feels like it locks up or blocks when I try.

Given that I’m left-handed for writing and the picking motion feels much more natural in my left hand, would it make sense to switch to playing left-handed, or is it better to keep working on the right hand despite the long history of tension?

Any advice would be really appreciated!

https://youtube.com/shorts/-CFvzFHYBmU?is=SUQLZtRAxsAOxizT

Left hand picking, it’s the first day that I try to pick with my left hand

#2

Your motion both right and left handed look too deliberate and are both too slow, you need to find a motion that goes fast straight away (170bpm 16ths plus) and learn to control it rather than start with a slow motion and try and refine it, without going fast your body doesn’t know what an efficient motion feels like so what you’re doing slow will inevitable be wrong :slight_smile:

How did you get on with the tapping tests? Trying to replicate those motions tapping on the bridge, then with your hand against the strings and finally inserting a pick can make you reach high speeds very quickly. I have definitely felt desperate when it came to my technique before but know that when you do it right it doesn’t feel like a slog or a grind it turns into a eureka moment and if you can keep recreating that moment when you pick up the guitar it gets to a point where it clicks instantly, every time! Good luck :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

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