Guitar exercises build hand strength and dexterity

This section on Guitar Exercises is not a numbered lesson, because these can and should be performed every time you practice, as a warm-up.

Our advice to the beginner guitar player is that yes, your hands and fingertips will hurt in the beginning, that is perfectly normal. It is also desirable because the soreness will develop into callouses and that's what you need in order to be a good guitar player.

Rule of thumb (no pun intended): if you practice at least 20 minutes every day you can expect to develop callouses within the first two to three weeks. Keep working at it! It won't always hurt the way it does in the beginning.

Some tips on working your hand and finger strength:

• keep your fingernails short - no tips, girls!

• keep your hands out of water at first

• use a rubber ball or hand exerciser to build strength

• practice finger exercises as a warm-up before every practice

We know of famous guitarists who wear rubber gloves when showering. We don't know many who wash their own dishes but that would be a good time to also wear the rubber gloves to protect the fingers from getting waterlogged and softened.

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