Hard-Core Workout For Drummers

• By Bobby Rock
• Originally published in the March 2012 issue of DRUM! Magazine

Here’s a quick, anytime/anywhere workout you can do to strengthen your core, which comprises the critical foundational muscles of your abs and lower back. A strong core will provide stability for your arms and legs and help prevent drumming-related fatigue and injury, especially in the lower back.

You will perform all three exercises, one set after the other, for one minute apiece, to create one complete cycle. You might only start with one or two cycles, and you might have to take one or more five-second breaks as needed during any of these one-minute sets. Eventually, though, you will want to repeat this cycle several times per workout, three or four days per week, and strive to perform each set all the way through without resting.

Bicycle Crunches

1. Lie down flat on the floor with your lower back against the ground, and place your hands lightly behind your head.
2. Raise your legs off the ground and begin doing a slow bicycle pedal motion.
3. As your left knee moves toward your torso, raise and twist your trunk so that your right elbow lightly touches it. Repeat this movement with the right leg and left elbow, and that’s one complete rep.
4. Do not pull at your neck or try to go to fast. Slow and steady motion is what you’re after here.

Seated Stick Bag Trunk Twists

1. Sit on the ground with your legs outstretched in front of you.
2. Hold your stick bag (or object of similar weight) with both hands in front of your chest, then lean back a few inches so your abs are slightly contracted.
3. Slowly twist your trunk to the left and lightly touch the stick bag to the ground, then repeat this exact movement to the right side. That’s one full rep.
4. Start off slow and easy, gradually increasing your range of motion for each twist.

The Plank

1. Lie face down on the ground, resting on your forearms and the sides of your hands.
2. Raise yourself off the ground so that you’re balancing on your toes, elbows and forearms.
3. Keep your entire body rigid like a plank, in a straight line from your head to your heels, and contract your abs to ensure that your midsection doesn’t sag.
4. Hold this position for 15 to 60 seconds and enjoy the burn!