30 DAY DRUM

WORKOUT I T’ S T I ME TO GE T P HYSIC AL BEH I ND T HE K I T WI T H T H I S HARDCORE DRUM

PROGRAMME DE SIGNED TO I MPROV E YOU R P LAY I NG I N JUST ON E MON T H
WORDS: PETE RILEY & CHRIS BARNES PHOTOS: JOBY SESSIONS

I
t’s a familiar scenario. You go for a fill or kick
pattern and something gets in the way; the
coordination isn’t quite there, something
feels awkward, the fluidity is lacking and you
stumble through, but not with the execution
you’d hoped for. These moments are usually
the result of coordination and independence
problems, perhaps there are other skills that need
attention. There comes a point when you must meet
this head on to take your playing to the next level.
The daily exercises presented here are intended to
gradually address key areas and progressively build
the level of difficulty until new levels of technical
ability, coordination and independence are unlocked,
allowing you to reach previously unattainable levels of
playing with a new-found confidence. We’ve worked
hard to create a well-rounded plan and provide you
with everything you need to prepare for and complete
the programme, from the video lessons on your disc
and exercise notation to tips and advice from experts
on key subjects like nutrition, hydration and sleep.
Progress is going to require some dedicated daily
hard work. Thirty days is just a guide – it doesn’t
matter if your 30 day workout takes 60 days – your
development will remain significant. Ideally you really
want to be able to play the previous day’s examples
relatively effortlessly before moving on. An alternative
approach is to tackle each new day’s examples as best
you can, making a note of the ones you’d like to revisit
at the end of the month. These lessons will boost your
playing and you should soon start to feel
improvements as your hard work unlocks your
hidden potential. So, let the workout begin…

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COVER FEATURE
30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

BEFORE YOU START

Getting stuck into a whole month of drumming sounds like
fun, right? Absolutely, but unless you iron out a few important
creases before you start, 30 days of intensive drumming is
going to be gruelling physically and mentally and you won’t
get the best out of it. Taking the time to get your body and
your gear in shape before you start means you can focus
on pushing your playing and having fun as you tackle this
drumming challenge.

1 Prep your gear

WHAT YOU’LL NEED
Ideally you’ll be using your full kit for this
programme as many of the lessons will require
you to work with your hands and feet. Use a
well tuned acoustic kit, or select decent sounds
on your electronic kit. Match your e-kit with a
pair of comfortable, quality headphones for
these extended periods of playing. If excessive
noise is an issue with neighbours or family we’d
recommend investing in drum mutes. These
inexpensive pads sit on your acoustic heads
and can reduce volume by up to 95 percent.
If a kit is out of the question then a practice
pad mounted on a stand is perfectly workable
too. Pick up a bass drum pad too, if you can
(head to p35 for more useful practice tools).
Although you won’t be at a real kit, don’t forget
the importance of good posture here, so set up
your pads with ergonomics in mind.
If you’re taking on the 30-day
programme on your acoustic kit, it’s
advisable to top it with fresh, bedded-in
heads, and make sure your drums are
well tuned. A quick MOT to get rid of any
unwanted problems like pedal squeak or
broken snare wires is advisable too. The
better they sound and feel to play, the
more you’ll want to play them.
2 Perfect your posture
Take the time to set up your kit properly,
with your seat at the correct height and
your drums, cymbals and pedals positioned
so you don’t have to reach excessively. A
comfortable, tension-free playing position
means you can practise for longer.

WHAT LEVEL AM I?
There are Beginner, Intermediate and Pro
versions of each lesson in this workout.
Here’s what those levels mean

BEGINNER
You’ve not been drumming for long, but have an
understanding of the basics (if not, get started
with our Drumming Essentials YouTube playlist:
bit.ly/drummingessentials). In these lessons you
will start slowly and ultimately should be looking
to play each example, snag free, for 1-2 minutes
at a time. Your focus should be on developing
timing, accuracy and consistency of hits.

INTERMEDIATE
You already have a solid grasp of key drumming
principles and kit experience. With commitment
to this workout, your playing level should
advance considerably. At this level you will build
on your foundation of accuracy and consistency 3 Rest is best
and perform examples at faster tempos. Aim to You’ll be taking on board a lot of information
play each one for 2 minutes-plus at a time. in the next month, both mentally and
physically, so we’ll be recommending rest
PROFESSIONAL days too. These are an opportunity give your
You really know your stuff, but feel you’re brain and body a break, and a chance to
absorb what you have learned.
rough around the edges. Using these lessons
will seriously boost your speed and endurance,
with challenging tempos designed to really
push your playing forward. With practice you
should be able to play these examples for 2-3
minutes-plus at a time.

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4 Remember to breathe
If you’re not breathing you’re not drumming.
Ensure the room you’re playing in is well
ventilated and cool, and take regular breaks
outside in fresh air if you’re doing a particularly
long session. A fan can be a drummer’s best
friend in a stifling room.
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5 Time to focus
Plan your diary so that you are able to commit
serious time and focus to these lessons. Got a
quiet month on the horizon? That’s the perfect
time to plan it in. This workout is quite some
undertaking so we’d recommend telling your
family and friends your intentions so they can
support you through and help you stick with it.
6 Plug ’em up
If you’re going to be practising at your kit,
hearing protection is essential. There’s no
point spending all this time improving at
the drums if you’re doing irreparable
damage to your ears and won’t be able
to fully enjoy the fruits of your graft.
7 Get a grip
You’ll be playing a lot over the next
month, and unless you’ve nailed
a comfortable, loose grip before
you start, you’ll get painful blisters
fast, you won’t have any control of
your hands and you’ll find it much
harder to progress.
8 Play it straight
An ergonomically set-up kit is nothing if
your posture is off. Good posture means
a nice straight back, relaxed shoulders
and arms, and your torso at a 90° angle
to your hips, with thighs at just under
90° to the floor.
9 Get stuck in
If your sticks are too heavy, too long or too
thick they won’t feel comfortable when you
play. Different tip types and stick materials
will also change how you sound. Now’s the
time to experiment with the thousands of
models available to find the right one for you.
If in doubt, ask for help in your local shop.
10 Take notes
Whether you use old fashioned pen and
paper or notes on your phone or tablet,
like any workout it’s important to keep
track of progress, recording what you
have done each day and identifying
any weaknesses that need attention.
SEPTEMBER 2015 | 29
COVER FEATURE
30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT
WARM-UP ESSENTIALS
Learn the right way to prepare your body before you play
Playing the drums involves the whole body –
hands, arms and shoulders, the legs and core all
need to have good strength and mobility to ensure
they don’t impede our creativity. All too often
players reach a physical ceiling before they reach a
creative one – this is where our focus on technique
in practice steps in, and good range of motion and
mobility in our muscles and joints is critical. Here
James Hester, session drummer, Head of Drums at
SHOULDER BLADE SQUEEZE
Sit or stand with a straight back and pinch your
shoulder blades together. Imagine you have a
£50 note between your shoulder blades and don’t
want to drop it. This is a great stretch for aligning
the back and opening the chest area. This is one
you can do a few times a day without needing to
warm up.
ROTATOR CUFF 2
Arms out to the side parallel to the floor and
elbows bent at 45° – as if you’re holding something
above your head. Rotate from the shoulder until
your palms and forearms are horizontal, parallel
to the floor. You can also start with your arms
pointing downwards and rotate them upwards.
30 | SEPTEMBER 2015
BIMM Bristol and triathlete gives his advice on
preparing physically for a practice session.
“Warming up before we play raises the heart rate
ready for work, focuses the mind and allows us to hit
the ground running. Taking some time to warm up
will prepare the muscles by bringing them up to
temperature and increasing blood flow and
nutrients to the muscles – this will help prevent
injury and will also psychologically help you get ‘in
FIST STRETCH
Make a fist with your thumb over your fingers and
grip fairly tightly – then open your hand out as far
as it will go – do this four or five times with each
hand. This not only works the hands but also the
forearms too.
SEATED HIP FLEXOR
In a seated position, lift one leg up and place the
outside of the ankle on the opposite knee and
sit up straight. This will stretch your hip flexors
but you can get a deeper stretch by gently
pressing down on the knee of the raised leg.
Do this on both sides.
touch’ with your body. Which of these stretches you
choose to do is dependant on the intensity of your
planned session and what’s required of your body,
but do them after spending some time using a snare
and bass drum pad doing rudiments and simple
co-ordination exercises to warm up. Start slow and
with low velocity and build up tempo and volume.
Once your heart rate is up and your mind focused,
perform these stretches.”
ROTATOR CUFF 1
Put your arms out at 45° in front of you, palms
down – then roll your shoulders so your palms are
upwards – do this as many times as you like to
increase the circulation. You can move your arms
upwards so your hands are at the same height as
your shoulders and also try beginning with your
arms 45° to your side and do the same thing.
TRY YOGA…
A more holistic approach may be to investigate
the art of Yoga for strengthening your body,
increase your suppleness and give you time to
focus your mind.
Radiohead/Portishead’s Clive Deamer tells us,
“I started practising Ashtanga Yoga around 2005.
If done regularly it provides many physical and
deeper psychological and spiritual benefits. In the
context of drumming, the most obvious being a
strong back and a daily gradual increase in bodily
strength awareness and flexibility. Yoga also
develops your ability to relax. This feeds into good
playing and practising technique, you notice the
difference between excessive muscular tension
compared to focused and engaged work.”
TOP TIP
It’s important to keep your mind strong too. The
Headspace App talks you through the process of
developing ‘mindfulness’ or meditation for 10
minutes a day – a recent US study showing that
regular focus on this can improve concentration
and memory and is an effective anti-depressant.
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COVER FEATURE
30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

DAYS 1-6
PERIOD 1
Gear and posture ship-shape? Ear plugs in? Fully warmed up and
limber? Then it’s time to get cracking. For the next 30 days you’re
going to be working hard, keeping the goal of better drumming in
mind at all times. We’ve split this 30 day workout into five periods,
each consisting of five days of drum exercises, further split into five
key areas of drumming. These areas are hands and rudiments,
shuffle grooves, four-way coordination, hand/foot linear
combinations and time playing. There’s a video on your CD for each
lesson. Each period also accounts for a rest day so you can take a
break and let everything you’ve learned that week sink in.
In this first period things stay relatively simple, with a starting
tempo for each playing level setting the appropriate challenge.
Beginners should aim to play each example consistently for 1-2
minutes, intermediates 2 minutes-plus and pro’s 2-3 minutes-plus.

DAY 1
MASTER SINGLE STROKES, DOUBLE STROKES AND PARADIDDLES
It could be argued that everything played on the kit is a here; consistency is a factor so watch for stick heights as
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) combination of single and double strokes with the paradiddle they’ll be a dead giveaway to any volume discrepancies. And
BEGINNER 110 (quarter-note) the natural progression of the two. These building blocks of when it comes to pushing the tempo it’s essential to remain
INTERMEDIATE 150 (quarter-note) drumming really need to be strong if a solid foundation is to relaxed. Try to gradually move the effort from arms to hands
PROFESSIONAL 220 (quarter-note) be built. And remember it’s not just speed we’re looking for to fingers as the tempo progressively increases.

A B C

. . . . .
R L R L R L R L R R L L R R L L R L R R L R L L

DAY 2
ESSENTIAL SHUFFLE GROOVES
Shuffle and triplet time playing can be an underdeveloped the downbeat while the upbeat or skip note is played much
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) area for some drummers, leaving a troublesome hole in lighter, almost feeling as though it’s ‘for free’ as the hand
BEGINNER 90 their time playing capabilities. Here are some essential raises to play the next accent. On the hi-hats you could
INTERMEDIATE 120 shuffle grooves to get things started. Ideally the shuffle play these on the edge and top respectively for some
PROFESSIONAL 150 rhythm in the right hand will consist of a louder note on additional dynamics.
q»ªº, ¡™º,
A 3 > 3 3 > 3 B 3 > 3 3 > 3

‰ ‰ ‰ ‰
3 3
C 3 > 3 3 > 3 D 3 > 3 3 > 3

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

DAY 3
UNLOCK FOUR-WAY COORDINATION
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) Four-way coordination is a cornerstone of any great player. snare and bass drum. And if that wasn’t difficult enough, the
BEGINNER 90 This deceptively tricky exercise features single strokes left foot should play on beats 2 and 4. Finally be sure not to
INTERMEDIATE 120 throughout and requires not only negotiating the accents accent the snare when playing the bass drum – sometimes
PROFESSIONAL 150 moving hand-to-hand but also top to bottom between the not as easy as it sounds.

A > 3 > 3 3 3 B > 3 3 3 > 3

R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

C > 3 3 > 3 > 3 3 > 3 3 3

.. ..
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

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DAY 4
USEFUL HAND/FOOT LINEAR COMBINATIONS – 3’S AND 4’S
An important stepping stone to creating more interesting- require some careful practice to make the phrases flow as
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) sounding phrasing and fills is introducing the bass drum into we’re no longer dealing with just single-strokes. The accents
BEGINNER 75 phrases normally played just with the hands. Incorporating are merely suggested but do give the examples a little more
INTERMEDIATE 95 the bass drum this way will break up the phrase with the shape and ideally they should all be played with the left foot
PROFESSIONAL 120 bass drum acting as a third voice. However, they also stepping quarter-notes.

A > > > > >>>> B > > > > >
.. .. ..
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

C D

.. .. .. ..
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

DON’T FORGET TO EAT! LAY OFF THE BOOZE

As you’ve probably experienced, practice sessions
can stretch for hours and the need to eat
sometimes gets overlooked by the passion for
drumming development. Leave it too long and
you’ll have trouble reversing the
effects of fatigue, and the onset
of headaches and irritability.
Ensure you have eaten well
before you head to the kit or
pad. If you’re planning a long
evening or weekend of practice, remember to
stock up the fridge and cupboards in advance and
factor in at a least a 30-minute break where you
do actually eat, and aim to still have meals
at the time you would normally eat.
The less pressure you put on
your body and mind, the more
you’ll have in the tank to
focus on the important task
of drumming.
Alcohol affects your hearing significantly, raising
the threshold of perception for lower
frequencies up to the higher mid-
range, so you’re unlikely to hear a
true representation of your playing
and dynamics. Coordination and
judgement are compromised by a
remarkably small amount of alcohol.
Doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate a
killer practice session later!

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30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

A WORD ON NUTRITION
Whilst we’re not suggesting you
should completely overhaul your
diet, even small changes and
improvements in what you eat
can have a dramatic effect on
energy levels, stamina, mental
concentration and a general feeling
of wellness that will help you complete the 30 days.
Martin Armand, Personal Trainer, musician and
owner of MA Health & Fitness (www.facebook.com/
mahealthandfitness) shares some tips on what to
eat to supercharge your playing.
“Long practice sessions can be both physically
and mentally demanding, not to mention additional
playing such as gigs, rehearsals and sessions on top.
You need to get the right nutrition to get maximum
results, and ensure you have the mental focus to
practise and the endurance to last through a
session. Although getting this right is important
at all times in life, the correct nutrition during this
drum workout plan will really help. Eating a
well-balanced and colourful diet is important to fuel
your body and help with recovery and performance.
“Protein is essential for your body’s structure:
it aids and regulates the building and repair of
tissues and muscles, and is also good for satiation,
the feeling of being full. Eating 4-5 portions of
protein throughout the day will keep you feeling
fuller and keep those energy levels up. One portion into your diet. It is recommended that you get 20-30
of protein is 85-100g of cooked meat or fish, two percent of your daily calorie intake from fats. Nuts
eggs, three tablespoons of nuts and seeds. Great such as walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts and peanuts,
sources of protein include: meats, fish, grains, though high in calories, are a great source of energy
legumes, dairy products, nuts and seeds. for the body and brain. Omega 3 oils are essential
“Carbohydrates should count for between 40-55 for your physical and mental function too. Eating
percent of your diet. Carbohydrates are broken oily fish a couple of times a week or adding flax
down by our body into glucose which can be used seeds to your breakfast are great ways to get them
immediately for energy, or stored in the muscles into your body and keep you more focused during
and liver and used when required. Glucose is the your sessions. Supplements can help too. Fish oils
main source of fuel for our brains. When blood are vital for joint health and brain function, so
glucose levels are low, the brain will not function as if you don’t eat fish you should consider taking
well as it could. This can impair judgement and supplements. Studies also show that Ginkgo Biloba
decision making and lead to fatigue. Foods such as helps increase memory function
rolled oats, brown rice, sweet potato, wholewheat and short term memory.”
and vegetables will give you a sustained energy
release throughout the day keeping you mentally
strong for your workout. A third of your diet should
come from veg and fruit, or five portions of fruit
and vegetables a day – one portion is one
apple or banana, a bowl of salad, three
heaped tablespoons of vegetables.
“Fats are vital for cell growth,
hormone production and protection of
the inner organs including the brain and
spinal cord. They are a major energy
source within the body, so it is important
to get the right amount and kinds of fats

DAY 5
DEVELOP BASS DRUM INDEPENDENCE – SINGLE NOTES
Having some independence with the bass drum whilst playing eighth-note time. This takes six beats to resolve –
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) playing time is an essential skill as we need to be able to hence the 6/4 time signature.
BEGINNER 75 lock into endless possible bass lines and grooves. The If you want to push yourself with an extra challenge, try
INTERMEDIATE 95 following exercise develops this by playing all of the possible moving the right hand over to the ride cymbal and stepping
PROFESSIONAL 120 placements of a single 16th note on the bass drum whilst quarter-notes with the left foot.

 

DAY 6
REST DAY
Whether you’re moving through this drumming workout,
play sport regularly or simply live a busy lifestyle, getting an
adequate amount of rest is vital to making you mentally and
physically able to undertake the things you want. As such,
we’ve worked rest days into each period of this workout. Of
course, what you do on your day off is entirely up to you,
but if you love drums as much as we do you’ll probably be
doing drum stuff anyway!
Today, inspire yourself for the next phase of your workout
by checking out some awesome drumming. Immerse
yourself in a classic album like The Who’s Live At Leeds,
The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds or Queens Of The Stone Age’s
Songs For The Deaf, or whatever music gets you fired up to
play the drums. Instead, you could head to YouTube and
search for any drummer that takes your fancy. We’ve spent
endless hours watching videos of our favourite players and
it always throws up undiscovered gems. Either way, we
Today, chill and
guarantee you’ll see or hear the drumming essentials listen to great
you’ve learned this week being put into practice. music…

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 DAYS 7-12
PERIOD 2
Time to get going again. In Period 2 we begin by looking at the
main paradiddle combinations with single, double and triple
paradiddles along with paradiddle-diddles. On Day 8 the shuffle
grooves move their focus onto the half-time shuffle, while the
four-way coordination exercise on Day 9 uses the same approach
but becomes more syncopated. The hand/foot combinations on
Day 10 move onto groups of five and six notes and the time-playing
exercise on Day 11 changes the bass drum pattern to include groups
of two notes. There’s a lot to work through, so let’s get cracking…

DAY 7
ADD PARADIDDLE STICKINGS TO YOUR ARSENAL
By adding two or four single strokes to a single paradiddle stay in the hand that starts. Notice also that all of the
we can create the double and triple variants. These tend examples are marked with dynamics which give them a
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) to be easier to learn when played with the accents little more shape and make them easier to apply to the kit,
BEGINNER 120 marked as in the notation below. We’ve also added the right with the accents played on the toms or cymbals and the
INTERMEDIATE 180 and left paradiddle-diddles to the list. Note that these remaining unaccented notes played on the snare. The
PROFESSIONAL 270 stickings, unlike the paradiddles, won’t switch hands but tempos to the left are a guide to get you started.

A > > B > (>) > (>) C >

R L R R L R L L R L R L R R L R L R L L R L R R L L

D > E > (>) (>) > (>) (>)

.. .. .. ..
L R L R L L R L R L R L R R L R L R L R L L

9 GREAT PRACTICE TOOLS

When playing your kit at home isn’t an option, here are some useful tools to help keep your hand in without disturbing the neighbours
1 BILL SANDERS PRACTICE
PAD/KIT From £23
Long-lasting and with an authentic
real-feel surface, Bill’s pads and full
practice kits have been around for
over 30 years. They come all shapes
and sizes and plenty of top drummers
swear by them.
www.practicedrumkits.com
2 STAGG EBT-10 ELECTRONIC
BEAT TUTOR £43
A high-tech, high quality 7½" silicone
pad that packs a metronome with
programmable beats, tap tempo
function, six training programmes
and more. Decently priced too.
www.staggmusic.com
3 MEINL KNEE PAD £13.50
This 4" pad may be small, but attach
it to your knee with the adjustable
strap and you have a perfectly
portable pad so you can continue to
practice on the go. The small target
helps you improve accuracy too.
www.meinlcymbals.com
4 AHEAD 3 ZONE WORKOUT
PRACTICE PAD £59.93
This 14" pad feels great under the stick;
the three different playing surfaces –
soft gum rubber, hard black rubber
and MoonGel pillow – offer different
amounts of rebound, mimicking the 7 REMO SILENT STROKE HEADS
feel of drums and cymbals. From £10
www.aheaddrumsticks.com Single-ply mesh heads in various sizes
that replace your standard drum
5 EVANS REALFEEL heads. Unless you have two kits it
PRACTICE PAD From £18 might be a pain to keep swapping
Starting from 6" up to 12" sizes, plus skins, but the extended practice they’ll
a folding bass drum model, these afford you is worth the trouble.
natural gum rubber-topped pads www.remo.com
are simply appointed, but feel sturdy
and realistic. Some models are also 8 SOFTAPADS From £10
stand-mountable. Simple but effective, these mutes sit
www.evansdrumheads.com on top of your regular drum heads,
cymbals and kick, whilst still giving
6 AQUARIAN SUPER-PADS £TBC you decent stick response. Claim to
Both a standalone pad for silent reduce volume by up to 90 percent.
practice and a low-volume acoustic www.jhs.co.uk
drum mute, the Super-Pad can be
placed on anything: drums, tables, 9 CYMBOMUTE From £7
snare drum stands, beds or even your Cymbomutes fit around the edge of
lap. Placed on an acoustic snare drum your metals, are held in place by their
the pad activates the snare wires for own tension and let you play your
a realistic, low-volume sound. cymbals at hugely reduced volume.
www.aquariandrumheads.com www.cymbomute.com

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COVER FEATURE
30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

DAY 8
GROOVE WITH THE HALF-TIME SHUFFLE
The half-time shuffle is so named because the backbeat Example A is the classic Purdie shuffle named after
now moves to beat 3 to create a half-time feel. The two groove pioneer Bernard Purdie and heard on Steely Dan’s
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) most common challenges here are maintaining the ‘Home At Last’ and ‘Babylon Sisters’. The next example is
BEGINNER 90 dynamics in the right hand, covered in the shuffle example aimed at developing the upbeat on the bass drum while
INTERMEDIATE 120 on Day 2, along with bass drum independence where the example C is inspired by Jeff Porcaro’s ‘Rosanna’ groove.
PROFESSIONAL 150 biggest challenge is playing upbeats. Don’t forget to watch the video to see it in action.

A 3 3 > 3 3 B 3 3 > 3 3

.. .. ..
3

> >
3 3 3 3 3
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
C

.. ..
‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰
3 3 3

DAY 9
SYNCOPATED FOUR-WAY COORDINATION
The following examples now introduce syncopation to is expected to step ‘2’ and ‘4’ and make sure that only
the previous swing exercise that we first encountered specified notes are accented, with all remaining notes
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) on Day 3. played very quietly.
BEGINNER 90 In other words we are now dealing with upbeats The first two examples imply a three beat figure
INTERMEDIATE 120 along with the shifting accents between the hands and moving through the bar while the third example plays
PROFESSIONAL 150 the bass drum counter-rhythm. Once again the left foot it over two bars.

A > 3 3 > 3 > 3 B 3 > 3 > 3 3 >

3 3 3
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

C > 3 3 > 3 > 3 3 > 3 > 3 3 >

. ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ .
3 3 3
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

DAY 10
TACKLE HAND/FOOT LINEAR COMBINATIONS – 5’S AND 6’S
In this next lesson we expand upon the previous linear figures, presented in examples A and C, without any
hand/foot combinations from Day 4 by looking at concern for subdivision or time signature. Examples B
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) combinations of five and six notes created by placing and D then show them played through one bar of 16th
BEGINNER 80 one or two bass drum notes on the end of a group of four notes. If you get to a point where you’re feeling confident
INTERMEDIATE 100 single strokes. with the examples try stepping quarter-notes with the left
PROFESSIONAL 130 Once again, begin by getting familiar with the basic foot throughout.

A > > B > > > > > > >

.. .. ..
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L L

D C

.. .. .. ..
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

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 APP-Y DRUMMING
Harness the power of your smartphone with the best apps to help boost your practice time
POLYNOME: THE ULTIMATE
METRONOME £3.99
The most powerful and feature-
packed metronome app out there.
Program everything from a simple
click to a full groove with custom
sounds, log your practice and more.
iOs
NOTES £free
Most smartphones will come with a
standard notes-style app. Use it to
keep track of progress each day, and
to record areas that need extra work.
It’s great to look back over a week of
notes to identify how far you’ve come.
iOs/Android
CALENDAR £free
Never miss practice or forget what’s
on the agenda for each session by
populating your calendar app.
Making excuses is easy – so why not
set reminders with a particularly
obnoxious tone so there’s no doubt
when it’s time to work?
iOs/Android
CAMERA £free
Filming yourself is one of the best
ways to scrutinise your technique.
Keep an eye on grip, fluidity of
movement around the kit and any
signs of stretching that could indicate
your kit is not set up correctly.
iOs/Android
WATER TRACKER £free
We stress the importance of water
intake to a healthy, focused lifestyle
on page 43. Set yourself the challenge
of drinking the recommended daily
allowance with the help of this app
that tracks your intake and reminds
you to drink when you get behind!
Also try Waterlogged for iOS.
Android
IDRUM TUNE £3.99
You’ll be far more inclined to practice
for longer periods with a kit that
sounds great, and this high-tech app
helps the tuning-impaired achieve
even tension across the drum head
quickly and accurately.
iOs
RHYTHM From £2.99
We know, we know… but this is our
mag, so we’re going to tell you to read
more of it! Once you’ve finished with
this workout, there’s no better way to
keep your chops up than with the
monthly video lessons in the digital
issue of Rhythm (iOs only), including
lessons from tutor Pete Riley, who
wrote this programme.
iOs (Apple Newsstand)/Android
(Google Play)
MYFITNESSPAL £free
If this workout, and our nutrition
advice on page 34, has inspired you to
change your diet to boost your ability
behind the kit, this is a great app for
tracking your daily intake of food, and
keeping an eye on how much goodness
you’re getting each day.
iOs/Android

DAY 11
NEXT LEVEL BASS DRUM INDEPENDENCE – DOUBLE NOTES
The previous bass drum independence exercise from Day 5 first exercise, if you want to push yourself try moving the
now has a pick-up note added to each note to create what right hand to the ride cymbal and stepping quarter-notes
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) could be regarded as a shuffle rhythm played through with the left foot for an excellent four-way workout. For a
BEGINNER 75 16th-notes and so covering all of the possible placements full rundown of the examples watch the video on your
INTERMEDIATE 95 of two adjacent 16th-notes. Rhythm CD. As always with all of these lessons, take time to
PROFESSIONAL 120 Once again this takes six beats to resolve and, like the familiarise yourself with the stickings before going full pelt.
q

DAY 12
REST DAY
We all need something to aim for, so why not spec up
your dream kit online? It’s still within drum-world, but you’re
giving your hands, feet and brain a well-earned rest.
Plenty of drum brands have kit builders on their websites
so you can see your mega rig take shape before your eyes,
but even without, you can design something tasty by
trawling the pages of your favourite drum sites or heading
to your local shop. The question is, will you opt for the
workhorse, sonically stunning four-piece with matching
cymbals, or a ridiculous, money-is-no-object set-up?
Three bass drums? Gold hardware? Solid shells? Go
large or go home, we say. Have fun!

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COVER FEATURE
30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

DAYS 13-18
PERIOD 3
This week we take some paradiddle rudiments to create rhythmic
combinations that move hand-to-hand upon repeat, while the shuffle
examples revert to the original shuffle feel from Day 2, the left hand
filling in ghost notes. The four-way coordination exercise raises the
bar by replacing all unaccented single-strokes with double-strokes
and our hand-foot combination focuses on groups of four and five
notes, the former now played through eighth-note triplets. Our time
playing workout turns the attention to the right hand which now
plays the dotted rhythm on the hi-hats. The ante has been upped…

DAY 13
TAKE COMMAND OF PARADIDDLE COMBINATIONS
The next step with our paradiddle stickings is to combine the examples to change hands on repeat. Once comfortable
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) them to create a rhythmic phrase based around their try playing the accents on the toms and cymbals whilst
BEGINNER 80 (half-note) accents. These two Jim Chapin-inspired examples feature keeping the remaining unaccented notes on the snare.
INTERMEDIATE 120 (half-note) double paradiddles and paradiddle-diddles combined You could also step the hi-hat to push the independence
PROFESSIONAL 160 (half-note) with one half of a paradiddle. The half-paradiddle causes to a whole new level.

A > > > > >

..
R L R L R R L R L R L L R L R R

B > > >

.. ..
R L R R L L R L R R L L R L R R

SHARPEN YOUR FOCUS WITH SLEEP

It may not be immediately apparent, but sleep is as critical to a healthy lifestyle as
diet and exercise. It is not a passive process – during good restorative sleep we grow,
make sense of our days and detox. That is what sleep is for. Therefore, we
recommend a healthy, consistent sleeping pattern as a companion to this drum
workout. Lisa Artis of The Sleep Council reveals more:
“With today’s busy lifestyles we’re all very eager to believe that sleeping one hour
less will give us one more hour of productivity, but in reality it’s likely to have the
opposite effect. We need sleep to function – both physically and mentally. Sleep
regulates your mood, improves your memory but also maintains health, weight and
energy levels. Getting just one bad night’s sleep can impact how we feel the
following day. Immediate effects include poorer memory and reaction times and
research shows that repeated changes to sleep patterns can also make you fatter
and more likely to turn to cigarettes and caffeine.
“It’s important that when partaking in an intense physical programme like the
30 Day Drum Workout that you factor in a good night’s sleep. Look at your sleeping
patterns and habits in the run up to bed – regular hours are key to getting a good
night’s sleep.
“To ensure you experience good sleep it’s essential to follow good lifestyle habits
and to eliminate the factors that are causing you disturbed sleep. For example
making sure that your bedroom is the right environment (cool, dark and quiet), that
© istockphoto.com/dima_sidelnikov

your bed is up to scratch, look at the lighting in your home, and avoid foods and
drinks that can hinder sleep. Our ‘Good-Night Guide’ sleep leaflet (download at
bit.ly/drumzzzz) looks at how to deal with stress and worry, eating the right sort of
sleep-inducing foods and tips on relaxation and breathing.”
Q For more information visit www.sleepcouncil.org.uk

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30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

DAY 14
ADD GHOST NOTES TO SHUFFLE GROOVES
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) The next step in our shuffle grooves lessons is to play ghost backbeat which really takes some control if it’s to be quiet
BEGINNER 90 notes with the left hand on all of the middle triplet partials enough. It’s worth practising these examples very slowly so
INTERMEDIATE 120 to give us constant eighth-note triplets. The biggest that you’ve time to control all of the ghost notes and make
PROFESSIONAL 150 challenge here is playing the unaccented note after the sure they’re played as quietly as possible.

q ,
A 3 > 3 3 > 3 B 3 > 3 3 > 3

.. .. ..
‰ ‰ ‰ ‰
3 3
C 3 > 3 3 > 3 D 3 > 3 3 > 3

. ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ . . ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ .
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

DAY 15
PUSH YOUR FOUR-WAY COORDINATION USING DOUBLE-STROKES
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) It’s time to take our four-way coordination exercises up a (Day 3), only this time reversing the accents and bass
BEGINNER 90 gear! Now all of the unaccented notes are to be played as drum notes. Again be sure to include the left foot stepping
INTERMEDIATE 110 double-strokes. In order to ease us into this rather tricky ‘2’ and ‘4’. This is a tough one to get your head around
PROFESSIONAL 130 concept we’ve headed back to the first set of examples initially so be sure to refer to the video on your CD.

A 3 3 > 3 > 3 B 3 > 3 > 3 3

.. .. ..
R R L L R R L L R R L L R L L R R L R R L L R R L L R R L R R L L R L L R R L L R R L L

C 3 > 3 3 3 > 3 3 > 3 > 3

.. ..
R R L L R R L R R L L R R L L R R L L R R L L R L L R R L L R R L L R L L R R L R R L L

DAY 16
CHALLENGING HAND/FOOT LINEAR COMBINATIONS – 5’S AND 4’S
A new hand/foot combination – a group of five made up of exercise if stepping the left foot on quarter-notes. The groups
three with the hands and two on the kick, while the group of of four through eighth-note triplets (B and C) are shown two
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) four is the old R-L-F-F combination played through eighth-note different ways, both starting on the snare and kick. The latter
BEGINNER 70 triplets. The five-note example (A) is shown played over five is the easier option if played as a one-bar fill as it avoids the
INTERMEDIATE 90 beats in order that it resolves. If using it as a fill in 4/4 you’d need to play three consecutive notes on the bass when
PROFESSIONAL 130 end it a beat earlier; this way it makes a great coordination attempting to crash the downbeat of the next bar.

q
A > > > > > > > > > > > >
.
R L R R L R R L R R L R

B 3 3 3 3 C 3 3 3 3

.. .. .. ..
R L R L R L R L R L R L

40 | SEPTEMBER 2015 WWW.MUSICRADAR.COM/RHYTHM

 QUICK TIP! QUICK TIP!
Sick of getting blisters? You may be holding your sticks too tight or have the When working with a metronome, practise playing behind and ahead of the
wrong size sticks. Time to look at your grip and stick choice. beat as well as on it, to create different motion and tension within the music.

DAY 17
MOVING ON TO TIME PLAYING – RIGHT HAND INDEPENDENCE
Most approaches towards time playing involve playing a Once again this takes six beats to resolve and the first
repeating part or ostinato in the right hand and perhaps ‘2’ example shows it in its basic form. In example B the left
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) and ‘4’ on the snare while the bass drum changes. Here hand fills in all of the ghost notes. Note that on beat 4 the
BEGINNER 75 we’re shifting the idea around to have the right hand play right hand moves across to the snare for the backbeat in
INTERMEDIATE 95 the dotted eighth-note figure seen in the previous bass order to avoid having to play five consecutive notes in the
PROFESSIONAL 120 drum independence exercises. left hand.

qȦ
, ª
,

 > > >

A B
. .
. ) )
L L R L L

DAY 18
REST DAY
Congratulations, you’re well over halfway through! How are
you feeling? Anything you need to go back and brush up on
to make sure you’re ready for the last 12 days?
In any case, today is all about rest, and we’re pretty
sure you’re all drummed out by now, so take the day off!
Watch TV or a film, read a book, go for a walk, meet up
with your mates, anything that you find relaxing and
stress-free. While you’re away from the drums your brain
will be backing up everything you’ve learned so far. When
you get back to the kit tomorrow you’ll be surprised at how
good it feels…
© istockphoto.com/remains

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COVER FEATURE
30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

DAYS 19-24
PERIOD 4
Now you’re cooking on gas! For period 4, flams become the focus
of our hand exercises, looking at the classic hand-to-hand
combinations, while our shuffle grooves continue to focus on
adding the ghost notes, only this time in a half-time setting.
The four-way coordination exercise continues the double-stroke
replacement theme only now using the more syncopated rhythms
seen on Day 9. The hand/foot combinations on Day 22 cover some
slick sounding four- and six-note motifs and show how they can be
combined to make longer phrases, while the time-playing exercise
again adds the pick-up note to the basic dotted figure which
remains on the hi-hats. Let’s go…

DAY 19
LEARN FLAM COMBINATIONS
Flams can be some of the most demanding of rudiments (B, C, D) are essentially Flam Taps and extensions of them.
to play, requiring accuracy and control to execute at any Finally we have the Flam Accent (E) and Flam Paradiddle
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) kind of speed. Our first port of call is playing a flam either (F) respectively. Remember to avoid lifting the hand
BEGINNER 80 way (A) with accuracy, and the best way to view this is like playing the grace note in sympathy with the hand playing
INTERMEDIATE 120 Newton’s cradle where the hands are always at opposite the accent, this is where most drummers stumble with the
PROFESSIONAL 160 points ie: one hand high, one hand low. The next examples flam rudiments.

A
j
> j
> B
j
> j
> C
j
> j
>
œ œ œ œ œ œ

L R R L L R R R L L L R R R R L L L

D
j
> j
> E
j
> j
> F
j
> j
>
. œ œ . . œ œ . . œ œ .
L R R R R R L L L L L R L R R L R L L R L R R R L R L L

DAY 20
ADD GHOST NOTES TO THE HALF-TIME SHUFFLE
In the previous shuffle exercises we added ghost notes delicate, fluid and light. It’s very easy for tension to creep
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) to shuffle grooves and here we’re attempting the same into the right hand as the tempo increases, leaving the
BEGINNER 90 process but with the half-time shuffle. As well as the groove sounding choppy so try keeping the movement
INTERMEDIATE 120 challenge of playing the ghosted note after the backbeat minimal whilst retaining our original ‘edge/top’ movement
PROFESSIONAL 150 quietly, one other requirement is keeping the right hand if played on the hi-hats.

q ,
A 3 3 > 3 3 B 3 3 > 3 3

‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ . . ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ .
3 3 3 3 3 3

C
3 3 > 3 3 3 3 > 3 3

.. ..
3 3 3

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 PLAY BETTER WITH H2O
There’s a reason why we can survive for longer
without food than we can without water. Water is
massively important for so many functions of the
body (on a basic level to avoid dehydration) but
with drumming being such a physically demanding
activity, it’s even more important to keep your
fluid intake in check. For drummers, drinking
plenty of water helps cushion joints, maintains
strength and endurance, regulates body
temperature, reduces sodium build up in the body,
rids the body of toxins, helps convert food into
energy, and is great for boosting concentration
and the ability to absorb and retain information –
all things that will help push and support the
physicality of your playing and keep you feeling
generally healthy.
Other drinks count towards your daily intake,
but we’d suggest avoiding calorific sugary, fizzy
drinks and too much tea or coffee. Alcohol doesn’t
count here either.
The amount of water you should be drinking
each day, as suggested by The Institute of
Medicine, is roughly 3 litres for men and 2.2 litres
for women. This figure should increase if you’re
undertaking serious physical exertion. Drinking
regularly can be difficult to maintain, so we’d
recommend having a water bottle with you at all
times. The HydraCoach (www.hydracoach.co.uk)
would be a wise investment if you’re serious
about it. This high-tech bottle calculates your
recommended daily intake based on your weight,
and tracks your fluid consumption in real time.

DAY 21
FOUR-WAY COORDINATION WITH SYNCOPATION AND DOUBLE-STROKES
For Day 21’s drum workout, we are going to re-visit the single-strokes but also using syncopation to make the
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) tricky four-way coordination exercise that we looked at all phrases even more challenging.
BEGINNER 90 the way back on Day 15. It’s time to make things even Pay particular attention to the notation here, noting
INTERMEDIATE 110 harder now as we push the complexity further with the that the bass drum will fall on the first note of any
PROFESSIONAL 130 addition of double-strokes replacing the unaccented double-stroke.

, ,
A > 3 3 > 3 > 3 B 3 > 3 > 3 3 >

3 3 3
R L L R R L L R R L R R L L R R L R R L L R R L L R L L R R L L R L L R R L L R R L

C > 3 3 > 3 > 3 3 > 3 > 3 3 >

‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰
3 3 3
R L L R R L L R R L R R L L R R L R R L L R R L L R L L R R L L R L L R R L L R R L

QUICK TIP! QUICK TIP!

Get your pad practice done while watching an episode of your favourite TV When you sit at your kit for a practice session, before you play, acquaint
show. It’s an easy way to get 30 minutes of practice under your belt. yourself with your set-up and get your body into a comfortable position.

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COVER FEATURE
30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

DAY 22
CONTEMPORARY HAND/FOOT LINEAR COMBINATIONS – 4’S AND 6’S
The following five examples show some popular and The remaining two examples (D, E) then combine
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) slick-sounding linear hand/foot combinations. The basic the figures to create phrases of 6/6/4. Try moving the
BEGINNER 80 figures shown in the first three examples should be accented notes around the toms for even more variation.
INTERMEDIATE 100 practised first and be sure to keep the unaccented notes This will help you prepare for the next lesson coming up
PROFESSIONAL 130 as quiet as possible, even as the tempo increases. on Day 28.

A > B > > C > >

.. .. .. .. ..
R L L R L R L L R L L R R L R R L L

D > > > > > E > > >

. . .
R L R L L R L R L L R L L R L L R R L R R L L R L L

DAY 23
TIME PLAYING – RIGHT HAND SHUFFLE THROUGH 16TH-NOTES
Here we take the same pick-up note approach we applied to left hand filling in the missing 16th-notes as ghost notes.
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) the bass drum on Day 11, only now playing the shuffle The two most technically challenging parts to look out for
BEGINNER 70 rhythm in the right hand whilst maintaining a basic groove. in this pattern lie on beats 4 and 6 where the left hand has
INTERMEDIATE 90 The first example shows this in its most basic form, which is to play a ghosted note after and before the backbeats
PROFESSIONAL 110 important to master first, while the second then sees the respectively.

A
> > > B
> > >

.. .. ) ..

DAY 24
REST DAY
You should be seeing some significant progress by now. If
you’re confident you’re nailing the workout then why not
research and buy a new bit of gear? Maybe a new bass
drum pedal, that snare you’ve been after, or even just some
sticks or a new snare head. It’s important to reward yourself
for good work, and any new additions to your set-up will
offer an incentive to complete period 5.

QUICK TIP!
It’s often better to spend 30 minutes to one hour of
practice in a specific area with full concentration and
no distractions than hours of directionless drumming.

44 | SEPTEMBER 2015 WWW.MUSICRADAR.COM/RHYTHM

 DAYS 25-30
PERIOD 5
Our final period pushes the envelope to include flam and ruff
combinations for the hands while the shuffle exercises get the left
foot involved to break the shuffle rhythm between the right hand
and left foot, Steve Gadd-style. Our final four-way coordination
example is a fiendish four-bar incarnation of the syncopated and
double-stroke ideas seen so far while the hand/foot combinations
feature longer groups of eight and nine notes, great for slick-
sounding linear fills. Finally our time pattern continues the linear
theme by breaking up the dotted rhythm between the hands and
bass drum to create a rhythm that moves through this challenging
linear-esque groove. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, but not
before one final push this week.

DAY 25
GET TO GRIPS WITH FLAMS AND DRAGS
Our final hand exercises for this Drum Workout look at very close to the next note whilst at faster tempos they
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) some classic rudiments that also introduce the drag would become 32nd notes. Next are two flam combinations.
BEGINNER 110 (eighth-note) rudiment. The first two examples are drag paradiddles 1 Example C is a flamacue but played moving hand-to-hand
INTERMEDIATE 140 (eighth-note) and 2 and at slower tempos try playing the drag, which while D is essentially flam taps only accenting the first of
PROFESSIONAL 200 (eighth-note) could be regarded as a flam but with two grace notes, every three.

A > > B > >

œ œ œ œ œœ œœ œœ œ œ
R L L R L R R L R R L R L L R L L R LL R L R R L RR L RR L R L L

C > > > > D > >

j j j j j j j j j j
. œ œ œ œ . . œ œ œ œ œ œ .
L R L R L L R R L R L R R L L R R R L L L R R R L L L R R R L L

DAY 26
TRY THE STEVE GADD SHUFFLE
We complete our look at the shuffle by working on an Chicago approach, shuffling the left hand and playing the
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) approach sometimes seen used by Steve Gadd which jazz ride pattern in the right. The remaining examples then
BEGINNER 90 involves playing the skip note with the left foot, leaving the get progressively more demanding, adding ghost notes with
INTERMEDIATE 110 right hand to play just quarter-notes. Example A shows a the left hand and ultimately ending with the rock shuffle
PROFESSIONAL 130 basic shuffle played this way while B takes a more Texas/ groove with all of the ghost notes filled in.

A > > B 3 > 3 3 > 3

.. .. ..
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

3 3 3
C 3 > 3 > 3
D 3 > 3 >
.. .. .. ..
‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

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COVER FEATURE
30 DAY DRUM WORKOUT

DAY 27
A TAXING FOUR-WAY COORDINATION FOUR-BAR EXAMPLE
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) Our final four-way coordination example pushes the 3-4 stems, however it’s important to make sure things feel
BEGINNER 90 idea further by changing the basic figure slightly and also comfortable using single-strokes first. And don’t forget to
INTERMEDIATE 110 playing it over four bars. This should ultimately be practised step the left foot on ‘2’ and ‘4’. By this point you should
PROFESSIONAL 130 using double-strokes, denoted by the slashes through the notice a significant boost to your four-way co-ordination!

> > > > > > > >

3 3 3
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

> > > 3 > > > > >

‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ ‰ .
3 3 3
R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L R L

DAY 28
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) HAND/FOOT LINEAR COMBINATIONS USING INVERTED DOUBLE-STROKES
BEGINNER 40 (half-note and We bring our linear combinations lessons to a close Try combining these ideas with the previous figures to
dotted quarter-note) today with these longer groups of eight and nine notes create longer more sophisticated phrases and be sure to
INTERMEDIATE 55 (half-note and respectively. Notice how both examples (A and C) move move the accents around the kit, making sure that the
dotted quarter-note) hand-to-hand, while replacing the last note with the bass unaccented notes remain as quiet as they possibly can be.
PROFESSIONAL 70 (half-note and drum allows the figure to remain in the same hand in Keep practicing all the linear phrases from this Workout
dotted quarter-note) examples B and D. and your creative repertoire will grow and grow!

A > > > > B >

.. .. ..
R L L R R L L R L R R L L R R L R L L R R L L

C > 3 3 3 > 3 3 3 D > 3 3 3

.. .. ..
R L L R R L L R R L R R L L R R L L R L L R R L L

DAY 29
BROKEN TIME PLAYING – RIGHT, LEFT, FOOT THROUGH 16TH NOTES
These final time-playing examples are very effective at whilst still maintaining the backbeat. In example B
RECOMMENDED STARTING TEMPO (BPM) creating broken time feels by combining some of the we’re substituting every other bass drum note for a
BEGINNER 70 concepts used in the lessons so far to create what are stepped hi-hat, a pattern that can also be reversed to
INTERMEDIATE 90 essentially linear grooves with a dotted eighth-note put the hi-hat first. Take a close look at the video to
PROFESSIONAL 110 rhythm and right, left, foot sequence running throughout see how this is done.

Ex 5
q
A
> > > B
> > >
. . .

DAY 30
REST DAY
Congratulations, you’ve made it to end! It’s easy to forget home. These are fun and sociable ways of reminding
why we all practise, but for most of us it’s to improve at our yourself why you’ve been putting in the hours at home.
instrument and to allow us to play music. Use your rest day What’s more, having made it to Day 30 of this Drum
to get in touch with music; plan a band rehearsal, attend a Workout, you should notice a new-found confidence
jam night, or just play to some of your favourite tracks at and fluidity behind the kit.

46 | SEPTEMBER 2015 WWW.MUSICRADAR.COM/RHYTHM

CONCLUSION
If by this point you’ve managed to stay on track and complete this
30 Day Workout, give yourself a well-deserved pat on the back!
Hopefully the feeling of improvement
in your drumming is tangible and you
can feel a new-found connection between
your ideas and your playing. However if
things haven’t quite gone to plan – perhaps
work/life has been getting in the way – don’t
despair, simply continue to chip away at the
material at a pace that suits you and remember
none of this is a race, enjoying your progress
along the way is also an important part of
the process.
A lot of the time, the reason we tend not to
progress as players is that we don’t have this
kind of structured practice routine laid out for
us, with the option of simply jamming along to
music being a much easier option. However,
hopefully this workout helps to illustrate just
how effective this kind of routine can be, so
perhaps if you want to take things further why
not find yourself a teacher able to offer this kind
of material? Mags like Rhythm, books, DVDs
and masterclasses are also great ways of
giving your playing a shot of inspiration,
specific exercises to work on and
making your much-valued practice
time as constructive as possible.
Right, we’re off for a lie down…

QUICK TIP! QUICK TIP!

Try practising with bigger sticks. Everything will feel easier and lighter when It’s easy to play to your strengths. Direct your focus to improving your
you come back to playing with your regular sticks. weaknesses and you’ll be a better overall drummer.

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