#3-How To Hold A Guitar

It’s really important to learn how to hold a guitar correctly because by not doing so can lead to some major back pain.

This was originally posted HERE and is recapped below:

Playing guitar for hours can strain your back if you do not maintain an upright posture. As a result, you have to learn how to hold a guitar so that you can practice for extended periods of time.

To start, sit down on a comfortable chair, pick up your guitar and place the back of the guitar against your stomach. If you are right handed, the guitar neck should be pointing towards your left. Rest the guitar body on your right upper thigh.Now place your left hand around the guitar neck and place your right arm around the body so that your hand is lying by the strings. Adjust your body positioning so that you are completely comfortable.

If you are left handed, all of the above would be opposite.

Hand Position

If you’re left handed, don’t worry, you have two options here. The first option is to buy a right-handed guitar and re-string it, so that the order of the strings is reversed. The second option you have is to buy a left-handed guitar.

If you’re right handed, you will use your left hand to play chords.  The left hand fingers are bent and pressing down on the strings on the fret board. The back of the neck is curved, so that your hand molds into the shape of the neck. Your thumb is arching aver the top of the neck. This is a common thumb position for constructing chords.

It is also ok to press your thumb into the back of the guitar neck when constructing chords, although this is more common when playing scales. Try out both thumb positions and use the one that is most comfortable for you.

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Right Hand/Arm

This is the hand that you will use to “strum” the strings to make the different chord sounds. Rest/Lie your right arm over the guitar. Your right bicep should be resting on the top of the body of the guitar. Your hand should be positioned directly above the sound hole in the guitar. This is where the sound is produced.

If you are just starting to play the guitar, then these positions may feel awkward at first, but when you learn how to hold a guitar correctly, and practice, it will become more and more comfortable.