Build calluses on your fingers FAST in only 2 min per day

Today's guitar lesson for beginners is about how to build calluses for beginners. Hey guys, Brad Litton from SimpleGuitar.com here with another beginner guitar lesson for you about how to build calluses on your fingertips so you can play guitar without your fingers hurting!
Sore guitar fingers can be one of the biggest pains (literally) when you start out playing guitar But if you can build calluses on the tips of your fingers, then it will reduce the pain when your fingers hurt from playing guitar so you can play more.
It today's video I'm going to give you 2 guitar callus builder exercises you can do on acoustic guitar or electric guitar that will help make the rest of the process of learning how to play guitar less painful.
Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
3:03 - Where Calluses Come From
3:52 - The 2 Minute Callus Workout
5:24 - The 2 Birds 1 Stone Callus Builder
7:26 - Review & Final tips
►► You deserve to feel like a rock star even if you're just starting out. Download my FREE guide on The Top 10 Things to Learn on Guitar First to start making real music on guitar faster (this is not for you if you would rather learn more boring exercises) → simpleguitar.com/top10
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#GuitarCalluses #BeginnerGuitarLessons #LearnGuitar #Guitar #GuitarLessons #SimpleGuitar

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

►► You deserve to feel like a rock star even if you're just starting out. Download my FREE guide on The Top 10 Things to Learn on Guitar First to start making real music on guitar faster (this is not for you if you would rather learn more boring exercises) → @t​

[@ln9256]

I can literally feel a difference after less than a week. I practice like normal for up to 30 minutes a day and finish with this and holy moly is it effective

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Did you mean that you can feel a difference? I'm glad that this helped you out!

[@silverfoot6079]

I've been playing guitar and bass for like 13 years now and never had callouses. I just started learning the Tornado of Souls solo and now my callouses are forming

[@LordChevonlier]

Pull-offs are also highly effective because you're basically plucking the string with your finger. It's especially good on the pinky because it provides both calluses and finger strength

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Yes! Two birds one stone!

[@aerasolace]

i’m late but atleast i found this channel. HOPE THIS HELPS WITH MY PROGRESS!🖤

[@pandooju]

Thank you man, I finally found a video that I found helpful. Thank you, I will keep doing this.

[@regularguy3202]

I’m one week into learning and I go 10 min and have to stop due to finger pain. I’m gonna do your workouts! Also subscribed! Thanks!

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

You got this!

[@MattLaneFitness]

Thank you greatly. I’ll give it a shot

[@pedigreegudgeon]

thank you bud for this. ive just recently come back to playing & already ive had to severely limit my practise because of the pain. Im really hoping that these exercises harden them up so that i can do more practising again.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

You can do it!

[@davey9254]

Good info on the 2 minute rub down .

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

You’re welcome! Thanks for the comment!

[@andyboyd126]

Too late at night to try your tips out, but I'm going to try it out tomorrow morning. Subscribed.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Thanks for the sub!

[@kuntalsen8385]

Hi Brad, thanks for the wonderful tips to develop the calluses on the playing fingers. I've picked up guitar last week only and now the fingers hurt like hell. There is peculiar dilemma- heart wants to keep on learning to play the guitar but the pain in the fingers want to quit. I'm determined to continue with it despite any amount of pain. I'm going to apply your first technique everyday as a workout no matter what. And will continue with it regularly to that I have them on my fingers.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Rock on! You've got this!

[@chefdave12118]

Thank you for this trick. Im in my forst week playing and i put almost 10 hours in yesterday (day off from work) and my finger tips are killing me. It also has to be easier to press low strings on high frets with harder finger tips. Ill be doing this 2 minute drill every morning before work. Great tip! Thank you very much.

[@JagtarSingh-se8lw]

Why this video underrated it those exercises helpful to build calluses.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Man sometimes it takes a long time for KZbin to pick things up so the more that people like and share and comment the better. Thanks for the comment!

[@jonathanjuarezhernandez203]

Cool

[@britskihambone8158]

Thanks a lot for this. I used to play guitar, but had to stop for health reasons, but now I'm better, so I want to start playing again. I just dreaded the thought of trying to build calluses again, because of the pain. This method is much less painful than pushing the strings down tightly against the frets. Oh, and if you do it for 10 minutes, it will saw a groove into your fingers...lol.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Lol, yes it will saw a groove into your fingers! Make sure that you do give your fingertips time to adapt to the friction, though, so that the callous will build! So glad you're getting back to playing & that this is helping you get back even faster!

[@mrtv5265]

Bless me ❤😊

[@richardsimonson4972]

Something you can do off the guitar that helped me tremendously when I first started many years ago, was taking a card out of my wallet and just pressing it into each finger continuously

[@freeyourmind8305]

Hello does anyone know how to get callus on the proximal (base) bone of the index finger? I need callus on it (i think) because i have a damn hard time with barre chords, especially the higher frets on my Eastman (western) guitar. It is a pain in the ass to not being able to play the higher barre chords.

[@the.one.who.doesnt.knock.]

i remember i had a callus on my thumb cus i didn't have a pick and i was really trying to get a song down. i played for an hour and afterwards my thumb was sore abd burning. i didn't let it rest tho and it became a blister

[@exyl_sounds]

ayo thanks!! who knew crazy dave from plants & zombies was so knowledgeable about guitar

[@jayayejaypvp1140]

THAT LOOKS SO GOD DAMN PAINFUL BUT I LOVE THE HARD WORD REQUIRED!!!

[@generalawareness101]

A hereditary problem I have (that has caused me to develop CTS due to trying to wrist compensate) is that as soon as calluses begin to form my body will destroy them as I sleep. Runs in the family so playing the guitar is always painful to absolutely no way can I do it that day as it feels like I am playing on razorblades (besides now I have wrist pains 24x7 due to the CTS I gave myself). Nine months at 20-30mins per day every single day and you would think I was still on my first week.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Holy cow! That's crazy! In that case, I'd recommend getting the lightest strings possible. On electric I use 7 gauge strings & on acoustic I have 10s. Lighter strings require less pressure to use.

[@generalawareness101]

@@SimpleGuitarDotCom I slapped 8s on it but the damage has been done. I can barely type these days due to the fingertip pain. Growing up my family will blister instead of getting calluses which is why manual labour was so hard. I could, and did for a bit, swing a grub hoe, or axe, for hours per day, and everyone had hand calluses within two weeks while I just had open wounds. If I don't wear leather gloves when I work outside I will come back like some horror film scene by the end of the day. Really nice for good skin but still. This is why I always liked Wolverine (Logan) because he would not ever have had calluses (or blisters) either.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

@@generalawareness101 have you tried like putting glue on the end of your fingertips to act as an artificial callus? I wonder if that would work for a bit at least.

[@sabrinazarogoza8686]

Don't know if this will help you much, but there's a product called Rock-Tips liquid callus formula. You just brush it onto your fingertips and it acts as a shield that will allow you to play longer because it decreases some of the sensitivity of your fingertips. It's like 12 dollars on amazon. It's non-toxic, and it doesn't smell bad either. A very light, slightly herbal fragrance. That sounds like a rough condition to live with. Nylon strings will be easier on the fingers as well. Or you could try ukulele. It's really fun, and my husband who has been playing guitar about 35 years now even enjoys playing the uke.

[@robertastevens6057]

Hi Brad, I'm a novice player, going on a whole week now 😂 Anyway, one thing I wanted to mention to see what you think about it is that my fingers don't really hurt, as some people stress on this thread. Rather, they feel tender and extra sensitive to the touch. I am wondering if what others mean by "pain". Does it make sense? Currently, it does limit my ability to play for more than half hour per day, but I wouldn't necessarily call it pain. For reference, and if it matters at all, I'm 40 and female 😅 and I play about 20-30 minutes at least 5 days a week, but usually more often.

[@learningguitar7220]

Hi, Sorry I'm not Brad but i will give you my take on this. I think you're playing an electric or classic guitar because these guitars strings are lighter on the fingers than acoustic guitar strings. Acoustic guitar has steel strings which are extreamly painful to push down your soft fingertips on them as a beginner. It took me weeks to get used to them.

[@itsnot_cruz]

how do I get calluses on the finger I barre with? I'm also trying to get them along the entire length of my pointing finger to barre easier, cause otherwise the strings are muted sometimes, especially the high E, B and G strings

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

You shouldn't need to develop a callous on that finger. Rather than pressing your finger flat down on the strings, roll it backward toward the headstock so that you're using more of the side of your finger that has less flesh and it'll be easier to press down.

[@TJ-cg8mq]

.. thanks buddy - just starting out here on acoustic....So how long does it actually take to develop callouses??

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Hey TJ! The amount of time is really going to depend more on how much you play. So rather than being able to say it'll take 2 weeks to develop callouses or it'll take 6 weeks. What's most going to contribute is how much friction you generate in that window. So I'd venture to say around 10 hours of playing will really help get your callouses built. But you can do that 10 hours in a few weeks or in a few days. It's really up to you :) The good thing is, exercises like I do in this video will actually generate more friction per minute than just playing alone, so that's one reason why spending a few minutes a day doing these will really speed up your callous building. Does that help? Thanks for the comment!

[@TJ-cg8mq]

@@SimpleGuitarDotCom ..wow thanks! I'm actually left handed.., but I've decided to play the 'standard' way.. I've noticed indentations on my fingertips from pressing down (on the fretboard)... I guess this is where the exercises come in :)

[@4doorsmoregurls449]

@@TJ-cg8mq little late but im also left handed and play standard 🤣

[@joshuasloan169]

Is it dangerous to rub fingers too long? And is sensitivity a sign to take a longer break or can I keep going unless there is pain/visible damage?

[@tonyhinojosa7710]

A little pain from friction is normal, but if you're breaking skin, drawing blood, and or experiencing lingering pain I would take a break for a while and let your fingers heal. If the pain persists more than a day or two I would go to a doctor. That's why he only recommends doing it a couple of minutes a day, because you can overdo it.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Spot on @tonyhinojosa7710!

[@kidcomedian9799]

5:24 do I have to play the string too or can I just bend the strings randomly

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

For building calluses, there's no need to play the string. You can just bend randomly. If you want to hit two birds with one stone, though, you can work in practicing your bends at the same time & reap the benefits from doing both.

[@jonathanjuarezhernandez203]

@@SimpleGuitarDotCom have you tried doing this

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

@@jonathanjuarezhernandez203 Yes

[@jonathanjuarezhernandez203]

@@SimpleGuitarDotCom do you have calluses because of this reason, well this exercise

[@lolcat6273]

I have got calluses in all my finger and my fingers don't hurt anymore so is that a good thing?? Please let me know

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Yes that's a good thing! That's the goal! Now have fun playing pain free! Good work!

[@lolcat6273]

@@SimpleGuitarDotCom Thank you so much sir, i have been playing guitar for three months and following your channel helped me improve my guitar skills🥰

[@howtobemillionaire]

Hey if i do it for more than 2 mins a day will that be a problem or will i get calluses faster

[@l_Tushar_l]

Probably both

[@Lameless]

7:39 it might just be me as a tech guru but that just to me feels like a lot of pain to watch happen idk why

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

I’ve been playing for about 25 years at this point so that’s nothing for me anymore

[@fakumadda1632]

Did this really have to take 9 minutes? Good lord!!

[@ParallelNewsNetwork]

I use rubbing alcohol and sand paper. Builds up big nice ones on the pads

[@gus8378]

What about sandpaper?

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

If you use a light enough grit that you're not ripping skin off your fingers and just creating some friction that your body will then have to adapt to, that could work. It doesn't sound fun to me, though.

[@bobsmodels123]

Just play the first part of the Hotel California and Freebird solo. And youll get calluses like youve never seen them

[@howardjones4650]

Don't forget Green Grass and High Tides!

[@nepoleonbonaparte3086]

I have it for 6 months and it keeps peeling off

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Yeah, that will happen once in a while, but if you keep the friction up and don't take too long of breaks between playing it will be more consistent.

[@maxflaskamp]

Something that worked for me is I put superglue on the tips of my fingers

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

That's a great solution! Especially if you pop a blister or something!

[@ATerramagra]

Doesnt sliding your finger in the guitar strings cut you??

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Nope, no risk of cutting your fingers. You want to do this on the lower wound strings in order to create more friction against the wound part of the string. You’d have to squeeze with everything you’ve got for a long time while sliding up and down to cut yourself. That’s not recommended.

[@kidcomedian9799]

@@SimpleGuitarDotCom so do I press down for 2 minutes or just slide my fingers around? I know i'm late but still please answer my other comment too

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

@@kidcomedian9799 You press and slide att the same time.

[@paulmiller3467]

Does the guitar at least buy me dinner first?

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Traditionally I think you’re supposed to buy the guitar dinner

[@Googiebear.]

Three entire minutes before this guy actually gets to the point

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

#firstworldproblems

[@nenhumnome4149]

It's too much to have to wait FOUR MINUTES to get to the point

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Oh man, I'm sorry for causing such calamity in your life. I hope you've recovered from this tragedy. 😅

[@tardwrangler]

1 pro tip they don't want you to know about is aluminium is very cheap and relatively easy to melt, simply dip your fingertips in it and let it cool off

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

I've heard of people using super glue, but not aluminum. Not sure I'm brave enough for that.

[@letsclimb5828]

Can confirm, my aluminum coated finger bones create much more resonance and comfort than my flesh skin ever could

[@user-iw5fw1ff2j]

Man, i burnt my finger doing the first technique. My fault tho....

[@kidcomedian9799]

answer please can I do the string bending without playing the strings do I press down hard when sliding my hand around the frets what if my calluses are already starting to form on some fingers, like i have that "bubble" thing on my middle finger, should I still do these excercises?

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

1. You can do the string bending without playing the strings 2. The harder you press, the more friction you create. Don't do it so hard that you hurt yourself, but pressing a bit will help calluses form faster. 3. If you're starting to get blisters, you'll want to take it a bit easier. I've played through blisters that popped & it is really painful. I'd take it easy on that finger for a minute to allow the callus to form more fully, then when you resume playing with the callus you won't believe how easy it is to play because the skin is so hard that it's practically effortless to press down.

[@kidcomedian9799]

@@SimpleGuitarDotCom so I shouldn't play with that finger for a while?

[@kidcomedian9799]

@@SimpleGuitarDotCom thanks this was very helpful.

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

@@kidcomedian9799 maybe a day or two or just light playing with it.

[@jonathanjuarezhernandez203]

How long does it take to fully learn guitar?

[@NofirstnameNolastname]

Just be careful you don't overdo it. If you always play through the pain early on you can actually damage nerves in your fingertips. Take it slow and be patient. Only takes a few weeks of like 30 minutes a day of playing to already notice calluses developing. A few more months and you'll be able to smash through a brick wall with your fingertips

[@ph0n1xz]

Is weird that I like finger pain? lmao

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

lol

[@tedscott1478]

You're really f*cking up your guitar strings by the first exercise...

[@SimpleGuitarDotCom]

Nope. Not really.