Stop Doing This Guitar Exercise Right Now!

Stop Doing This Guitar Exercise Right Now!
Guitar exercise that should be banned!
What is the worst guitar exercise ever? What guitar exercises should I be doing? Best guitar exercises for speed or hand synchronisation?
Ben Higgins answers your guitar exercise questions!
For guitar exercises which develop and improve your technique whilst still being applicable to real world world guitar playing, the Mega Bundle has everything you need
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[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Thanks for watching. Don't forget to LIKE and SUBSCRIBE if you haven't yet and why not try out that 'Super Thanks' button underneath the video! For guitar exercises which develop and improve your technique whilst still being applicable to real world world guitar playing, the Mega Bundle has everything you need 🔥 courses.benhigginsofficial.com/mega-badass-bundle

[@jfo3000]

I knew the exercise before you played it. I couldn't agree more. I started out taking lessons from a classical guitarist. Everything we did were etudes, actual MUSIC that built your chops, AND ALSO melodic sense. I could never buy into most guitar exercises. I've always created my own exercises out of melodic fragments that I need to keep sharp.

[@RikJSmith]

Hi Ben. Hope you and the Wife are doing well and staying safe. I guess I'm feeling kind of embarrassed that I'm still using this Chromatic Warmup to waste time after playing for quite some time. I should have spent every second on improving my Economy Picking. Have a great day and thanks for sharing this Video. 🎸🎸🎸

[@shadowhawk320]

I spent years Strumming along to a couple easy songs and then gave up when I was 18. Now at 32 Ive been playing everyday for a year. A beginner for sure, and this exercise finally broke me away from strumming and playing one note at a time. It was a major door opened in my mind and ability.

[@kudzuvine1]

"Catch your train" -Scorpions with Uli Roth

[@williammiller6761]

Amen -Mr and Mrs Higgy I had a feeling that was coming and it needed to be said

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Not aimed at anyone in particular, William! Just something I see people struggling with, a practice regimen of joyless drills - let's bring the enjoyment back

[@georgehartman4157]

Dave Mustaine has used these types of chromatic techniques in some of his solos and made them sounds great. The Sweating Bullets solo starts with a descending chromatic run, the fill near the beginning of Ashes in your Mouth has an alternating/ascending ascending one, and the end of his solo near the middle of Wake Up Dead has a 3-note pattern ascending chromatic run that all sound pretty awesome. There's probably a lot more examples but these are just some that I've been learning recently so they came to mind right away. I still hate the boring chromatic exercise and agree that it should die because that exercise actually makes me not want to even play guitar which is just crazy. If you learn a cool solo that uses the technique instead, you can perfect the technique while having fun and also learning how to apply it actual music and make it sound good.

[@alxdukextars2620]

The first video I saw of you was "Andy LaRocque Style Solo - Ben Higgins" and I really admired you a lot!!

[@edwardglyons]

Great advice. Thanks so much.

[@Bbr6704]

Another great video and great advice! I played some drills at one time, and quite liked them, but as you say, I'm not sure it helped that much. I found your warmup and legato gym more useful. I still have to dig and practice badass picking and hand synchronisation, but I miss time those days... Ah, and my first guitar was an Aria pro II, Viper series, a kind of superstrat I sold. Now, I mainly play a Gibson Sg and a Les Paul Junior.

[@ToneD5150]

As a long time player, I must agree that 4 note exercise was useless for me... I grew up listening to classic metal and hard rock... I studied my scales learned the modes, and never once had to use that useless exercise in a musical context! In my later years, I started picking apart individual licks from Yngwie, but only phrases and sequences. I was informed at an early age to learn cover tunes and use that method to develope my own style... Thanks for speaking out about somewhat useless exercises that will actually slow down your individual development as a good player and understanding of music theory! Kudos Brother...!!!

[@BlackNo1918]

Get the analytical out of the way. I've never heard a guitar teacher on the internet give that advise. It's gold. I'm so overthinking and I screw up so much because of it. First time I hear this precious advise. Keep on doing your stuff mate. Serious. No memes. No BS. Great content. Don't you ever stop.

[@chriswillison4659]

YES!!!! I came to this conclusion 6 months ago after 6 months of grinding on this and getting nothing! Think..How often do you play 4 notes per string?!

[@maxwellblakely7952]

I did this for a long time as part of my warmup. Then I realized that I wasn’t learning anything from it, so I subbed it for scales. Still sorta mundane, but at least I’m drilling scale shapes.

[@tadejsusta]

Flight of the Bumblebee as an example of practice this technique :)

[@antma9028]

Who'd argue with a man with horns. Aria pro 2 strat copy....in a cupboard somewhere.

[@EyesOpen369]

I like how the guitars behind you make DEVIL 😈 horns😂😂😂

[@ScottfromBaltimore]

I'm not sure I understand. What differentiates bad technical exercises from good ones? I think that drilling down to the atomic parts of riffs that are challenging, and then generalizing them into an exercise, is good, and I also think practicing riffs, melodies, and songs is good. If I always make the same mistake in the same place, I try to play just that part, over and over, slowly enough to get it right, until I can play it at speed. And I may take that small pattern and repeat it across all the strings and up and down the neck. I don't use the exercise mentioned here, but both a teacher of mine years ago and another hero of mine on here recommend it highly. I do use a pattern, but it's 4-2-3-1-3-2 and 1-3-2-4-2-3, so I'm mixing things up more. And it's one of several things I practice. It is monotonous, but it's relaxing.

[@0liver0verson9]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who detests this "exercise". Why would I want my muscle memory getting fixated on a completely unmusical piece of cow poop.

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Eloquently put! 👍

[@Chord_The_Seeker]

Hear hear! I hate that boring ass exercise!

[@franciscopimenta9089]

Always thought this guitar exercise sucks but couldn’t explain the reasons why in a so logical way as Lord Higgy. Only had 2 electric guitars my all life. First one was a Vester. I still have it but don’t play it. Afterwards, I received as a gift 22 years ago an Ibanez RG 470. I have been playing that one ever since. Although I didn’t become the guitar player I wanted to be (yet) one thing I learned very early is that you only need one guitar to suck at playing it.

[@lespaulphase90hm2]

Agreed! I’ve come across this or a variation of this exercise in Peteucci Rock Discipline and Rusty Cooley Shred Guitar Manifesto. And it did absolutely nothing for me. The only song where I have come across this “shape” is Bill Haley and His Comets song Rock Around the Clock from the 50s. So it’s not musically useful at all. Another great video and topic Ben! Thank you!

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Yeah it's one of those exercises that seems a good idea on paper, that it solves multiple problems at once, but the reality is not the same

[@raymondmagdallon9033]

Can't say I disagree. First time I've seen anything from your channel pop up on my feed. Fun content. Keep it up m8.

[@roywarriner8441]

It's a finger independence drill that is very useful for a beginner. Maybe you can't remember being a beginner but moving the third finger independantly is almost impossible when you first start and requires practice, why would anyone use this exercise musically? It's an exercise not a riff. To transition from chord to chord requires finger independance. A beginner should be doing both. Move on to a metronome then scale positions. Learn to crawl before you run. Baby steps, especially for older beginners.

[@ryanmcgregor4918]

You can achieve finger independent with legato and 3nps picking hand sync exercises except with that now yoh have also developed a skill that can be applied musically. 3nps forces you to have finger independence because the fingerings change as you run through the scale

[@roywarriner8441]

@@ryanmcgregor4918 yeah I can now because I did that exercise, before I did that exercise my third finger wouldn't move until I stared at it for a couple minutes. Now that I have some finger independance I can do hammer ons, pull offs, bends and vibrato. But I couldn't do that the first day I picked up a guitar, or the first week or even the first month. Again, you learn to crawl before you learn to run.

[@ryanmcgregor4918]

@@roywarriner8441 you are missing the point so much and it's kinda dumb on your part. You want to be right so badly that you're literally short changing yourself of some great advice from a pro just like the exercise you choose to do everyday.

[@roywarriner8441]

@@ryanmcgregor4918 My point is that the channel has played so long that he forgets what is like to be an absolute noob. A brand new player can not do that exercise. A new player needs to practice that exercise until he can do it. Then you move up to legato techniques, you can't do a hammer on if you can't move that finger. You can still be learning chords and scales and learning melody. The channel makes it sound that if you do that exercise you do nothing else. No, but it is a good warm up exercise for a beginner guitarist.

[@scollins731]

Your exactly right......great vid.

[@lumberfoot2004]

Vektors "fast paced society" has what I assume is this kind of chromatic run leading up to the solo which imo works very well. I guess it helps that its played rather fast though. Doesn't make the exercise any more fun however lol.

[@Trahzy]

Vektor is a great example of how riffs can be harder than solos.

[@thomasandersson9605]

I both agree and disagree. Just playing it up and down sucks but it can be spiced up in some interesting ways. Ben Eller have an exercise called The Punisher on his website that shows an interesting way of using it.

[@alexandrkalashnikov3845]

Ben, thanks. I began to look at my workouts in a new way. Sincerely, Alexander Kalashnikov.

[@rdr.erased]

I usually learn some licks and try to be more fast, always help me

[@fluntimes]

About the closest thing I can think of to a chromatic exercise but is musical is the Erotomania riff by John Petrucci. Actually, he likes to use chromatics as passing tones in scalar and arpeggio forms and it sounds musical.

[@DanDunhem]

On point!!! Practice what you want to play. I don’t review accounting math if I am designing mechanical systems! I use calculus! Your second point of not boring the shit out of yourself is right on. I only have so many days left. Make the most of them!

[@thomasfanforever6226]

There are a few occasional multi-string chromatic runs similiar to this exercise in Django Reinhardt's guitar playing ("Minor Swing" comes to mind), but they are infrequent and much more musical than this exercise played repetitively on its own.

[@theos12]

Thank you for the honesty!

[@jackhammerd5877]

I picked up this exercise back in 198?, so far back I don't know where I found it. It helped sync my hands, since I was just starting. But I realized pretty quick that it wasn't musical at all, so I abandoned it. Unfortunately it was the only exercise I knew. That left me banging around on songs I already knew, & not much else. Practice what you play is excellent advice, but that mind numbing chromatic waste of time was/is the only single note exercise in my trick bag. Any words of wisdom on how a 50 something year old hermit can start playing the guitar instead of just playing some songs (if that even makes sense)?

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

YES! I have something in the works that is gonna do just that. If you're on my newsletter you'll get all the details about it very soon. You can find the sign up button at the bottom of this page 👍 courses.benhigginsofficial.com/

[@thesarratum]

I wish I heard this in 1996. Beside some chords and pentatonic shapes, I did nothing but this chromatic run for years, while nowhere else I used 4 notes for a string. But man, when I kind of stepped up in death metal playing, it surely had a part in there. Look Emperor's IX Equilibrium album, many riffs end with very fast chromatic 4 notes for a string runs. But as you say, there is no extra work if you can do 3 notes run.

[@HeadbangersLocal]

I had a feeling it was either this exercise or the “spider” one. I hate that one to.

[@thomasfarmer1730]

Yeah I know….but how about playing the chromatic scale in different keys from lowest root note to the highest root note on the fret board

[@timjenkins502]

Agreed 100%.

[@jasongoad1084]

I think that this gained popularity with Steve Vai's 8 hour and 30 hour guitar workout he did with Guitar World back in the late 80s. This was the first exercise if I remember correctly. I also am thinking Petrucci had this later in one of his videos.

[@tubber37]

I was given this and it was that boring i forgot this the moment i stepped out the door! 😮

[@lilian896]

A DeanTele in 1990. 2008 GibsonStudio. Still play daily to keep my sanity! Love all the videos , no BS!

[@TheBladepolisher]

I always thought this simple drill was a alternate picking exercise.

[@chrisgmurray3622]

Absolutely, I couldn't agree more! I spent a couple of years doing this and it caused anger, frustration and turned me off the whole concept of rote practice.

[@tadejsusta]

The only person that I can think of, that uses chromatic licks is John Petrucci. A few examples: Under the Glass Moon solo - last ascending/descending lick, and the solo in The Ministry of Lost Souls.

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

There are probably loads of examples of songs and solos with sections of chromatic bits but even if you include them in your playing, you'd probably already have the dexterity to do so without needing to drill them specifically

[@phalanger1]

Practicing that run did help my accuracy and synchronisation early on, but I agree, I'm sure I wouldve gotten the same results and more by practicing more musical things. Like practicing challenging licks which is much more rewarding.

[@TheWinterwraith]

I knew which exercise you were talking about before I even clicked on the link!! Haha. I think we’ve all used it at one time or another, and like 99% of people here I don’t think it ever helped my playing in any way. I’d love to see a debate between Lord Higgy and some of the well known lick merchants who push this daft exercise ⚔️🛡 My first guitar was a black and white Carmel strat copy. As a lefty I had to restring it and play upside down a la Lord Jimi. I still have it, though it’s dismantled at the moment. It has a Yngwie Malmsteen’s Rising Force sticker on the back plate, from a 1986/7 issue of Kerrang!! I might do up the old girl and hang her on my studio wall as ‘art’

[@ahmedalnajjarofficial]

IMO this exercise is just for warming up , The only piece I've heard used the chromatic scale is "Fly of bumblebee"

[@nathanmorris8239]

This is exactly why I buy my guitar courses from the sky he always makes me think about what I’m doing and to be honest I’ve done that exercise every day for about six months now and I am now no longer wasting my time with it thank you once again sir for your knowledge you helped me once again🤘

[@AR-qn9mq]

Excuse me while I kiss this guy. Purple Haze

[@EVEROSFP1]

Actually there is a variation of this exercise with triplets triplets by John Petrucci which is far more fun to play... the actual chromatic scale is much more beneficial. .. As for the finger independence i think especially to a beginner may have more negative than positive results cause the finger motion is the very basic natural 1-2-3-4 which almost leads you to nowhere.

[@NukeClock]

I never did that regularily because I hate the sound of it but there comes the time in any metalheads life when he feels the need to sprint down 2 octaves chromatically. Now looking at a git, wondering if I could, immediatly throwing away the thought again because I probably couldnt. Because I didnt do that exercise. Is that one moment in time when youre actually doing that run worth the utter torment of doing the exercise ? I assume its not. Anyways, thats a friggin clean headstock man.

[@Dan_Ranger]

Haha! Love it. I mean I love it that you flagged it up, 'cos I always hated it! Pointless. Practice what you enjoy and what you need to use for the task at hand.

[@ryandockins3442]

Lol :) I actually felt it helped me with my grip. I had an over hanging thumb that was keeping me from being able to do certain things and that exercise helped correct my grip when I wanted to do 3 note per string stuff when it came to runs. I was having a problem with Jason Becker style licks you have in your licks course. The runs were tough because my grip was awkward. I didn't feel strong all the way through the run. It was mainly about my wrist or grip. This exercise forced all of my fingers to lineup which forced my wrist to move inward. I suppose I could have just practiced 3 note per string scales but the repetitions seemed beneficial.

[@ryanmcgregor4918]

You're missing the point, and yet you made his point exactly.. The flying pinky probem can be fixed with 3NPS, the thumb problem too except now you have to go and practice your 3NPS scales because the whole time you have been so focused on this chromatic exercise so that equals time wasted and the benefits short changed hence why he says 'the most bang for your buck'

[@ryandockins3442]

@@ryanmcgregor4918 I totally agree about practicing what you're going to use. Months ago, before this video existed, I had created my own guitar workout that had this exercise in it as well as major scale shapes starting at the first fret working across just like this exercise we're talking about does. I felt there was a benefit in helping correct my grip. I really like the workout that I've put together because of the gains in my mechanics. That's not to say my workout hasn't evolved into things that are more musically useful. I'm not arguing against his point at all. I feel like I'm getting to a point where my playing is sharpening my mechanics. The licks and the runs and all of the stuff I'm learning has become the new workout more or less.

[@FriedMetroid]

The Bumblebee shed a single tear at this video

[@mikemiller6628]

Many people swear on the spider exercise.

[@RandyBakkelund]

That chromatic exercise is crap, mainly because your just playing frets 1234, and going straight up on all strings. Which is skipping notes in the actual notes of the chromatic scale. There is a better exercise than that to play the chromatic scale (that can be slightly useful), but at the same time I don't use it that often, but there is way better exercises to practice that you will actually use which you have demonstrated, and so have I.

[@manno7316]

It’s an exercise. It’s like a footballer doing push-ups. He’s not going to run out on the field and do push-ups but it will help his fitness and play a better game. You wouldn’t tell him not to do push-ups because it’s not part of the game.

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

I'd say that learning 3nps legato and picking is more like push ups. These are solid exercises that are applicable to everything that you will do. The 1234 chromatic exercise is more like those exercise contraptions you used to see being sold on shopping channels. You maybe 'could' get some physical benefit from them but for the amount of time you put in, it's probably like 5% benefit

[@harrymo72]

There’s a thing called functional exercise that might be more advantageous to a football player than pushups. That’s kind of the point of the video. Your getting the same thing but in a package that will actually make you play what you want to play better. Why bother taking the time to force something into muscle memory that you likely won’t use? Higgy’s view makes more sense unless you love playing 4nps chromatic exercises competitively or something.

[@markseymour8365]

​@@harrymo72 I don't have strong feelings about the chromatic exercise one way or another. I do play it up to the 12th fret as part of my warm-up routine every day but that takes me no more than a couple of minutes I'd think. I know Steve Vai presented a workout routine he claimed to use that includes an awful lot more of these chromatic exercises - basically every possible sequence of four fingers across four frets, up the neck and back down again. I'm hesitant to call them crap because he's obviously not, but I've never managed to go through the whole sequence myself.

[@jah3148]

@@markseymour8365because it works

[@TheThylacinus]

Couldn’t agree more.

[@michaelanthonyclark328]

Mrs Higgy was quite frisky and frankish. Made me sit with my legs crossed... :)

[@Chord_The_Seeker]

My first guitar was an $80 Yamaha classical one. It sounded and played like an $80 guitar. My first electric had a neck so thin that it made an Ibanez wizard neck feel like a baseball bat. My next electric guitar after it was an Ibanez with a wizard neck. I have sold both, because I got used to thicker necks, and I can’t go back. I don’t have the cheap Yamaha anymore either.

[@SixString_J5]

2:45 Dave mustain's solo on sweating bullets is pretty much exactly the spider excersise. Now that megadeth has done it, i guess the rest of us need to explore new territory. seriously though the sweating bullets run is a better excercise because it has an interesting ryhthym using triplets to descend chromatically.

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

True, although it is at a slow/medium tempo and anyone with a degree of dexterity would be able to play it without needing to drill it specifically, if you know what I mean.

[@ozman6602]

started with chromatic runs it was good for keeping my fingers close to the fretboard and fixing the flying Pinky problem basically technique but once you're past the spaghetti fingers some mobility and you're fingers aren't flying all over the place move on so I partially agree with that.

[@g3ultra]

Nice horns! 🤘

[@_DaSpookyOne_]

Kirk Hammet loves this drill....

[@acdclexu6296]

i always said better pentatonic exercises than chromatic stuff

[@jm7859]

I've started to question this excercise for the last couple of years. I think 99.9999...% of songs doesn't use this pattern. Why waste time on thing with little to no practical application. Practice scales using 3nps 2nps even 1nps. Your Tremolo picking should be solid before any of these.

[@jonjones3958]

I definitely think more people should be incorporating 4 note per string patterns (laterally across the neck), but this has always been a terrible exercise.

[@pt5820]

Agreed with you 100%. I hate chromatic scales

[@VMaster1997]

Yes i heard a lot of chromatic stuff from mr george bellas

[@PatrickHelyer]

If you want to learn chromatics in a musical way learn a bunch of Megadeth riffs, Mustaine loves em

[@paulbaglio6295]

I agree... Fook that exercise

[@Pleusch]

Start with Legato and all problems this "exercise" wants to target are solved anyway. Nothing is better for strength and finger independency than legato.

[@RecycledRocker2]

There is just so many other things to do besides mindless.exercises...

[@HarbingerOfAnarchy]

Like again)

[@transparent6748]

Yeah I still have my danish handmade Mörck electric guitar,,somewhere lol.. thanks guys for another great video 😊

[@thomasandersson9605]

Petruccis Rock Discipline video had a lot of these exercises. I've been using it for such a long time. I will sue Petrucci 😐

[@88deeas]

Lol ok but how should i practice flight of the bumblebee?Lol

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Don't! Because nobody ever wants to hear that shit! 😜

[@88deeas]

@@BenHigginsOfficial 😂 They use that piece for guinness world record fastest guitar player.

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

@@88deeas I know and it's horrible!

[@88deeas]

@@BenHigginsOfficial yup it's pointless. Anyway I love your videos. Spicily this one made me laugh. I use that chromatic move to check for buzzing frets!

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

@88deeas Congratulations - you found a proper use for it! 🏆

[@andymartinhimself]

Maybe Kerry King uses it lol

[@Havanacuba1985]

😂🤣😂🤣😂

[@ukguitarnoodle]

whoever uses it in a song...................................?

[@EthnHayabusa]

Many examples of extreme chromaticism in jazz and romantic era classical music. It's up to the composer/performer to make it interesting. I would hope the majority of soloists aren't literally playing 1234 on every string for a solo or song.

[@mmudigonda]

YES!!!! Bloody awful exercise. Glad it's not just me!!!!