Guitar Practice Hurting Your Pinky? Try This – 5-Minute Fix - 421

If your pinky starts hurting during guitar practice, you’re not alone — it’s a common issue for players working on stretches, control, or speed. In this 5-Minute Fix, I’ll show you one simple adjustment that can relieve the strain and help you play more comfortably.

Welcome to your Five Minute Fix—one question, one quick win, all in under five minutes!

Today’s question comes from John, who asked:
“My fourth finger is starting to hurt when I do the spider exercises. Is this overuse or something I should be concerned about?”

Great question, and one that a lot of guitar players wrestle with—especially if you're pushing your skills with tough exercises!

Pain is a Warning Sign

Now, before we dive in, let me say this: I’m not a doctor. I’m just a guitar teacher sharing what’s worked for me and many of my students over the years. If you’re experiencing sharp, persistent pain, always check with a medical professional. Pain is a warning sign. It’s not something to brush off—especially if you’re over 50.

Sometimes pain is due to tension or overuse, but it could also be a sign of something deeper, like arthritis or even your genetics. I remember years ago when I was using heavy strings—those GHS Stevie Ray Vaughan sets—and I started getting a sharp pain across the back of my ring finger every time I bent a string. It was rough. The weirdest part? When I finally switched strings, no one noticed a change in my tone. Not one person.

What should you do if you’re feeling pain?

Put the guitar down for a few days. Seriously. You're not quitting. You're not falling behind. The guitar will be there when you come back. And if you’re practicing regularly, taking a short break can actually help your progress, not hurt it.

Once you're ready to return, make warm-ups and stretches part of your daily routine. A lot of us just pick up the guitar and jump right in, but if you're noticing more aches and pains, you need to slow down. Don’t dive straight into wide-stretch drills. Start by warming up one or two fingers at a time. Let your hand ease into the work.

If the pain persists, scale back. Try alternate techniques. And here’s something that often gets overlooked—spend some time focusing on your picking hand. We put so much emphasis on fretting hand shapes and patterns that we forget how important the picking hand is. Work on moving string to string, skipping strings, and keeping your picking hand relaxed and efficient.

A few pro tips for pain prevention:

• Wet your hands with warm water before playing.
  
  
• Use good posture.
  
  
• Take breaks. Get up. Walk around.
  
  
• Check your practice setup—it matters more than you think!
  
  

Bottom line: play smarter, not harder.

Guitar isn’t about brute force. It’s about tiny movements that sound big. A chord that sounds full and beautiful might only be a few millimeters away from one that sounds clunky and out of tune. That difference often comes down to your hand position or how lightly you're pressing the strings.

Speaking of which—try this quick experiment.
Press down on the 8th fret of your high E string as lightly as you can until you hear a clean note. That’s all the pressure you need. Pressing any harder doesn’t help—it actually knocks your strings out of tune. Light touch = better tone and better tuning.

If your practice space isn’t set up to help you succeed, it’s easy to slip into bad habits that lead to overuse. I’ve got a free Practice Space Checklist that can help you make sure your setup is working for you, not against you.

Thanks to John for the great question—and remember: take care of those hands! You’ve only got two, and you’ll want them to last for a lifetime of great guitar playing.

Thank you for listening to this week's podcast. See you on the next one!

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