left hand position

[danish]

one reason that i believe i'm having trouble with most of my playing is because i haven't figured out how to hold my left hand right. on the 'left hand position' section, it says to keep a slight arch in your wrist. well, i can't get it to have an arch. i've gotten use to holding the guitar in a way where i can't hold my wrist in an arch position. can anyone offer any tips?

[cyberfret]

I think that hand position is big thing that hold a lot of people back. If you have gotten in the habit of using a bad had position, don't just accept it. It is never too late to refine your technique. The bad habits that a lot of people get into are things like cranking their wrist backwards, or putting their palm on the back of the neck. Even when your thumb up on top of the neck, like when you are doing a bend, your palm will not be on the back. It is really hard to say what is going wrong with your hands without seeing them.

There are a lot of pictures in that left hand position lesson. So use them as a reference.
http://www.cyberfret.com/first-fret/left-hand-position/

--Shawn

[danish]

i also heard that if you rest your left arm on your leg or an object when you're playing, that you won't be able to play as well. is that true?

[cyberfret]

I wouldn't rest your left arm on your leg or some other object. That would hinder your movement. If you are resting like this, that might be part of your problem. One, because you are probably really slouching to rest your arm on your leg. You want to sit up a little when you play. Sit in a chair, or stand up with a strap. If you want to play in a band, you should probably practice standing anyway. But don't have your strap too low. That is another thing that causes left hand position troubles.

--Shawn

[danish]

ok thanks for all the advice shawn