Play Life Loudly: Recent Episodes
Abby Halpin, DPT
Physical therapist and coach, Abby Halpin, talks all things movement for musicians and performers. Play Life Loudly is a weekly podcast where Abby chats about physiology, movement patterns, and answers musicians' and singers' questions about how their bodies work. Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy where she works with musicians via virtual and mobile sessions to guide them in feeling and performing their best! You can find more info about Abby at www.forteperformancept.com.
The hardest part of anything is getting started. Let's discuss how to make a doable and forgiving plan to get started.
7 Steps to Starting Your Workouts:
1. Reflect on what has worked or not worked before this
2. Set your duration: How long of a workout can you reasonably expect for yourself right now?
3. Set your frequency: How many days a week would you like to plan on?
4. Determine your non-negotiables: Which days are "nos" and which are "yesses"?
5. Write down the schedule somewhere.
6. Pick a "push it" and a "light" day weekly.
7. Track how you're feeling.
Advice:
Start when you get the nudge to start. Don't wait until everything is "ready".
Your schedule is a scaffolding. Be ok changing the plans.
Build self-trust by delivering on your promises to yourself.
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
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Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Abby Halpin, physical therapist and coach who helps musicians to play life loudly, chats about all the things she wishes musicians knew about their bodies and movement.
Musicians deserve healthcare providers who know what they need, so please share this episode with a friend to get the word out to those who need to hear it!
Today she talks about simple strategies piano teachers can use to reduce discomfort while teaching students from an article she wrote for the Vermont Music Teachers Association's newsletter.
Major takeaways:
- Over 42% of pianists report pain, discomfort, and injury.
- Increased time spent playing piano, years of experience, and regularity contribute to higher reports of pain.
- Make your teaching set-up (aka ergonomics) do more work for you.
- Change up what you're asking of your body while you teach.
- Individualize your day of teaching based on your body's (and brain's) needs.
Follow Abby on Instagram or email her with any questions at abby@forteperformancept.com
Abby Halpin, physical therapist and coach, who helps musicians to play life loudly, chats about all the things she wishes musicians knew about their bodies and movement.
Musicians deserve healthcare providers who know what they need, so please share this episode with a friend to get the word out to those who need to hear it!
Today she talks about the concept of "good posture" for pianists, a review of the workshop she led for the Vermont Music Teachers Association last weekend.
Major takeaways:
- There is no such thing as good or bad posture. Instilling that idea only makes a musician have to choose a body position and stick with it all the time in order to be good.
- Problems arise from a lack of variety more than the actual body position itself.
- Muscles are happiest when they are in their middle range, so whatever feels easiest, is probably right.
- Whenever talking about posture, use sensation cues rather than action cues whenever possible to avoid a rigid strategy
- Encourage the use of body position as a means of communication. It will allow for the variety the body needs to stay healthy at the piano for longer.
Follow Abby on Instagram or email her with any questions at abby@forteperformancept.com
Abby Halpin is a physical therapist and coach who is here to help musicians Play Life Loudly.
Topics Covered:
1. The reasons singers and instrumentalists need rest.
2. Active vs passive recovery.3. Strategies for scheduling rest while still working toward your music goals.
4. Strategies for quick recovery between takes or rehearsals.
5. How recovery looks different from person to person.
6. How recovery can feel like something you're adding into your routine rather than taking away from it.
Do you have a topic you'd like Abby's take on? Submit your question here.
Other episodes to listen to related to this one:
1. Why Do Injuries Happen?
2. How to Build a Starter Strength Routine
Find out more about Abby and her practice, Forte Performance & Physical Therapy here.
Abby Halpin, the physical therapist who sometimes wishes she was a music teacher, talks about what she wishes instrumentalists and singers knew about their bodies.
Today's topic is about meaningful words and tasks.
Take-aways:
1. Abby has lunch with her elementary and middle school orchestra teacher. Reminisces about how much her music teachers have meant to her.
2. Physical therapists and healthcare providers need to be watching their musician patients play their instruments.
3. Musicians need to find PTs who know the requirements of being a musician and who can watch you play or sing in your session.
Go tell your music teacher how they changed your life!
Until next time, Forte Fam, let Abby know what you need!
Abby Halpin, the physical therapist who wishes she was a music teacher, discusses the Disobedient Singing discussion she and Liz Frazer (aka the Salty Voice Teacher) led at the NATS (National Association of Teachers of Singing) conference.
She takes you through step-by-step the demonstration they did with singer and voice teacher Anna Diemer as well as their upcoming workshop for voice teachers in August.
Find out more about Abby at www.forteperformancept.com and on Instagram @forteperformancept.com. She is a physical therapist who works with musicians, singers, and performers utilizing virtual or mobile physical therapy and coaching sessions.
If you have any questions or topics you'd like to hear about please reach out to Abby directly at abby@forteperformancept.com.
Abby Halpin, the physical therapist who sometimes wishes she was a music teacher, chats about upcoming events. She is attending the 57th National Conference for the National Association of Teachers and Singing (NATS). She and her dear friend and colleague Liz Frazer, aka The Salty Voice Teacher, will be leading a demonstration and discussion about how PTs and voice teachers can partner up and break all the posture and breathing rules.
Abby is also looking forward to chatting with Christine Schneider on her podcast The Visceral Voice about in-network vs out-of-network care for singers.
Have a question or want to chat with Abby about how to work together? Contact her via www.forteperformancept.com/contact.
Abby Halpin, physical therapist who sometimes wishes she was a music teacher, talks about what to do if you're stuck in hyperinflation. She talks about the impacts of breathing patterns on musicianship and singing and how to training your exhalation to change patterns.
Key Points:
1. Quick review of hyperinflation, but make sure you listen to Episode 10 first!
2. The reasons for training exhalation for musicians
3. Three example exercises to improve exhalation range of motion for singing and playing music.
4. Practice your instrument or vocalize in those positions
5. Reach out with questions!
Contact Abby here: https://www.forteperformancept.com/contact or via Instagram @forteperformancept if you have any questions or are interested in a mobile or virtual session.
Anything said in this podcast is for educational purposes only and not to be taken as medical advice.
Abby Halpin, physical therapist and coach, who wishes she was a music teacher, chats about all the things she wishes musicians and singers knew about their bodies and movement.
Today she talks about the concept of hyperinflation and how it affect musicians' access to air.
It can contribute to the following complaints:
1. You can’t last as long through a phrase or need more catch breaths than you used to.
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You can’t get enough air in.
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You have a lot of shoulder and neck tension that can not change no matter how much you’ve stretched.
4. Your back is stiff if you stand for too long.
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You have a general feeling like making music feels harder than it used to… you miss the sense of ease you might have had in the past.
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You feel exhausted and your body aches on the ride home.
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You have been told you look stiff or keep hearing people around them telling you to relax.
Follow Abby on instagram @forteperformancept.com or find out more about her at www.forteperformancept.com.
As we always end each episode, "Let me know what you need!"
Abby Halpin, the physical therapist who sometimes wishes she was a music teacher, talks through her own experience with chronic pain and flare-ups due to mold exposure.
Take-aways:
1. You deserve care from someone who listens, does not interrupt, believes you, and makes a plan with you.
2. Our brains say a lot of conflicting things when we hurt.
3. You are not alone in your pain experience.
You can find more from Abby on her website at www.forteperformancept.com and on Instagram @forteperformancept. You can submit questions at www.forteperformancept.com/playlifeloudlypodcast or via the link on her IG profile.
Let me know what you need!
Good Morning, World!
Dr. Abby Halpin chats about the levels of diaphragms and why they need to play nicely together move air in and out easier. This is in response to a submitted question "Can I get better at being loud?". This person has noticed that she isn't able to get her speaking volume higher to match the crowded spaces she is returning to after years of quiet pandemic life.
Main points:
1. There are 7+ diaphragms in our bodies.
2. They are areas the separate one area from another and help to manage internal and external pressures/forces on our bodies.
3. They need to ascend and descend together to easier allow the movement of air and movement of our bodies in general.
4. Working on the body position extremes (positions of exhale and inhale) and then gradually working on the control of air flow and speaking volume to build stamina will help!
Questions? Please submit them at www.forteperformancept.com or find Abby on Instagram @forteperformancept.
Let me know what you need!
Abby Halpin, the physical therapist who wishes she was a music teacher fills you in on her own piano journey in honor of World Piano Day, asks Florence + The Machine for some much needed assistance, and walks you through why your hands might be falling asleep while you play.
Main Takeaways:
1. You have to learn things to be proficient at them.
2. The main resistance to doing anything is the getting started part.
3. Nerves can get compressed, pulled on, or over-sensitized at any point along their pathway.
4. The location of your tingling, prickly, numb symptoms help your PT know what to do next.
5. Go see someone for this symptom - you don't have to live like this.
Please let me know if you have questions by sending her an email at abby@forteperformancept.com or asking a question at https://www.forteperformancept.com/playlifeloudlypodcast
Let me know what you need!
Abby Halpin, physical therapist who wishes she was a music teacher, chats about how virtual session work and talks you through a recent visit with a musical theater artist and teacher who needed help with a sticky diaphragm and trouble with breath support.
Main Points:
- Someone said Abby's voice is soothing so she wishes them a good night!
- Virtual care is not for everyone. Some people really need that hand on care.
- Virtual sessions are great for everyone else! You can get a LOT done in a short amount of time.
- Abby walks you through a recent visit with a musical theater performer and teacher (a short nerd out about ribs and breathing and stuff).
- Virtual sessions allow for a lot of convenience, more accurate information about your life/practice set up, and (bonus) Abby gets to meet your babies and puppies.
- If you have questions, please submit them at www.forteperformancept.com/playlifeloudlypodcast or go to the "I have a question!!" link on Forte's Instagram bio (@forteperformancept).
Next time: We will be discussing why your hands might be falling asleep while you practice and when to see someone about it.
As always, Let me know what you need!
Abby Halpin, physical therapist and coach for musicians, talks thru how to build a well-rounded strength workout for beginners.
Main Points:
1. Go listen to Episode 4 first if you haven't.
2. Five main movements to include in every workout.
3. Other considerations, such as direction of movement, body regions, and how many body parts are moving at once.
4. A summary of Fortissimo and how we can work together to get you started.
Let me know what you need!
Abby Halpin, DPT is a physical therapist and coach who works with musicians, singers, and performers internationally thru virtual and mobile session. Her business is called Forte Performance & Physical Therapy. You can find more details at www.forteperformancept.com
Abby Halpin, physical therapist who wishes she was a music teacher, makes a case for adding strength training to your routine to improve your performance as a musician.
Main points:
1. Strength does not equal bulky, stiff, slow muscles.
2. Too many musicians have told me they have been advised NOT to lifting heavy things.
3. Strength = max force you can produce against a load.
4. Strength training makes you withstand more load.
5. Strength training allows you to be MORE flexible and MORE mobile!
Next time: What should be in a starter strength program for musicians?
Let me know what you need!
Abby is a doctor of physical therapy, fitness coach, and owner of Forte Performance and Physical Therapy in Vermont. She cares for and coaches musicians all over the world with virtual and mobile sessions.
Abby Halpin is a physical therapist and coach who wishes she was a music teacher. Today she talks about the anatomy and physiology of breathing as it pertains to making music and staying alive. She also share some snippets of what she is working on in her own voice lessons.
Main points:
1. Oxygen in, CO2 out.
2. Air moves toward areas where there is less of it. Once you breathe in, the air wants to go back out and vice versa.
3. Ribs in/diaphragm up = exhalation.
4. Ribs out/diaphragm down = inhalation.
5. Your guts have to be able to slide up and down while diaphragm and pelvic floor muscles dome up and down together as you breathe. Gross.
6. You need to be able to breathe easily no matter what body position you're in.
7. Common issues seen in musicians are associated with postural patterns and what your instruments have trained you to be good at.
Questions? Please ask them! Would love to hear from you!
Abby Halpin, physical therapist and coach for musicians and artists, talks about why injuries happen and what to do when they do. She also shares why she greets the day like she greet you!
Main points:
1. Pain does not equal tissue damage
2. Injuries happen when the load on your body outweighs the resilience you've built up.
3. Don't give yourself training whiplash.
4. Rest is not always (often isn't) the answer.
5. You deserve care from a PT who knows what you need as a musician.
6. Don't take "stop playing" as an answer.
7. Let me know what you need.
Welcome to Play Life Loudly! Physical therapist and coach, Abby Halpin, introduces her weekly podcast where she will chat about physiology, what she wishes musicians knew about movements, and answers your questions about how musicians' bodies work!
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy where she works with musicians, artists, and performers both virtually and in-person to make sure they are feeling and performing at their best.