A very difficult subject to tackle, as I'm the first to identify it and try to catalogue it. I might come back to this page later to better articulate what I mean. I want to post some positive content for a change but I need to work out a few things first...

Had another article I wanted to post but realized too late that neocities has no webm support, so enjoy an adaptation of some post I wrote somewhere else some time ago instead!...

Quick reminder you could beat me up irl before I start publishing some polarizing stuff.

Playing piano should not cause tension in the forearm. It is the weight of your arm dropping onto the keys that presses them down, not a push from your muscles. (Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHFG-HmHf4s ) Keep the hand rounded as it falls so that the weight of the arm can be transferred into the keys. (Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7s4V98-lElk ).

You might have to vary it a little for it to be the most comfortable for you. In general, the less tension or stress on any part of the body (i.e.: fingers, wrist, elbow, shoulder, etc.), the better.

Thank you for the input, letslearntogether. My playing posture certainly needs work (it used to be even worse) and I confess myself a recovering hyper-purist who tries not to use internet info too much, which has caused me more harm than good in the past. These videos will certainly be useful.

HOWEVER, I think there's a miscommunication. The kind of pain I was feeling wasn't the strain/tendonitis/carpal tunnel kind. It was the kind you feel the day after a good workout. It's hard to communicate exactly what I mean but I always had very thin wrists and forearms which are most likely the result of underdeveloped musculature.

In my case, the strain type of pain would always manifest itself on my fingers and back of my hand. Can you believe I "mastered" Hanon's first exercises and only realized one plays with their fingers resting on top of the keys after watching a video of someone doing it on youtube?

...All this talk about muscle strain is making me paranoid!

Yes, I figured that you already knew. I just wanted to put it out there in case anyone was curious. I too have a lack of forearm musculature. I think there is hope for us both though...I had once read that Listz was a sickly young man, but could still play piano for hours because he learned how to thoroughly relax his body as he played.

...Haha! I wouldn't worry about it too much. I'm sure you'll be fine.

Celebrating 3000 views -- half of those are me checking my own site to laugh at my own jokes.

Attempting to understand to aru majutsu no index season 2 episode 20 without subtitles to commemorate learning 500 kanji will haunt me forever.

Congrats for knocking on the door of japanese fluency

Thank you, lhfm. It's frustrating because it happens so randomly. One day I'll understand an episode of something like Akagi, then draw a blank at something as simple as machikado mazoku. I'm reminded of https://letslearntogether.neocities.org/music/langmus.html about (tangentially) language mastering requirements. Reading is close to mastered, but inconsistency has led me to chickening out of every other parameter.

So true. I stopped gaming for the most part back at the tail end of the Gamecube, PS2, and X-Box era. The handful of things that I have played since have been on the computer. If I do seek out games now, they have a tendency to be orientated more towards education. For example, the last two things that I got off of Steam were "Influent" (a language learning game) and "ElectricVLab" (an electronic circuit simulator).

I never truly stopped gaming. I still play videogames, it's just that the games I play are for the most part at least a decade old. Haha, I wonder if Anki would count as a game.

Oh yes, retro and indie games will always hold a special place in my heart...I suppose it depends on how much fun you have during your reviews as to whether or not Anki should be considered a game. Haha!