3 Ways Drumming for 20 Minutes a Day Can Keep You Healthy

Have you ever done something you love so much that you lost track of the time?

You may not have know it at the time, but you were in an altered, healthy and relaxed state of mind. Brain science calls that being in an entrainment. You get into a flow state. What you were doing felt like you could do all day if you wanted. Maybe you looked over at a clock and realized that several hours had past.

One time I was in New York and a friend invited me to a West African drum circle. It was my first time learning that style fo drumming. I played the same rhythm over and over again, because in West African drumming there are these anchor rhythms that hold the entire group together.

You’d think after play for 4 hours I would be fatigued, but in fact I felt refreshed. I felt like I had just gone on a hike, got some fresh air, and had a immune boosting smoothie. My mind and my body felt clear. I felt like I could’ve kept going. I the feeling is kind of like when you’ve lost track of time enjoying someone’s company, or you fell into a trance with your favorite activity, all you have to do is just start playing a drum.

I was locked into playing the same rhythm. Again, that’s called entrainment. It’s the same feeling you get if you’ve ever played music in a a band. You’re excercising the muscles in your brain and your body. In fact you have neuroplasticity lining your body. That’s why they call it muscle memory.

When we get into a good pattern and a good rhythm in our life, it feels good. We don't want to go back. We think clearer. We're more motivate.

We think with a fresh perspective. It's like changing out a dirty filter or cleaning a lens we've been seeing through. Of course, when we try something new it feels uncomfortable at first, but its uncomfortable because its unfamiliar. It's only when we push through the small obstacles, we get a chance to see what it’s like on the other side. And then when we've had a taste, we want more.

So why drum for 20 minutes ?

First off, it forms a fun new habit that puts you in a state of mind to grow and learn.

Einstien said, “When you stop learning you start dying”

The cool thing about drumming is that there is always more to learn. And when you learn something small it builds onto another ideas around drumming. As a small example, a single stroke roll turns into a double stroke and you combine those two and you have a paradiddle, and so on.

So here's my challenge to you. Start a new routine. Play drums for just 20 minutes a day. Thats it. It doesn't have to be a long time.

A few things will happen.

After you start playing for the first 10 minutes you won't want to stop. Because drumming is fun and there is a primal instinct we have to playing. We also have an innate desire to finish something once we started. If I told you to go in and just floss one tooth, you would probably say to yourself, this is ridiculous, and you would end up flossing them all.

Play whatever is fun, play something that feels good. You've probably heard a song recently that you thought to yourself, “Those drums sound like a lot of fun to play. “ So go play them.

Secondly, it helps your anxious monkey mind. The biggest benefit of all is that after playing for just 20 minutes you'll have released a lot of nervous energy and feel more relaxed before you started. As a result, You’ll feel better on the other side. And of course when you feel good about you, you do life better.

The third benefit helps your body’s immune system over time. You'll have lowered your stress and the fight or flight response. When you lower that survival state of mind, it gives your body a chance to rest and restore.

So, before you play ask yourself, what song or rhythm would feel really good to play right now. Drop your judgements about sounding good or what other people will think. Stop thinking so hard about it, and just play.

Thats the simplicity of how drumming helps you. Forming a new fun habit on a daily basis can help your body, mind and life all around.