3 Benefits Of Playing The Guitar

Have you always wanted to learn to play the guitar? While you may never become the next Jimi Hendrix or Eric Clapton, it is still well worth your time to take private guitar lessons. Here are three benefits that playing the guitar has to offer.

1. Playing the Guitar Improves Mental Health

Many people would agree that sitting down by yourself and strumming strings on a guitar can help you feel more relaxed. As you relax, you will feel less anxious and the worries of the world will simply disappear. Besides helping you feel relaxed and less anxious, strumming a guitar can improve your mental health in other ways. Playing the guitar is a great way to express your feelings.

When you express your feelings and emotions, it allows you to better connect with yourself and others. Expressing emotions helps to reduce symptoms of depression. One more way playing the guitar improves your mental health is that it boosts your self-esteem and increases your confidence. You might even discover new skills, such as songwriting, which can also help you express your feelings and increase your confidence.

2. Playing the Guitar Is a Great Way to Make Friends

Even though you are taking private guitar lessons, having the ability to play allows you to meet others with the same musical interests. Other guitarists might invite you to jam with them, or if you get really good, you might even decide to join a band. You'll never know the kinds of friends you'll make when you learn to play the guitar.

According to the Mayo Clinic, friendships are important because they help to enrich your life. Friendships can even improve your health. Having good friends increases your sense of belonging as well as decreases your chances of forming unhealthy lifestyle habits. Good friends will help you combat loneliness and help you cope with traumas that you might face throughout your lifetime.

3. Playing the Guitar Is Good For Your Physical Body

Strumming a guitar with one hand and playing various chords with the other, all while reading music, is a great way to improve your hand-eye coordination. Improved hand-eye coordination can help you process information more quickly, plus you will become a better reader.

Other benefits your physical body will receive from playing the guitar are improved flexibility in your fingers and stronger wrists and shoulder blades. Standing and playing the guitar energizes your body and burns calories. In fact, playing the guitar while moving around can burn over 200 calories an hour.

If you want to learn the guitar, contact a local instructor that offers private guitar lessons.