WELCOME TO BASIC TRAINING!

Here's the whole philosophy behind Beginner's Bootcamp: Rhythm Guitar -

This is bench pressing, not ballet. 

What is that supposed to mean? Well, think about it. If you've ever seen a male ballet dancer on stage, they've got to be pretty damn strong to do a lot of that stuff: picking up the women, jumping around with them while holding them over their heads, etc. 

In order to be able to do that stuff, they're probably in the gym a lot, doing all sorts of weight training. It's all that behind-the-scenes work, the exercising and muscle building, that allows them to hit the stage and perform the art of ballet. So, by saying that this program is bench pressing, and not ballet, it means that we're going to be hitting the core physical skills necessary for playing cool Rhythm Guitar songs. 

These exercises are the "bench pressing" you need to do behind the scenes - they're nothing flashy to look at, many don't sound "musical", but as a Beginner, they'll make you a stronger player. 

TIME AND PRACTICING 

Let's get real here: you might not have the time to practice this stuff every day during these four weeks. It's a common issue, and it's okay. Allotting enough time for practice is something that can be difficult for me as well. 

Life is busy, and that's why there aren't any little clock pictures next to each exercise saying "Play for 20 Minutes", or whatever. That's just not realistic. Some days you'll find yourself practicing a lot, and some days you'll simply have less time. 

Don't set up an expectation that every day you must do "X" amount of hours - because then you'll freak out and go "I didn't practice those two exercises for 10 minutes today! Now I'm behind on everything! I have to cram more in tomorrow!" Who needs that kind of stress? Certainly not you, right? This course isn't going anywhere, and it's designed for you to be able to revisit at any time in the future. 

That being said, there is a simple recommended timeline built into the course. While not absolutely necessary to follow, it's pretty reasonable, and gives you some flexibility: 

Aim for 40 minutes a day, 4 days per week. 

That way, you'll get in approximately 10 minutes of focused practiced with each exercise. Plus, you'll have three days of "wiggle room” each week, in case you can't get a practice session in every day. 

Now, let's get to it!