Howdy! I’m very excited about this course. First picked up an acoustic about a decade ago, but, life stuff, and didn’t pick up another for several years until about three years ago when I picked it all back up with an electric. After having kids, (including identical triplets girls that will be 1 next week!) I want to set an example and encourage their own love of music. My girls love my play despite how out of rhythm I tend to be. My boy bangs away at his uke. I only have small increments of time, but I make the most of it. I still feel like a beginner, though, after struggling with some significant pain in my right shoulder and numbness in my arm. So, I’ve really had to adopt a modified way of holding the guitar that relies on more of a classical position. I know it’s not cool, but it keeps me healthy and engaged with the guitar. I’m really hoping this course will help me play confidently and pain free for years to come. I know it will be a life-long endeavor, but I feel like I should be better than I am after three years. My guitar, my hold, my strumming, has rarely felt consistently confident or comfortable. And I just want to say how much I love this positive, supportive community that pays it forward in so many ways. Thank you so much Justin, your staff and all of the folks on the forums!
I have this problem many times. What sort of adjustments does one look to make?
Are you tilting your guitar body towards you so that you can look down and see the frets / fret markers etc. Moving it away from a vertical plane? That can be one major cause of snagging the pick on an upstrum.
Thanks so much for responding! I don’t tilt it much at all, certainly not to look at the frets, etc. I’ve worked hard to avoid looking down as a primary means to stay healthy in terms of posture. Could a slight tilt still be problematic?
Hello all! I’m very excited about this course. I have been through level 1 and 2 and am just starting level 3, but I have always felt my strumming is inconsistent. It’s very confusing to me because I have musical ability. I have played sax and sang for over 40 years, but this thing is getting me.
I am 51 live in Arkansas, USA and have been playing about 9 mos. I practice every day, but I am very excited to improve this portion of my playing.
Thanks for listening to an old dude rant lol.
Hi. I started playing acoustic guitar more than a year ago and find the strumming foundations course very valuable. At first, it seems so simple but it takes practice to play on the beat and the approach and exercices in this course are great. Thanks. Very useful and lots of fun.
Just invested in the strumming foundations course after first picking up the guitar seriously a few years back. I’ve got into the habit of strumming without a pick, using my index finger to lightly brush the strings to keep the noise down, probably due to a lack of confidence. Learning to use a pick for strumming has been my first major challenge during the course but I’m enjoying the metronome challenges, this has now become a daily practice routine. I’m still not entirely sure I’m holding the pick as Justin has demonstrated, my index finger appears to be curled in further and not pointing down towards the tip of the pick, I’ve noticed that my index finger often hits the strings before the pick and not entirely sure if this is a bad habit I need to get out of. Any advice is greatly appreciated.
YO fellow guitarists! Looking forward to this course. I have been playing guitar on and off for so many years but never made it through the intermediate level. I am hoping to break the barrier as a part of the Class of 2023 
. Keep rocking everyone!
Hi everyone, I have a few questions…
- Has this course helped you so far and if so how?
- Does it offer anything more than the beginners course modules?
- Do you feel it is value for money?
I ask because money is tight as it is for many people and will help potential customers to make the right choice.
Hi Dave, I’ve been working through the foundations course. It has indeed helped me! It’s not so much that there is content I wasn’t familiar with, but it is presented in more depth. It has caused me to spend longer on various practices - literally up to a week on things I thought I had down. It helps me look more closely at what I’m doing, and make adjustments. (Some work, some don’t!) For me it’s definitely worth the price - it costs about as much as a 30 minute lesson here where I live. Also, I think you can request a refund within a reasonable amount of time (30 days?) if you don’t like it.
at the risk if sounding like a nitwit, what does the sos mean in strumming sos? 
Hello Ray,
SOS is an old maritime distress call meaning “Save Our Souls” thus requiring urgent assistance. Obviously this insn’t meant to be so dramatic.
Hi, I’m Mark, I’m 55 and I’ve been working through the beginners course for a couple of months (just about to hit the F chord next week).
Many years ago in my teens I played bass in a band and rhythm was always pretty easy playing along with a decent drummer. I was never much of a musician but I picked up a few things from my (much more talented) band mates which helped. What has surprised me with taking up guitar is that whilst my picking and dexterity is reasonably good for a beginner I now cannot keep time to save my life. This was a bit of a surprise to discover so my aim with this course is to really try and nail the fundamentals of playing in time. Fingers crossed it works!
Taught myself guitar back when I was 18. Learned some picking, never strumming, though. Played here and there, then the past 10 years, very little. So picked up a Taylor, and want to finally (at the age of 68) actually study the guitar. Study, practice, devote time. Never have felt comfortable with strumming. I know it’s a matter of the right techniques, and practice – and teaching. So … here goes! Feel fortunate to come across Justin. He’s quite the cool soul, obviously made a positive difference in many thousands of lives. It’s funny when people sort of balk at the price of some courses. $39 (current price, I think) is less than the cost of sitting with someone for an hour. Excited to get better at this stuff!
For me… I always find that my first finger rubs over the strings before the pick hits them on the down strums… and I have tried to avoid this… the problem is… if i slide my first finger back slightly i lose control of the pick or it then sticks too far out from under my thumb and it makes a terrible clicking sound… anyone else have this? or is it normal ?
Does anyone know the brand/model of guitar Justin is using in this course?
I am just wondering if the Strumming Foundations Course is the same as the one that comes with the App. I have gone through the one on the App and it looks nearly the same as the Strumming Foundations Course, just maybe missing a couple of modules such as what to practice.
I am planning on continuing with Strumming Dynamics and Finger Strumming and would like to know if I should purchase the complete bundle or just Dynamics and Finger Strumming.
Tony
I’m going to invest in the Strumming SOS bundle today. I’ve completed Grade 1 of lessons and Grade 1 of Practical Music Theory. I’m ready to progress to Grade 2 EXCEPT my rhythm and timing aren’t good enough. I struggle keeping a consistent rhythm in time with the beat. I tend to get too fast. I struggle to hear the drums when I’m playing. I need a better internal metronome. Anyway, it seems like investing in Strumming SOS is a good idea to strengthen my guitar foundation.
Hello, I am in the strumming course. Need to get practice in the rhythm aspect of playing. Noticed I sometimes lose the beat. I have a couple questions for anyone…1. The hand holding the pick, should the hand be sort of in a fist or open with finger spread out…all the time using the thumb and pointer finger to hold the pick??? Seems that Justin prefers the fist. 2. Would a Beat Buddy pedal do as well as a metranome?
thanks to all replies. Paul Miller