Play Life Loudly
Abby Halpin, DPT
Physical therapist and coach Abby Halpin talks all things movement, health, and fitness for musicians and performers. Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians to guide them in feeling and performing their best! You can find more info about Abby at www.forteperformancept.com.
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Top 10 Play Life Loudly Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Play Life Loudly episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Play Life Loudly for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Play Life Loudly episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Episode 9: Moldy Flare-ups and Vulnerability Hangovers
Play Life Loudly
04/26/22 • 14 min
Abby talks about her own experience with chronic pain and flare-ups due to mold exposure.
Main points:
1. You deserve care from someone who listens, does not interrupt, believes you, and makes a plan with you.
2. Our brains say a lot of conflicting things when we hurt.
3. You are not alone in your pain experience.
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
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Instagram
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Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Episode 11: How to train exhalation
Play Life Loudly
06/08/22 • 7 min
Abby talks about what to do if you're stuck in a state of over-inflation. She talks about the impacts of breathing patterns on musicianship and singing and how to train your exhalation to change patterns.
Key Points:
1. Quick review of hyperinflation, but make sure you listen to Episode 10 first!
2. The reasons for training exhalation for musicians
3. Three example exercises to improve exhalation range of motion for singing and playing music.
4. Practice your instrument or vocalize in those positions
5. Reach out with questions!
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Episode 12: General Updates
Play Life Loudly
06/20/22 • 6 min
Just wanted to update you on what's coming up. Abby is attending the 57th National Conference for the National Association of Teachers and Singing (NATS). She and her dear friend and colleague Liz Frazer, aka The Salty Voice Teacher, will be leading a demonstration and discussion about how Physical therapists and voice teachers can partner up and break all the posture and breathing rules.
Abby is also looking forward to chatting with Christine Schneider on her podcast, The Visceral Voice, about in-network vs. out-of-network care for singers.
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Episode 16: Perfect Piano Posture Problems
Play Life Loudly
10/28/22 • 12 min
Abby talks about the concept of "good posture" for pianists, a review of the workshop she led for the Vermont Music Teachers Association last weekend.
Major takeaways:
- There is no such thing as good or bad posture. Instilling that idea only makes a musician have to choose a body position and stick with it all the time in order to be good.
- Problems arise from a lack of variety more than the actual body position itself.
- Muscles are happiest when they are in their middle range, so whatever feels easiest, is probably right.
- Whenever talking about posture, use sensation cues rather than action cues whenever possible to avoid a rigid strategy
- Encourage the use of body position as a means of communication. It will allow for the variety the body needs to stay healthy at the piano for longer.
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Piano teachers: Do you hurt while you teach?
Play Life Loudly
05/23/23 • 7 min
Abby talks about simple strategies piano teachers can use to reduce discomfort while teaching students from an article she wrote for the Vermont Music Teachers Association's newsletter.
Major takeaways:
- Over 42% of pianists report pain, discomfort, and injury.
- Increased time spent playing piano, years of experience, and regularity contribute to higher reports of pain.
- Make your teaching set-up (aka ergonomics) do more work for you.
- Change up what you're asking of your body while you teach.
- Individualize your day of teaching based on your body's (and brain's) needs.
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Episode 18: How to Write your Workout Schedule
Play Life Loudly
09/04/24 • 8 min
The hardest part of anything is getting started. Let's discuss how to make a doable and forgiving plan to get started.
7 Steps to Starting Your Workouts:
1. Reflect on what has worked or not worked before this
2. Set your duration: How long of a workout can you reasonably expect for yourself right now?
3. Set your frequency: How many days a week would you like to plan on?
4. Determine your non-negotiables: Which days are "nos" and which are "yesses"?
5. Write down the schedule somewhere.
6. Pick a "push it" and a "light" day weekly.
7. Track how you're feeling.
Advice:
Start when you get the nudge to start. Don't wait until everything is "ready".
Your schedule is a scaffolding. Be ok changing the plans.
Build self-trust by delivering on your promises to yourself.
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Episode 3: How does breathing work, for real though?
Play Life Loudly
03/15/22 • 10 min
Let's break down the basic anatomy and physiology of breathing as it pertains to making music and staying alive. Abby gives a few updates on her own voice lesson progress.
Main points:
1. Oxygen in, CO2 out.
2. Air moves toward areas where there is less of it. Once you breathe in, the air wants to go back out and vice versa.
3. Ribs in/diaphragm up = exhalation.
4. Ribs out/diaphragm down = inhalation.
5. Your guts have to be able to slide up and down while diaphragm and pelvic floor muscles dome up and down together as you breathe. Gross.
6. You need to be able to breathe easily no matter what body position you're in.
7. Common issues seen in musicians are associated with postural patterns and what your instruments have trained you to be good at.
Questions? Please ask them! Would love to hear from you!
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Episode 5: How to Build a Starter Strength Workout
Play Life Loudly
03/29/22 • 7 min
Giving all the info you need to build a well-rounded strength workout for beginners.
Main Points:
1. Go listen to Episode 4 first if you haven't.
2. Five main movements to include in every workout.
3. Other considerations, such as direction of movement, body regions, and how many body parts are moving at once.
4. A summary of Fortissimo and how we can work together to get you started.
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Episode 15: Rest and Recovery
Play Life Loudly
08/25/22 • 14 min
Being strategic and intentional about rest and recovery is imperative for a long, happy life of music-making.
Topics Covered:
1. The reasons singers and instrumentalists need rest.
2. Active vs passive recovery.3. Strategies for scheduling rest while still working toward your music goals.
4. Strategies for quick recovery between takes or rehearsals.
5. How recovery looks different from person to person.
6. How recovery can feel like something you're adding into your routine rather than taking away from it.
Other episodes to listen to related to this one:
1. Why Do Injuries Happen?
2. How to Build a Starter Strength Routine
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
Episode 13: NATS Workshop Review
Play Life Loudly
07/19/22 • 13 min
Abby Halpin reviews the Disobedient Singing discussion she and Liz Frazer (aka the Salty Voice Teacher) led at the NATS (National Association of Teachers of Singing) conference.
She takes you through step-by-step the demonstration they did with singer and voice teacher Anna Diemer as well as their upcoming workshop for voice teachers in August.
Abby is the owner of Forte Performance & Physical Therapy, where she works with musicians, artists, and performers to help them feel and sound their best.
Website
Instagram
Facebook
Disclaimer: This podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not to be taken as medical advice.
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FAQ
How many episodes does Play Life Loudly have?
Play Life Loudly currently has 19 episodes available.
What topics does Play Life Loudly cover?
The podcast is about Physical Therapy, Music, Fitness, Podcasts, Piano, Health, Arts, Coaching and Performing Arts.
What is the most popular episode on Play Life Loudly?
The episode title 'Piano teachers: Do you hurt while you teach?' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Play Life Loudly?
The average episode length on Play Life Loudly is 15 minutes.
How often are episodes of Play Life Loudly released?
Episodes of Play Life Loudly are typically released every 12 days, 18 hours.
When was the first episode of Play Life Loudly?
The first episode of Play Life Loudly was released on Mar 3, 2022.
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