Originally posted by snimbkar
a lot of people try to rush their speed Thresh hold, as they get impatient.

Playing guitar is a lot like playing golf in that the movements you are making are not natural movements that the body is used to. This is one of the reasons why a golf swing is so difficult to master, there are a 100 things you must do correctly, and your body is 'fighting' you subconsciously.

This is where the concept of muscle memory comes into play. you gain speed because your muscles have learned the movements so well that they are second nature...and be aware, muscle memory can take a long time. but the payoff is worth it. Yngwie, Paul Gilbert, DiMeola, did not wake up one day with the ability to shred..it took them thousands of hours of practice to develop their skill.

play scales, licks at a comfortable mistake-free tempo , as a good rule of thumb, make sure you can play a scale over and over without stopping, cleanly and consistently for , say, one minute.. then increase the tempo by one setting and repeat the exercise.

Don't cheat!!!! Go back a setting if you make even the slightest mistake!!! or you are merely deceiving yourself. Find that tempo where you made a mistake and mark it down as your "goal" then go back to the setting where you can play cleanly and stay there for a week or two. then try to play at your goal tempo...I bet you'll find that you can do it.

for years I cheated myself by playing a scale at an ultra high tempo, but only later did i realize that I could not do it cleanly every time...this was very distressing to me....but I forced myself to go back and work on stuff at slower tempos...it was like I was learning all over again! it was very depressing but I know that doing things correctly is a far better payoff...

Another thing is to be aware of tension, monitor where and when you are tensing up. Is it when you cross strings? Pick the higher strings? when ascending or descending? anticipate the areas where you tense and when you get to that area..say to yourself in your head (or out loud) "R E L A X"...you'll be amazed at how your body listens to you.

Best of luck!!

Very good advice. Muscle memory is a key aspect of guitar playing. That's why I always suggest playing scales while doing something else like watching TV, or reading something..because then you get used to playing that scale or lick subconsciously and when you go back to actually play it, it becomes very easy.