Exercising help?

Will exercising help my clarinet playing? I'd rather spend the time practicing?

• Will exercising help my clarinet playing? I'd rather spend the time practicing, but I think I should be getting some exercise. I've learned that the average "good" music student practices about 24 hours/week. I play about 30 to give myself an advantage over them. So, if I begin exercising (running, biking, etc...) it's going to cut down on my practice time and decrease the amount of the advantage I'm trying to have. I feel like I should be exercising: I've put on weight, my clothess aren't fitting very well and I'm sluggish, but I've never played this well before either. I'm at the top of my game, playing-wise, and I keep getting better. What should I do?

• Answer:

  that sounds like a good idea to me. i think i should excercise more too... lol the exercise will not only help your confidence and health, but will also help your stamina when playing, and your breath control.