Often when I talk to a comeback player, they complain about their lack of time to practice with having a day job, a home to take care of and family time. This can lead to frustration and discouragement. I have some ideas on this. I'm referring to those that have perhaps not touched the horn in years and want to be able to get back into some kind of playing shape before they join an ensemble or play duets with someone. It can be a humbling experience to rebuild your skills, but you wouldn't start off with a simple walking exercise program by attempting to run a marathon.

To get the maximum value out of limited practice time you need to be able to break up the practice time into much smaller practice sessions. It's just like scheduling physical exercise. If possible, do a simple warm-up when you get up in the morning before going to work. Just 10 minutes is good. If at lunch you can do another 10 minutes which could be to work on another aspect of your playing. Then in the evening try to do 15 minutes. To a comeback player, it's better to do 30-35 minutes a day spread out like this than try to do 30 minutes all at once. It takes time to get your chops back and it should be done at a steady pace so you don't get into causing yourself tension when you play.

This I believe will not only increase the rate of your progress but make the journey much more managable and enjoyable.