Discover Your Performance Conditioning Score

Chris DraperDrummer @ Hamilton, London West EndFunctional Strength & Performance SpecialistAuthor of The Inner Athlete: A Musician’s Guide To Performance Conditioning

Get your score

The Three Pillars of Performance Conditioning

Your ScoreExample results
Capacity0%
 
Recovery0%
 
Mindset0%
 

Members include musicians affiliated with

Mariah CareyHamiltonPulpQueens of the Stone AgeLondon Symphony OrchestraMamma MiaElton JohnPhilharmonia OrchestraGary BarlowThe Lion KingRod StewartRoyal Philharmonic OrchestraPaloma FaithBack To The FutureHans ZimmerHallé OrchestraJess GlynneOperation MincemeatKatie MeluaTitaniqueSir Cliff RichardMichael BubléWaitressGeorge EzraBBC Concert OrchestraJoss StoneJersey BoysJohn LegendBBC Symphony OrchestraAlexandra BurkeWicked!Ed SheeranBook of MormonEllie GouldingHairsprayBrandi CarlileSeal
“Chris has developed a revolutionary style of training that I believe is absolutely necessary for us musicians!”
Lucy LandymorePerformance Conditioning Training Club member · Percussion/Drums · Solo Artist · Hans Zimmer

Everyone’s Good. So What Separates You?

In sport, it’s widely understood that technique sits on top of physiological and psychological foundations. As musicians, we’re never taught that.

Instead, we rely on talent and practice.

Up to a point, traditional wisdom works. But once you can functionally play everything you need to, practice stops paying off the way it used to, and the game becomes about a new set of skills: capacity (what your body can handle), recovery (how well you bounce back between shows) and mindset (how you think and perform under pressure).

It’s not so much about hours in the practice room and more about mastering your physiology. None of it is a gift. All of it is trainable.

So, where do you stand?

Get your score

What You Get

18 questions on the Three Pillars of Performance Conditioning. In under three minutes you’ll have your personalised results to help you play better, feel good and stay healthy as a professional musician. Plus a free digital copy of The Inner Athlete: A Musician’s Guide to Performance Conditioning.

The Inner Athlete: A Musician's Guide to Performance Conditioning, by Chris Draper

5.0 out of 5 on Amazon

Free when you finish the quiz · normally £7.49 on Kindle

“The opening chapter is worth the price of the book alone.”
Gordy MarshallDrums · The Moody Blues · Five-star Amazon review
“This is a must-have for all musicians, regardless of age! I wish I’d had it sooner.”
Five-star Amazon reviewUK
“…have already seen results in a matter of weeks.”
Five-star Amazon reviewUK

How It Works

The questions are drawn from The Inner Athlete and the sports science research behind it.

  1. Answer 18 questions.About two and a half minutes.
  2. See your score across the Three Pillars.Capacity, Recovery and Mindset.
  3. Get your results, plus the book in your inbox.Free, straight after you finish.
Chris Draper

Hi, I’m Chris

Though many who know me just call me “Draper”.

By night, I’m a drummer. I started out as a jazz musician, and these days I play drums on Hamilton in London’s West End.

By day, I’m a functional strength and performance specialist. Back in 2023 I acquired two brain injuries. To keep myself playing through the recovery, I started training in a really specific way, and found I ended up getting better at the drums as a result. I had more control. I became more consistent. Long-standing niggles evaporated.

I formalised it with qualifications, and since then I’ve worked with solo artists and musicians affiliated with large commercial acts, as well as West End shows and major orchestras. I’ve even written a book on it: The Inner Athlete.

It turns out most of us aren’t held back by our technique.

We’re held back by our physiology, and the only way to get on top of that is to start treating yourself as an athlete in your own right.

What Members Say

“I’d tried several trainers looking for injury prevention for my career before I found this level of knowledge. It’s an injury-saver and a career-saver.”
Lucy LandymorePerformance Conditioning Training Club member · Percussion/Drums · Solo Artist · Hans Zimmer
“I feel like I’m carrying myself better, and it’s already transferred into playing my instrument in a more controlled, relaxed way.”
Rich JonesViola, Keys · Strings MD for Pulp
“Without this support I’m not sure I’d be able to do the work I do today.”
Adam BloorDrums · Hamilton International Tour
“Working with Chris and his physio feels like being a Premier League footballer with a full-stack, integrated performance team who actually talk to each other.”
Lewis JenkinsDrums · West End · Operation Mincemeat
“I feel far greater individual muscle control, even down to each finger. And I’ve put on a kilo of muscle in my first month.”
Chris GuardKeys · West End · Mamma Mia
“It felt like 1-1 training. Targeted workouts rather than hours in the gym, and long-standing niggles finally identified and addressed structurally.”
Dan WildDrums · Operation Mincemeat · UK Tour
“I’ve got better posture, even day to day. I’ve always envied ballet dancers’ posture, and I’m amazed how quickly I noticed a difference.”
Robert JaneDrums · Waitress UK Tour
“I’ve made more progress over the last year than I did in the previous five. And the improvements in how I navigate life have been invaluable.”
EdDrums
“Within this first month I’ve already noticed an improved mind-body connection on my instrument, with decreased ‘lag’ between my thoughts and putting them into action on the drum kit.”
EdDrums
“Chris explains high-level, complex concepts in digestible bites and quickly spots your weak points. His way of looking at the body and brain holistically makes so much sense.”
AaronDrums
“Every exercise Chris curates adds value to my daily life and function, as well as to my work as a musician.”
AaronDrums

Discover Your Performance Conditioning Score

Play better, feel good, and be healthy as a professional musician.

Enter your details to start the quiz

Enter your details to start the quiz