amtrpt

Hi Jimi,
Sorry for the long delay.

I think that it's a great idea to practice off the horn. I do several things that don't involve the trumpet. Here are a few of them.

If I have to play something that has a lot of fast multiple tounging I will spend a lot of time working on my tounging away from the trumpet. I work on improving speed and also where I want my tounge placement to be. One other benifit is that I increase my tounging endurance so that I am able to multiple tounge for longer.

I also like to use wind patterns, especially when I am coming into a difficult passage that would cause me to have too much tension in my body. Blowing through a phrase without the resistance of the trumpet is helpful to get a good feel for what you are going to play and how you should play it.

Another way that I practice away from the horn is rhythm practice so that I am not pounding away at my face while learning rhythms.

And lastly I really like to sing although I'm not particularly good at it. Singing allows me to work on phrasing, again without tiring myself out. It also lets me work on ear training while I'm at it.

Hope that is helpful.

Best,
Andrew