How to maintain your vocal health

Incorporating healthy speech in your singing

Your speaking voice directly affects your singing By taking good care of your voice while speaking, you ensure better vocal health. Take heed of the following tips for healthier speaking habits: Using full volume when you need to be heard (at sports events, parties, or clubs), but not screaming. Anytime you speak, use a reasonable volume, not a loud one. Noticing the articulation as you speak to prevent tension – not speaking with tension, such as jaw tension or tongue tension. Applying your knowledge of breathing while talking on the phone and avoid talking on the phone until your voice hurts due to lack of breath support.

Getting the skinny on weight

It’s not a problem for everyone, but being too lean may lead to problems with stamina while singing and sustaining higher pitches. To improve your stamina, make sure you’re giving your body the nourishment it needs. Many singers wait until late in the day to eat, but your body needs something to get it started. Try to get yourself into a routine where you eat something early in the day so you don’t find yourself snacking late at night because your body feels hungry.

Keep Yourself Properly Hydrated

The human body is composed of 50% to 60% water. The lungs need water to keep tissues moving easily. Muscle tissue is made up of 75% water. Therefore, keeping your body properly hydrated helps your singing voice.

Many people find water to be boring to drink. However, other liquids can help you balance your hydration levels as long as you remember that sugar content in drinks won’t you’re your waistline and caffeine in beverages can dry you out. Because caffeine is diuretic, which means that it makes your body get rid of water, you can’t rely on that morning cup of coffee to keep your voice in good working order.

Get Plenty of Shut-Eye

Not getting enough sleep doesn’t give the tissue in your throat enough time to heal. Depriving yourself of sleep only makes your voice feel sluggish. You have to give your voice a chance to regenerate and recoup at night. Try getting more sleep for a few nights and see if it makes a difference in your singing.

Proper Nourishment is Critical

You should always eat a balanced diet. Adhering to the guidelines of basic nutrition means your getting the right amounts of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, dairy products, and meats. A balanced diet also includes the proper amounts of fats, carbohydrates, and protein You may find that singing requires more energy, which means adding more protein to your diet to enhance your body’s ability to sustain you through long rehearsals.

Prevention of Sore Throat or Infection

Keeping a few basic remedies on hand can make a huge difference for the times you feel a bit of a tickly coming on. My favorite is a bottle of nasal saline spray, which is just salt and water. By spraying the salt water up your nose, you can wash out germs that are lingering waiting to attack your immune system.

You can also gargle with warm salt water. Adding a few teaspoons of salt to a half cup of warm water and then gargling helps wash away any germs that can lodge in the back of your mouth. Simply mix about a half cup of warm water with a few teaspoons of salt and gargle, washing away germs that are lodged in the back of your mouth. If you are prone to infections around your tonsils, you will likely discover that saltwater is one of your best friends. If you want to stop canker sores in their tracks, just swish the saltwater around in your mouth.

I hope this info was helpful to you. To learn to sing like a star and discover more about maintaining the best posssible vocal health, I recommend checking out the Sing With Freedom vocal training program from Per Bristow.