Healthy Speech Can Improve Your Singing
Your speaking voice directly affects your singing By taking good care of your voice while speaking, you ensure better vocal health. Try making your speaking habits more healthy by: Talk at full volume when you want to be heard, but don’t scream. Anytime you speak, use a reasonable volume, not a loud one. Speak with no tension, for example in the tongue or jaw – pay attention to articulation to prevent tension. Use your knowledge of breathing and apply it while using the telephone. Avoid talking until your voice hurts from lack of breath.
You are What You Eat
Though it may not be your personal issue, a body that is too lean may have trouble finding the stamina to sing and sustain the higher pitches. Be sure to give your body the nourishment it requires to increase your stamina. 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.
Keeping yourself hydrated
Your body is 50% to 65% water. The lungs need water to keep tissues moving easily. Muscle tissue is made up of 75% water. This means that your singing voice works better when your body is hydrated properly.
Many people find water to be boring to drink. You can drink other liquids to keep yourself hydrated, but remember that drinks that are high in sugar won’t help your waistline and caffeine can really 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
When you don’t get enough sleep, your throat tissue has no time to heal. If you continually deprive yourself of sleep, you voice begins to feel sluggish. You have to give your voice a chance to regenerate and recoup at night. Allow yourself to sleep more for a few nights in a row and see the difference it can make in your singing.
Be Sure You’re Well Nourished
You should always eat a balanced diet. Following guidelines of basic nutrition means getting a balanced amount of whole grains, fruits and vegetables, meats and dairy products. You should also ensure that your getting the right amounts of fats, protein, and carbohydrates. 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.
Prevent Infections and Sore Throat
It can make a big difference if you keep just a few simple remedies hand for the times you feel a tickle coming on. My favorite is a bottle of nasal saline spray, which is just salt and water. You can wash out any germs that may be lingering, waiting to make an attack on your immune system by spraying the solution up your nose.
It also helps to 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 have frequent infections around your tonsils, you may find 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 these vocal health tips were helpful to you. If you’d like more information about vocal health and learning to sing I recommend checking out Singing Success. Singing Success is a world famous home study singing course created by Nashville singing coach Brett Manning.
