Before giving talks, introducing ourselves to someone important, there is a detail that often goes unnoticed: the need to take care of our voice so that it does not betray us.

Just as we warm up our muscles before playing sport, it is essential to treat our vocal cords with the care they deserve and prepare those small muscles for the work they have to do. Of course, singing in the shower is an excellent way to warm up, but maybe you can also use some of these others that I explain below in case, before going on stage or giving that lecture, you do not have access to it.

The aim is, through a good use of our voice, to avoid vocal overload and fatigue to prevent injuries such as aphonia , vocal cord polyps, etc… while finding our own precious voice and providing it with longevity.

Exercises to take care of the voice

Although some people have unique vocal cord vibration patterns that make them more suitable for performance, imitation or song (as they move faster and close up more strongly than usual), we can and should take care of the voice and develop it to its optimum . In addition to the exercises that I explain below, protecting the neck from the cold, drinking warm beverages (especially ginger tea or tea of the very best) and avoiding alcohol and tobacco before using the voice for a long time are very important pieces of advice.

These exercises came from my apprenticeship as a soprano, helped me and still do every day. Not only do they improve the voice… they also relax and increase concentration. Moreover, they are quite discreet, so they can be done at any time without attracting attention. For example, before entering a class, give a lecture…

1. Stretches

With our feet apart, aligned at the height of our hips, and knees slightly bent, we direct the coccyx forward and raise our arms to the ceiling, grabbing a wrist with the other hand and pulling it up. We repeat, changing hands. About three times per hand will be enough to stretch the intercostal muscles and help the diaphragm to relax .

Now we massage our neck, trapezium area and shoulders to soften the muscles. We pass the arm over the head and place the palm of the hand over the ear, gently pulling the head, stretching all the muscles well. We can intensify it by stretching the opposite hand towards the floor.

Then we rest our chin on one shoulder and rotate our head downwards with the chin always touching the body to the other shoulder and come back always rotating downwards.

2. Facial relaxation

With the tongue, we press the walls of the mouth as long and hard as we can. Then we pinch our cheekbones and cheeks, the area of the ciliary arch, pull our ears… and press again with our tongue. You will notice that now the tongue is able to reach much further with less effort. Repeat two or three times. Once we have warmed it up, tongue out, stretch down and forward, wait 15 seconds and relax inside.

If it bothers you (at the base, not on the braces) repeat until it no longer bothers you. Same for the sides: tongue out, stretch down and right side, hold for 15 seconds and relax inside. Same for the left side. Repeat until it doesn’t bother.

3. Warming the diaphragm

Feet separated at hip level, coccyx advanced, knees slightly bent, breathe in full and expels the air with great pressure through the mouth almost closed , emitting sound F while you control with your hands the amount of air emitted from the abdomen. With practice it is very easy and it helps a lot to learn how to manage the air we use when speaking. This is one of the most useful exercises for taking care of your voice.

4. Warming up the vocal cords

With the lips in the shape of a duck’s beak, loose, the throat open and the head inclined with the chin hitting the chest, he inhales through the nose without nasal noise and exhales through the mouth sonorously imitating a horse and making the lips vibrate with it. Repeat 5 times.

Place your incisors over your lower lip and make a soft sound by exhaling a lot of air, imitating the buzzing of a bee with the letter V. Do it another 5 times.

Chewing with vertical jaw movements, tilt the head down and add the vowel O, repeating MO, MO, MO. 5 times.

5. Placing the voice

To do this, in the “singing” (or speaking) position you already know: legs spread feet at hip level, coccyx forward, knees slightly bent, chin down to the chest and say a sentence. The voice must resonate on the upper palate and vibrate on the incisors . Repeat the sentence until you are sure that your voice is in that position, and you can even rehearse the speech, text or lesson you are about to give.