Aerobic Exercise as a Warm-Up for Singing Aerodynamic Changes

20 October 2024 03:30 PM - By Josh

Question: The team set out to test if aerobic exercise could be used as a vocal warm-up.

Results: Sound pressure levels (SPL) were maintained or increased for all 17 participants. No statistically relevant differences in vocal efficiency were found post-aerobic exercise, the researchers attribute this to a significant standard deviation, and a larger sample is likely required for statistical significance.

Thoughts: An increase in SPL could be beneficial in some circumstances but not all. An increase in SPL is likely beneficial in most classical or acoustics scenarios; when amplification is present the application will become more nuanced. There is a tendency to explore vocal warm-ups as identical or nearly identical to athletic warm-ups which despite the general agreement of the importance of warming up the scientific research continues to lack statistically significant evidence to support it.

Interesting References: There is a reference in the introduction that I am curious to get my hands on: Barr S. Singing warm-ups: physiology, psychology, or placebo? Logoped Phoniatr Vocol. 2009;34:142-144. McHenry and Evans cite Barr suggesting that the physiological benefits of warm-ups may be more crucial for less experienced singers, whereas for more experienced singers it is more about the psychological benefits. There is a body of research on the benefits of rituals in athletic performance which could explain the benefits to experienced singers.

Reference: McHenry, M., & Evans, J. (2016). Aerobic Exercise as a Warm-Up for Singing: Aerodynamic Changes. Journal of voice : official journal of the Voice Foundation, 30(6), 693–697. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvoice.2015.08.011

Josh

Josh

Founder/Teacher