We all know that singing is a fun activity and something that we can do alone or with others, but there are also many health benefits. Whether you sing for fun or profit, on a stage or in your car, you too can enjoy these benefits and lead a healthy and happy life. Let’s look at a few of the many positive effects that singing can have on your health.
Improves Breathing
Proper singing technique requires the in-depth study of breathing for singing, both inhaling and exhaling. But even if you don’t know how it works you can improve your breathing just by singing regularly. You know that to sing long lines of lyrics or to hold that high note when you are singing in the shower you will need a lot of air. You may not think about it while you do it but your body is trying to get the air you need because your brain knows what is going to come out of your mouth. So let you body do what it needs to do and have fun while you sing. You may even find yourself out of breath at certain times. This is good as it shows you are getting a workout for your lungs.
Physical Activity
Singing is more than just letting air come out of your mouth in the form of words. It involves at least five major muscle groups. That’s right, there are up to five muscle groups in the chest, back and stomach that are involved every time you sing. If you sing for 30 minutes you are actually getting a physical workout for your entire torso. You may not be as sore as you are after a workout at the gym, but you can be sure those muscles are being used and pushed in a way that exceeds their normal daily use.
Relieve Stress
Did you ever notice that when you start singing you forget about everything else? You kind of have to do so in order to remember the words and try to sing the correct note for every word. This is a wonderful benefit of singing since you can forget all of you troubles for a while. Combined with the increased oxygen intake from extra breathing and the physical workout and you have a great stress reliever. The best part is that you don’t have to take any pills and you can use singing anytime you like. It is always there for you to help cast your troubles aside.
Improves Posture
Proper singing technique also requires good posture. This opens up the throat, allows the lungs to fully expand and facilitates the muscle movements necessary for proper breathing. Good posture is helpful for the body in many other ways as well, so when employing proper posture for singing we train the body to stand correctly at other times as well.
This list highlights just some of the potential health benefits of singing. There are many more that you will discover as you sing for fun or for an audience. If you take in-studio or online voice lessons you will get the training you need to help you maximize the physical benefits of singing. So go ahead and belt out those tunes to improve your health while you have a great time!