Last Updated on April 26, 2024 by Sarah Leeves

As a group exercise instructor, you’ll be keeping your mind and body healthy.

From the nutrition choices you make to your go-to recovery methods, you’ll be an expert in keeping yourself in condition.

But there one part of your body you (and many others!) may be overlooking – your voice.

Your voice is one of your most important instructor tools;

  • It welcomes people to class, it cues up the next moves
  • It encourages your participants through their workouts.
  • It allows you to sing along to the music!

And like any other body part, your voice – or more specifically, your vocal cords – need care and attention too.

Here are three small things you can do to keep your voice healthy as a fitness instructor.

1. Warm up your voice

You may consider vocal warm-ups to be an essential stage for actors and singers. But what about for group exercise instructors?

Well, the answer is yes! Expert vocal coach Susie Millen says:

“You would never jump into a fitness class without a bit of mobility or warm up phase first. It’s the same principle with your voice, just on a smaller scale.”

Warming up your voice does what warming does for any other muscle. It prepares the anatomy for the upcoming activity and can help to reduce injury risk.

Susie Millen has created fantastic videos on vocal health for group exercise instructors. This includes the best warm-up techniques for your voice and more.

2. Stay hydrated

We always remind our participants to take a drink between tracks, so let’s lead by example. Sipping water during your classes keeps your vocal cords hydrated.

Advice from Oxford Health NHS Trust offers this advice:

  • “Sipping fluids, especially water, throughout the day is helpful for your voice. This is particularly important if you do a lot of talking or singing.
  • Try to avoid caffeinated and alcoholic drinks as they dry the throat and can irritate the voice.
  • Avoid sucking on throat sweets with menthol, eucalyptus or lemon as they dry the throat – try blackcurrant glycerine sweets instead.”

So before putting anything else in your kit bag, grab your full bottle of water and pop it in.

3. Use a headset microphone  

If you’re leading classes in a leisure centre, you’ll probably be using a headset. If you’re teaching in the community, you may not have invested in a headset microphone yet. But there are some reasons why you should.

Using a microphone during your class reducing stress on your vocal cords as there is less need for increased voice projection. It also gives you more control over the volume of your voice without having to raise it. Plus, wearing a headset microphone looks really cool – Britney Spears, anyone?

In the instance you cannot use a headset, it is even more important to warm up your voice. For example, this may happen in outdoor classes.

If you’re looking for a headset microphone or any accessories, AV experts Sound Dynamics have a fantastic range of products and services.

And don’t forget…

Keeping your voice healthy just got a whole lot easier.

Keep your voice in tip top condition with the help of vocal coach, Susie Millen.

Get all vocal coaching resources plus an instructor wellness hub and discounted PPL for just £25.00 here. 

Check out a sneak peek of the course below!