About strain

[Guest]

ok, so i've go a voice i'm confortable with, I exercise often but what to do to not strain my voice?

I'm afraid that if I over do it I will hurt myself.

where do I stop? how often and for how long do I talk in the feminine voice?

Is whole days or weekend are too much?

how to I know if i've done too much?

I would like to have tips if any of you have some for me

[Charlize]

I think those questions would be answered differently by many. I think it really depends on how much you have to modify your voice and how much strain that is causing. I would say as in most exercise it is best to build up gradually with some rest periods to allow things to rest. My Yoga teacher says "the body will change when it knows you are serious". It takes time more than intense effort to make those changes.

Hugs,

Charlize

[Guest Squallsong]

Practice practice practice! Use your feminine voice as often as possible, so that it becomes habitual and easily accessible to you.

You will feel when you've had enough, as your throat (just above the adam's apple) will start to feel tired, irritated, or mildly sore. There is a tiny muscle there, which tensions your vocal chords that you are "exercising", and it will feel like a small tired muscle... Like any muscle, it will get stronger when you exercise it.

If it does become painful, or your voice becomes hoarse or raspy, you've overdone it, and further use can cause damage (like any strained muscle). If this happens, warm tea with honey helps, and rest your voice for a while (no shouting/singing, avoid talking if you can, whisper when possible). When it doesn't feel irritated/tired anymore, it's safe to exercise again.

If you have a cold, infection or other illness which affects your voice/throat, stop exercising until you have recovered...illness such as this can reduce your ability to feel the muscle, and it becomes easy to overstress it.

Basically, follow the same "rules" as a singer/vocalist...what you are doing is no different.

Take care and be well!

[Guest chibi_usa]

Practice practice practice! Use your feminine voice as often as possible, so that it becomes habitual and easily accessible to you.

You will feel when you've had enough, as your throat (just above the adam's apple) will start to feel tired, irritated, or mildly sore. There is a tiny muscle there, which tensions your vocal chords that you are "exercising", and it will feel like a small tired muscle... Like any muscle, it will get stronger when you exercise it.

If it does become painful, or your voice becomes hoarse or raspy, you've overdone it, and further use can cause damage (like any strained muscle). If this happens, warm tea with honey helps, and rest your voice for a while (no shouting/singing, avoid talking if you can, whisper when possible). When it doesn't feel irritated/tired anymore, it's safe to exercise again.

If you have a cold, infection or other illness which affects your voice/throat, stop exercising until you have recovered...illness such as this can reduce your ability to feel the muscle, and it becomes easy to overstress it.

Basically, follow the same "rules" as a singer/vocalist...what you are doing is no different.

Take care and be well!

I agree with this. I couldn't say it better. Basically practice till it gets tired. However there were MANY times that I did it till it was painful. It worked for me but I would NOT reccomend straining your voice. Anyways, I usually stopped when it was tired as well. Best thing is talking to people. An alternative would be reading a book. Try reading 1 paragraph to yourself while recording. Play it. And if your happy with your voice then read up to a chapter. It should be tired by then. However, if you are disappointed do it around 5-10 times. I know you don't like what you might hear but pick the best one. From there on you will choose how you sound. (By the way I did this with Harry Potter. it worked out pretty well)