​​These days it seems like every time you ask someone how they are the answer is “busy”. In an age where technology is supposed to ease our workload, the average person is actually working more.
 
The life of a singer can be exceptionally busy. Since most singers don’t make a living wage off their singing, they need to supplement with other income, so add to a daily job and household responsibilities the time for lessons, research, practice, rehearsals and performances and you can be busy from early morning to late in the night.
 
If you’re lucky enough to be a successful professional singer, life is still a hectic whirlwind of travel, lessons and coachings, auditions and, for some, 8 performances a week or MORE!
 
A singer’s life is full of stress.
 
It’s not just the busyness, but the emotional stress that we need to get through dealing with auditions, performance expectations (ours and other’s), reviews, rejections, competition and worrying about our vocal health.
 
You as a singer are already most likely a sensitive soul. Singers, as other musicians, feel deeply. This gives us the ability to transform the notes and words on a page into a profound emotional experience for your audience. This also makes us more vulnerable to mental health issues.
 
What is stress?
 
Stress is a natural response to external stimulus. It’s part of our fight or flight instinct. You sense a threat and your body starts to release a number of stress hormones into the body, mostly from the adrenal gland.
 
A stressor is the stimulus (or threat) that causes stress, e.g. exam, audition, performance, divorce, death of loved one, moving house, loss of job. 
Sudden and severe stress generally produces:

• Increase in heart rate
• Increase in breathing (lungs dilate)
• Decrease in digestive activity (don’t feel hungry)
• Liver released glucose for energy
• Suppression of immune system

 
This explains the pre-performance shallow breathing and loss of appetite, and the post-performance colds that many singers experience.

Usually, when the threat is past, your body goes back into a balanced state.
 
Problems start to occur when the stress doesn't dissipate or occurs with great frequency. This is chronic stress. It can affect  the immune, metabolic and cardiovascular systems, and lead to atrophy of the brain's hippocampus (crucial for long-term memory and spatial navigation).
 
Cortisol  (one of the main stress hormones), stays elevated. This is the hormone that releases glucose for energy. This can lead to unregulated eating and the craving for “comfort” foods, to maintain the energy levels that the stress response is asking for. Outcomes of this can be obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes.
 
In fact, untreated chronic stress can result in serious many serious health conditions. In addition to the above it can also lead to anxiety and depression, insomnia, muscle pain and heart disease.
 
Despite its connection to illness, it’s estimated that 33 percent of Americans never discuss ways to manage stress with their healthcare provider. 
 
So how can you tell if you are over stressed or approaching burnout?
If you’re to stressed you might feel:

• angry or annoyed for no reason
• anxious or worried all the time
• like you want to withdraw from people
• extra-sensitive to things that wouldn’t normally get on your nerves
• useless or incapable.

Or you may notice physical effects, such as:

• stomach issues, such as indigestion or even diarrhea
• headaches
• muscle and back pain
• problems with getting to sleep
• eating more or less than usual
• raised heart rate.

 
If you’ve reached the point of burnout you will be experiencing:

• feeling exhausted and unable to perform basic tasks
• losing motivation in many aspects of your life, including your work and friendships
• feeling unable to focus or concentrate on tasks
• feeling empty or lacking in emotion
• losing your passion and drive
• experiencing conflict in your relationships with co-workers, friends and family
• withdrawing emotionally from friends and family.

 
 
If you are experiencing burnout or chronic stress symptoms then be sure to address this with your health care practitioner.

8 Tips to Manage Stress:

 
The best way to manage stress is to make it a priority to do so. So here are 8 tips to help you reduce the stress in your life.

1. Eat a healthy plant-strong diet. Diet goes a long way to boosting your energy levels and combating some of the effects of stress. DO increase your veggie intake. DO reduce animal products. DO eliminate processed and overly refined foods (sugars, flours, oils, artificial sweeteners and colours).
2. Get enough sleep. The average person needs to get between 7 to 9 hours of sleep. It’s often one of the first things to go when we have too many things to do, but in the long run it will affect your health, your mental clarity and your productivity.
3. Exercise. Keep moving. A 15 minute walk is a great way to reduce some stress. Find something you enjoy doing and make it part of your routine. A fit body is better able to deal with stress.
4. Meditate. Mindfulness practice is an excellent way to reduce stress. As the saying goes make 10 minutes for meditation each day, and if you can’t find 10 minutes then meditate for one hour. There are many apps out there that can lead you through a guided meditation.
5. Socialize. Your social interactions with friends can have a very beneficial effect on your stress levels and maintaining friendships will give you a support network when you are feeling overwhelmed.
6. Make time for fun. Yes, we need our down time. To pursue a hobby, have a bath or just veg out with your favourite Netflix series. You need the time to relax.
7. Prioritize your time. You can’t do it all. Learn to say “NO” so you don’t get overloaded.
8. Be compassionate with yourself. We are none of us perfect. Learn to accept your perfectly IMPERFECT state.

 
If you want more stress busting tips and a supportive community of singers, then click here to join our free group The Fit Singer Community.
 
 
References:
 
https://au.reachout.com/articles/burnout-and-chronic-stress
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/01/160121121818.htm
http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/understanding-chronic-stress.aspx
 
 
 
 

The holidays have been over for about a week now. Sometimes those holiday feasts are just amazing.
 
And it's not just the abundance of delicious food but also the people, the decorations, and the ambiance.
 
It made it way too easy to indulge during the past month. And there are other holidays through the year where the same will be true.
 
But it doesn't always stop there. There are post-performance parties and receptions.
 
Sometimes we overeat on regular days.  Or at regular meals.  Or All. The. Time.
 
Overeating and singing do not go well together. Who wants to sing when we feel bloated or in a post-meal coma? Here are three tips to avoid overeating at meals.
 
(Psst, turn these into habits and ditch the willpower!)
 
Tip #1: Start with some water
 
When your stomach is growling and you smell amazingly delicious food it's too easy to fill a plate (or grab some samples with your bare hands) and dive into the food.
 
But did you know that it's possible to sometimes confuse the feeling of thirst with that of hunger?  Your stomach may actually be craving a big glass of water rather than a feast.
 
Some studies have shown that drinking a glass or two of water before a meal can help reduce the amount of food eaten.  And this super-simple tip may even help with weight loss (...just sayin').
 
Not only will the water start to fill up your stomach before you get to the buffet, leaving less room for the feast but drinking enough water has been shown to slightly increase your metabolism. And of course, we want to keep our vocal folds hydrated.
 
Win-win!
 
Tip #2: Try eating “mindfully”
 
You've heard of mindfulness but have you applied that to your eating habits?
 
This can totally help you avoid overeating as well as having the added bonus of helping your digestion.
 
Just as being mindful when you meditate helps to focus your attention on your breathing and the present moment being mindful when you eat helps to focus your attention on your meal.
 
Do this by taking smaller bites, eating more slowly, chewing more thoroughly, and savouring every mouthful.  Notice and appreciate the smell, taste and texture.  Breathe.
 
This can help prevent overeating because eating slower often means eating less. 
 
When you eat quickly you can easily overeat because it takes about 20 minutes for your brain to know that your stomach is full.
 
So take your time, pay attention to your food and enjoy every bite.
 
Bonus points: Eat at a table (not on the run to the next rehearsal), off of a small plate, and put your fork down between bites.
 
Tip #3: Start with the salad
 
You may be yearning for that rich, creamy main dish.
 
But don't start there.
 
(Don't worry, you can have some...just after you've eaten your salad).
 
Veggies are a great way to start any meal because they're full of not only vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and health-promoting phytochemicals but they also have some secret satiety weapons: fiber and water.
 
Fiber and water are known to help fill you up and make you feel fuller.  They're “satiating”.
 
And these secret weapons are great to have on your side when you're about to indulge in a large meal.
 
Summary:
 
Have your glass of water, eat mindfully, and start with your salad to help avoid overeating at meals.

Need help staying on track? Then join us in the FREE Vibrant Body Vibrant Voice Community.
 
Recipe (Water): Tasty (and beautiful) Pre-Meal Water Ideas
 
If you're not much of a plain water drinker or need your water to be more appealing to your senses here are five delicious (and beautiful looking) fruit combos to add to your large glass of water:

• Slices of lemon & ginger
• Slices of strawberries & orange
• Slices of apple & a cinnamon stick
• Chopped pineapple & mango
• Blueberries & raspberries

 
Tip: You can buy a bag (or several bags) of frozen chopped fruit and throw those into your cup, thermos, or uber-cool mason jar in the morning.  They're already washed and cut and will help keep your water colder longer.
 
References:
 
https://authoritynutrition.com/7-health-benefits-of-water/
 
http://summertomato.com/the-science-behind-mindful-eating-what-happens-to-your-body-during-a-mindful-meal

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​

What is Metabolism?
 
This word “metabolism” is thrown around a lot these days.
 
You know that if yours is too slow you might gain weight.  But what exactly does this all mean and why should singers care?
 
Well technically “metabolism” is the word to describe all of the biochemical reactions in your body.  It's how you take in nutrients and oxygen and use them to fuel everything you do – including singing.
 
Your body has an incredible ability to grow, heal, and generally stay alive.  And without this amazing biochemistry you would not be possible.
 
Metabolism includes how the cells in your body:

• Allow activities you can control (e.g. physical activity, singing etc.).
• Allow activities you can't control (e.g. heart beat, wound healing [including any healing needed to the vocal folds], processing of nutrients & toxins, etc.).
• Allow storage of excess energy for later.

 
So when you put all of these processes together into your metabolism you can imagine that these processes can work too quickly, too slowly, or just right.
 
Which brings us to the “metabolic rate”. 
 
Metabolic rate
 
This is how fast your metabolism works and is measured in calories (yup, those calories!).
 
The calories you eat can go to one of three places:

• Work (i.e. singing, exercise and other activity).
• Heat (i.e. from all those biochemical reactions).
• Storage (i.e. extra leftover “unburned” calories stored as fat).

 
As you can imagine the more calories you burn as work or creating heat the easier it is to lose weight and keep it off because there will be fewer “leftover” calories to store for later.
 
There are a couple of different ways to measure metabolic rate.  One is the “resting metabolic rate” (RMR) which is how much energy your body uses when you're not being physically active.
 
The other is the “total daily energy expenditure” (TDEE) which measures both the resting metabolic rate as well as the energy used for “work” (e.g. exercise) throughout a 24-hour period.
 
What affects your metabolic rate?
 
In a nutshell: a lot!
 
The first thing you may think of is your thyroid.  This gland at the front of your throat releases hormones to tell your body to “speed up” your metabolism.  Of course, the more thyroid hormone there is the faster things will work and the more calories you'll burn.
 
But that's not the only thing that affects your metabolic rate.
 
How big you are counts too! 
 
Larger people have higher metabolic rates; but your body composition is crucial! 
 
As you can imagine muscles that actively move and do work need more energy than fat does.  So the more lean muscle mass you have the more energy your body will burn and the higher your metabolic rate will be.  Even when you're not working out. And lean muscle is a necessity to the active lives of singers.
 
This is exactly why weight training is often recommended as a part of a weight loss program.  Because you want muscles to be burning those calories for you. 
 
The thing is, when people lose weight their metabolic rate often slows down which you don't want to happen.  So you definitely want to offset that with more muscle mass.
 
Aerobic exercise also temporarily increases your metabolic rate.  Your muscles are burning fuel to move so they're doing “work”.
 
The type of food you eat also affects your metabolic rate!
 
Your body actually burns calories to absorb, digest, and metabolize your food.  This is called the “thermic effect of food” (TEF).
 
You can use it to your advantage when you understand how your body metabolizes foods differently. 
 
Fats, for example increase your TEF by 0-3%; carbs increase it by 5-10% (this is a deceptive number and more on that later), and protein increases it by 15-30%. 
 
But before you go out and start stocking up on steaks, think of this, there is no significant difference between animal and plant protein to TEF. Furthermore, a whole food diet, one rich in healthy carbs (whole grains, vegetables and fruits) will increase TEF by nearly 50% over a processed food diet.
 
By trading some of your fat or refined carbs for lean protein and whole food carbs you can slightly increase your metabolic rate.
 
Another bonus of protein is that your muscles need it to grow.  By working them out and feeding them what they need they will help you to lose weight and keep it off.
 
The Mind-Body Connection
 
And don't forget the mind-body connection.  There is plenty of research that shows the influence that things like stress and sleep have on the metabolic rate. These are areas that we singers quite often have trouble with. Yoga, meditation, breathing exercises are all methods that help reduce stress and improve the mind-body connection.
 
This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to metabolism and how so many different things can work to increase (or decrease) your metabolic rate.
 
Your body is your instrument and how your metabolism is working will affect your voice in the long run.

To keep your instrument in top shape join our free  Vibrant Body Vibrant Voice community. 



References:

http://www.precisionnutrition.com/all-about-energy-balance

https://authoritynutrition.com/10-ways-to-boost-metabolism/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2897733/
 
http://www.ipcbee.com/vol39/005-ICNFS2012-N012.pdf