Research/Article based news – Page 3

Singing as Exercise

Last week, we spoke about how exercise can help us develop as singers, this week we’re going to look at the other side, how singing can contribute to an exercise programme. Now, this isn’t to say you should ditch the gym membership and only come to choir. Singing, while great, can’t replace exercise but it does have proven physical benefits.

1. Burn Calories

The average person can expect to burn about 140-200 calories an hour while singing. This puts it at about half the effect of a comfortable bike ride, or the same as a long walk.

Not all of us can get out on our bikes, and the weather isn’t always right for a walk but singing is a way to get that same effect, and it can be a lot more fun!

2. Build Chest Muscles

A 1986 study found that frequent singers showed stronger muscles around the chest wall, and that their hearts beat better.

It was also show that lung capacity was maintained in older study participants, a feature that usually decreases with age.

3. Work the Core

A recent study looking at singers showed that singing with proper technique can target a wide range of muscle groups, including the oblique abdominals.

The study concluded that these muscles are important in the expression of pressure in activities such as singing, as such professional singers, or those with training such as choir members, activate these muscles more than untrained singers would. In particular, while taking deeper breaths, the lower abs are activated more efficiently, the muscles developed during exercises such as planking.

While these are all cool benefits, perhaps the most important factor is that singing is inherently enjoyable. Research in Frontiers in Psychology suggests that the most important factor in long term physical well-being is finding exercise you enjoy. This enables us to stick to a regime for longer (50% of people stop going to the gym after 6 months) and hopefully, by tying everything to singing we’ve given you that much needed motivation.

Of course, singing isn’t the solution to everything (but it would be great if it was!) Obviously, if you want to be a professional runner, singing is probably less important than running but doing them both together can take you even further Continue reading “Singing as Exercise”

Does exercise help you sing?

As it’s the new year and many of us are getting back to the gym, it’s time for us to give you a bit of extra motivation. Exercise is more than about getting beach body ready, regular cardio workouts can improve your singing ability.

Cardio is short for cardiovascular, and refers to any activity that gets the heart rate up and keeps it there, forcing us to to take bigger breaths. By training our breathing, we are able to sing with more power and stamina, two hugely important components of a singer. Continue reading “Does exercise help you sing?”

Choirs are COOL!

If you’d have said the word ‘choir’ a few years ago, you’d expect eye-rolling or a glaze to fog up people’s eyes but in the last decade, choirs have taken on a very different tone (no pun intended). In the last ten years, Choirs have become cool.

Instead of focusing strictly on gospel affair, there’s been a swell of interest in choirs catering to more modern tastes, like en Choir or BIGMOUTH Chorus in Margate, covering rock, pop and soul songs with the power and versatility of a choir. It’s estimated that about 2.8 MILLION Brits have joined a choir, no doubt inspired by the shift in focus from classic music to more accessible genres. In fact, it’s not even unheard of for choir acts to find their way onto TV talent shows such as X Factor or Britain’s Got Talent. Continue reading “Choirs are COOL!”

Every singer’s greatest nemesis – the sore throat

With the cold weather setting in, it is essential we prepare for the cold and flu season, so here are some top tips for ensuring your favourite pastime isn’t ruined by a pesky sore throat:

Tip #1 from the NHS Website:

– The NHS advises to drink plenty of water, but avoid hot drinks – you need to increase your fluid intake to help your body heal, but hot drinks could jeopardise the process!

Tip #2 from Healthline:

– Healthline, an health website dedicated to helping people be in good health say that enjoying a drop of honey in some tea might help; they add, “You might consider choosing a green tea, which serves as an antibacterial, pain reliever, and rich source of antioxidants, as well as helps reduce inflammation.” Simply add a drop of honey in next time you feel that sore throat approaching.

Tip #3 from ChiuTips:

– YouTuber Jennifer Chiu make videos entirely about health, beauty and wellbeing; as someone who suffers with hayfever, allergies and repetitive sore throats, she knows how important it is to stay healthy in these winter months. Jen suggests popping a couple of drops of Eucalyptus Oil into some boiling water and inhaling the steam with the aid of a towel over your head (it makes more sense if you try it!)

Tip #4 from health.com:

– Health.com, another website full of handy health tips and tricks suggest a super tasty remedy! They say that even marshmallows could help with a sore throat; “Sap from the marshmallow plant has been used for hundreds of years – usually in tea form – to treat coughs, colds, and sore throats” and whilst it may be very different to the sweet treats of the same name may help as the gelatin in them can coat and sooth the throat.

Tip #5 from Home Remedies & Health Tips:

– Another YouTube Channel, HR&HT provide a free service for general and educational purposes to help inform the general public of general health advice. In their video on sore throats, they suggest that the key to recovering is vitamin C; one of the key vitamins needed in our body, vitamin C, or lack thereof can answer for many common illnesses including colds and sore throats. Whilst you can take vitamin C tablets, other naturally high sources of vitamin C include fruits such as apples and oranges.

Bonus Tip! From HomeYog:

– HomeYog is a YouTube channel devoted to wellbeing, the word Yog being a Sanskrit work meaning well being. In their video, they have a bit of a wacky approach to curing a sore throat; cutting up one large potato, boiling it until soft, draining the juices through a nylon sieve into a cup and drinking 1/2 a cup of this remedy, hot, three times a day. Would you try it?

If you would like to learn more about any of these remedies, then please see the links included in the blog.

Sing your way to better prospects!

Did you know that singing can make you smarter? Research suggests that singing may help to grow and enhance the cells in your brain that are responsible for learning.

Dr Brian McDonough says that during a study conducted examining young song birds using “high-resolution imaging revealed structural changes to the brain within 24 hours of learning their first song. Cells related to learning in the brain became larger and there are similar changes in human brains” shown in human trial results.

The research conducted some eight years ago is still entirely viable today as we see more and more community choirs blooming. This phenomenon can be seen all over the world with groups of people coming together to sing in a multitude of different ways, growing their mental learning centres, improving their memory and developing their social skills.

So it might be that singing from an early ago might improve your ability to learn and so enhance your chances with education and cognitive development, however it is not only young people that might benefit.

Studies have shown that singing can even stave off the effects of Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia. Results have been quite effective, but it isn’t just the science that you must inspect: music tutor, Nancy Salwen, has first hand experience of the disease and how music can help. She says that whilst teaching a early music class in a nursing home, “Some of the residents who attend have dementia and don’t seem to be that aware of what’s going on. But once we start singing, tapping out a beat, and particularly if we sing a song they know from their past, they join right in! The know the words; they smile, they look around. They connect”. This could mean massive advancements in the treatment and prevention of both conditions and could mean saving the memory of hundreds of thousands of people.

Studies like the above and many more around the world have great meaning and show that singing, whether you think you can carry a tune or not, can make you a healthier and potentially a better learner.

If you’re interested in anything you’ve read above or just want to try out a fun packed and social choir who sings a wide variety of music and asks only for enthusiasm and a willingness to learn, pop down for a free trial rehearsal or contact us with any queries.

Sources: CBS, The Fear of Singing Breakthrough Project

Background reading: Uplift Connect, BBC iWonder

With happiness comes healthiness

Some weeks ago we looked into how singing in a choir could help us to psychologically feel better within ourselves and improve our sense of wellbeing. This week we are going to delve into the physiological side of the argument; coming hand in hand with mental wellbeing, our physical health can be hugely impacted by singing in a choir, so here are just some of the benefits. Firstly, whilst “Exercise is one of the few activities in life that is indisputably good for us,” Daniel H. Pink tells us in his book, “When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing.” “Choral singing might be the new exercise.” It is thought that the practice of singing can increase your lung capacity, regulate your heart beat and increase the rate of release of endorphins (happy hormones). Research undertaken by Cardiff University even uncovered a secret within singing that could improve symptoms of lung cancer and Parkinson’s. A Music Professor Brenville Hancox “established, Skylarks, a choir aimed at people with Parkinson’s Disease. One of the participants in the choir explained how his voice had been strengthened, despite receiving a diagnosis of Parkinson’s five years earlier. Reasons for the improvement have been suggested as deep breathing and the extended use of the vocal chords.” Add all these impressive health benefits to those psychological benefits we discussed previously and singing in a choir sounds like a fantastic idea! You can give it a try at a free trial rehearsal or contact us with any queries.

Sources: CNBC, CMUSE, The Telegraph

Background reading: City Academy, BBC iWonder

We know that singing makes us happy – did you?

Did you know that singing in a choir makes you feel better in yourself? Now, we’re biased, of course, but let’s have a look at some research from those who aren’t. Research published by the University of Oxford and the Cambridge University Press has shown that “people feel more positive after actively singing than they do after passively listening to music or after chatting about positive life events.” The researchers have put this down to the release of ‘happy’ hormones such as oxytocin and dopamine as well as reducing stress and decreasing blood pressure. Even a journalist from the Independent, Simmy Richman, who was invited to join Chaps Choir for a time to experience this first hand said that, “seeing the effect everyone’s voices were having left me quite overcome” and went as far as to say that he noticed his, “four-year-old son has been told that he can come and watch me sing and his excitement is contagious. It occurs to me how little our children see of us outside of our role as their parents. When we go out to work, we close the door on them or drop them off at school. They have little or no tangible idea of what it is we do when we get there. The knowledge that my son will see me in an entirely fresh context, taking my part in a public performance, makes me realise, momentarily, what it must feel like for the David Beckhams of this world. Hey kiddo, this is just one of the things your old man can do. Come and watch.” Sound interesting? Why not put the research to the test yourself and come for a free trial rehearsal or contact us with any queries.

Research: University of Oxford, Cambridge University Press, The Independent.