Stumbling Over Words in Voiceover: These Warmups Help [+ Vocal Warmup PDF]

Written by Abigail Wahl
​@wardenwahl

Ever tripped over a word or phrase repeatedly while recording?
​A phrase like, "hornet-headed human warriors," or "best aestheticians?" No? Just me? Cool, cool.
​
Well, in any case, here are some  warmups and tongue twisters that I hope help you as much as they've helped me!

✨​​Download my quick vocal warmup PDF for stumbling✨​

Tip from a Coach: Gesture, and Be Specific

If you have trouble with a phrase in a script or a piece of copy, take some advice from my coach, Anna:

1. Say the phrase while you gesture. Try to chop the air with the blade of your hand with each syllable, or shrug your shoulders occasionally.
2. Have a clear, specific point of view and try emphasizing a particular word in the phrase. 
   ​ex: "So, this is the sushi chef?" becomes "So, this is the sushi chef?" Try emphasizing "this," as if the sushi chef was not exactly who you expected.

8 Step Vocal Warmup for Stumblers (5 minutes)

1. LISTEN
   ​Check in with your breath. How deeply does your inhale reach? How long is your exhale? Even if just for a few seconds, listening to your breath helps you slow down, calm down, and focus. *insert Jedi Theme*
2. STRETCH
   Take deep belly breaths and massage your jaw hinge, around your mouth, neck, shoulders, nose and cheeks. Roll your head down and gently from side to side. Reach up toward the ceiling with your hands and your chin, feel the space around your ribs widen. If for some reason you can't massage or stretch today, think about the air around and the space between different parts of your body, like your ears and your shoulders, for example. 
3. YAWN
   Induce a yawn to stretch your mouth and throat. Add sound if you'd like. Try to yawn again, this time with your tongue out. I like to scrunch-up the muscles in my face after this, too. Think raisin, or sour.
4. BREATH SIPS
   ​Take a deep belly breath. When you think you've inhaled to full capacity, take little sips of air so your lungs fill up just a little bit more. Hold it! Then release. Repeat. (My friend in a screamo band taught me this one!)
5. LIP TRILLS
   ​Take a deep belly breath. Exhale it through closed lips like an exhausted parent looking at a child's mess. Haha. Repeat. (Trilling into the crook of your elbow may also help with any spit control or shyness. Lol.)
6. "1-2-3-4-5"
   Say out loud: "One, two, three, four, five. Five, four, three, two, one. One, five, four, five, three, five, two, five, one, five, four, five, three, two, one." Repeat. Eventually you'll be able to say it without reading.
7. TONGUE TWISTERS
   Choose two or three of the phrases from the short or long tongue twister sections below to say aloud, five times each.
   ​Chop your hand or gesture with each syllable. Have a specific point of view. And have fun!
8. CHECK IN
   Listen again to your breath for a few inhales and exhales. Notice what's changed. Try saying your word or phrase just as you are. If you laugh, that's okay! It's usually the most unexpected words or phrases that we trip over. Noticing where you are, noticing that you're stumbling, bringing a little laugh and an "it's so easy" thought into it, will help you get through it. You can do this!

Short Tongue Twisters for a Fast Warmup

1. Flash message
2. Girl gargoyle, guy gargoyle
3. He threw three free throws
4. She sees cheese
5. ​Shave a single shingle thin
6. Six sticky skeletons
7. Truly rural
8. ​Twelve twins twirled twelve twigs
9. A real rare whale
10. Which witch is which?

Long Tongue Twisters

1. Eleven elegant benevolent elephants
2. Frozen Floyd flicks fat fleas for a fixed flat fee
3. Mix a box of mixed biscuits with a boxed biscuit mixer
4. I saw Suzy sitting in a shoe-shine shop
5. I wish to wash my Irish wristwatch
6. Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager managing an imaginary menagerie
7. Little Lillian lets lazy lizards lie along the lily pads​
8. Does your sport shop stock short socks with spots?
9. ​So, this is the sushi chef
10. A synonym for cinnamon is a cinnamon synonym

Have a favorite warmup or tongue twister that I missed? Leave me a comment, or send it to me. I try to share my favorites on Twitter as well.
And if you are in NYC and looking for a voiceover coach for commercial or animation, check out my coach Anna's website and email her at anna@voiceforward.com!
​Thanks for reading. Have fun recording!

Download warmup PDF