Updated September 2026.

Why voice actors need exercises at all

Voice acting isn't just about having a nice voice. It's about control. You need to be able to speed up and slow down when the read needs it, hold a steady voice through a long paragraph without running out of air, and do the same line three different ways. And then you need to hear the difference when you do.

That takes practice, the same way any athlete trains before a game. These exercises do two jobs. Some of them warm you up so you don't walk into a session cold and strain your voice. Others build the skills you use on every script, like breath control and clear diction.

The first nine here are warm-ups and vocal workouts. Number ten is the one I'd tell every new narrator to do daily, because it's the closest thing to the actual job.

1. The humming exercise

This is the push-up of voice exercises. Basic, but it works.

Sit or stand with your back straight. Breathe in deeply through your nose. Now let the air out slowly with a gentle, steady hum. Keep the hum as smooth and even as you can, and notice the vibration in your face and throat. That's your voice waking up.

It's a gentle way to start any session, and it helps settle the nerves before a performance too. If you're about to voice a deep, gravelly character, start your hum low and let it warm up that lower register.

2. Straw phonation

This one sounds silly, but bear with me. You'll need a straw.

Take a breath and make sound through the straw. Hum, slide up and down a scale, or even say a line from your script. The narrow opening of the straw changes the airflow and takes some of the pressure off your vocal folds, so your voice can work without pushing.

It's all about balance and control. It helps a lot before an energetic, fast-talking character, and it helps you manage your breath over long sentences.

3. The tongue twister workout

Tongue twisters aren't just a game you played as a kid. They're one of the best ways to work on diction and speed.

Pick a few tongue twisters and say them out loud, slowly at first. As you get comfortable, speed up, and make sure every word and every syllable is still clear. If it falls apart, slow back down.

"Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers" feels silly at first. Run it a few times and your tongue gets nimbler, and your articulation gets sharper.

4. The yawn-sigh

You know that big yawn followed by a sigh of relief? That's the whole exercise.

Start with a big yawn (don't be shy), stretching your jaw and drawing in a deep breath. As you breathe out, let it turn into a sigh, with the air flowing out smoothly. It relaxes your throat and takes tension out of your voice.

It's a great one before a calm, laid-back read, like a bedtime story or a meditation. It's also handy between takes when you feel yourself tightening up.

5. Diaphragmatic breathing

Your voice runs on air, so breath control matters as much as anything you do with your mouth. Diaphragmatic breathing is about breathing low and using your diaphragm.

Put a hand on your belly. Breathe in deeply, and fill your belly before your chest. You should feel your belly rise. Then breathe out slowly and steadily.

Breathing like this gives you more air to work with, so you can get through a long sentence or a big, commanding line without running out of steam halfway.

6. The pitch glide

The pitch glide stretches your range.

Find your lowest comfortable note and slowly glide up to your highest comfortable note. Then glide back down. You're not trying to push or strain. You just want a smooth slide from low to high and back again.

This really helps with characters who swing up and down a lot, and it keeps you from getting stuck in the same three notes on every read.

7. The lip trill

This is the one where you sound like a horse. Take a breath and blow air through loosely closed lips so they flutter and make a "brrrr" sound. Keep it steady, using just enough air to keep your lips trilling. Once you've got it, add some voice and slide the pitch around.

It loosens your lips and takes tension out of your voice, and it's one of the best quick warm-ups before a recording session. Do it before an energetic, talkative character and you'll feel the difference.

8. The resonant voice exercise

Start with a hum and let it turn into a long "Mmmmm." You want to feel the buzz in your lips and around your nose. That's your voice resonating.

Once you feel it, open the "Mmmm" into a word, like "Mmmmany" or "Mmmmore," and try to keep that same buzz. It helps you sound full and project without pushing from your throat, which is what you want for a big, larger-than-life character.

9. The silent laugh

Laugh without making any sound. Big laugh. Feel your face and your throat working? That's the point.

It loosens up your face, and a loose face gives you a more expressive voice. It's a perfect warm-up before a cheerful, bubbly character, because you start the read already halfway to a smile.

10. The narrator's daily read

This is the one I'd do every day if I were starting out, especially if you want to narrate audiobooks.

Read a few pages of a book out loud. Any book you're into. Record it on your phone, and then listen back. Where did you rush? Where did you sound like you were reading instead of talking to somebody? It still has to sound natural. That's the whole job, and it doesn't cost you anything.

Then push it a little. Take one sentence and say it at three different speeds. Say "The dog ran home" four times and hit a different word each time. If you are emphasizing everything, you're not emphasizing anything, so this teaches you to choose.

When you want something built for practice, the audiobook section of our free scripts library has excerpts you can record and play back as many times as you like.

Putting the exercises to work

Warm-ups get you ready. They're not the performance. So once you're warmed up, go read something real.

We have over 750 free scripts in the VO Journey scripts library, including duet scripts you can do with a friend. And when you start sending auditions, I wrote about how many auditions it takes to book a voice over job. If you want a longer warm-up routine, here are 5 reasons you should warm up before your voice over.

Want notes on your reads?

Exercises get you so far. At some point you need somebody with a good ear to tell you what they're hearing.

That's what our live classes are for. Gabby Nistico teaches Acting every Monday at 6pm ET, and on Wednesdays at 8pm ET we do Script Workout, where members perform and get feedback. It's never recorded, so it's a safe room to take risks.

You can try all of it for free during Free Class Week, Monday 12 to Thursday 15 October. Four live classes on Zoom. Come to one night or all four. No card, no call.

If you already know you want in, your first month of CORE at VO Journey Academy is $39. You can join here.

Now go put these exercises to work.

Anthony