A few weeks ago a reporter called me from People magazine. She was writing an article about Deborah Voigt, whose new book chronicles her years of struggle with being overweight. I briefly answered her questions, but there seemed to be so much more to say about what singers need to know regarding weight, the voice, and life in general for those who try to maintain the right balance.
When singers talk about “weight,” it really is a euphemism, isn’t it? We’re really talking about obesity, excess fat. No singer ever complains of being too muscular. Even more specifically, weight refers to fat you can see—the belly, hips, butt, arms, breasts. But fat cells (adipocytes) are scattered around the body in some pretty unlikely places. It is important to realize this: fat is stored in almost every tissue of the body. So, while you can see that roll around your abdomen, there are also fat cells in muscles, in connective tissue, around organs, even in organs. As a resident, I spent six months on the pathology service, and believe me when I say that the stuff is everywhere!
Storing fat in the body is believed to be an evolved trait. For most of human existence, people were underfed and scavenging from meal to meal, more often hungry than not. The body has learned to store unused food as a survival tactic. Fat, which has more calories per gram than carbohydrates or protein, is in this regard nothing more than an efficient form of stored energy.
Since in today’s environment there is generally enough food, most of us never need to access these stores. So what happens to the fat set aside “for a rainy (hungry) day”? It just accumulates—initially in its normal storage locations, and then in the organs and muscles. Fatty infiltration, such as in muscle, not only increases bulk but can eventually interfere with normal function.
The total number of fat cells in your body is finite and fixed around puberty—we stop making fat cells after our teens. This is why children who are fat (and have made more fat cells) have a more difficult time losing and keeping weight off as adults. This is not to say that a skinny childhood guarantees a slim adulthood—there are plenty of fat cells to go around, even in normal-weight children. But it does mean that chubby children are likely to gain weight more quickly as adults.
The only way to remove fat cells is with surgery such as liposuction. While this can have specific benefits, both psychological and physical, it does not address the underlying issue of fat stored in places you can’t see. So, unless your plastic surgeon can also suction out fat within the abdomen and around the organs (like the kidney and heart), you are really only brushing the surface. But, still, the additional benefits of this weight loss on your knees, back, and other joints may be beneficial.
So the first step toward a healthy adult weight seems to be to avoid being an obese kid! Please note, I did not say “skinny.” Our body shape and size depends on many factors, much of it heredity. We should no more idealize a particular appearance in children than we do in adults. As children, and as adults, we should simply be the “right” weight, which can be approximated through parameters such as height/weight ratio and BMI. If you’ve already missed that boat, you can (and
should) still gain control of your weight later in life, but it highlights the importance of feeding children a healthy diet. In this regard, many Americans fail in their role as parents.
Let’s now focus on singing and weight. A certain amount of weight is, in my opinion, helpful for a singer. Consider the issue of breath support. The abdominal muscles contract as you sing, pushing the abdominal contents up toward the diaphragm. The rate of air flow is partly controlled by this syringe-like push, which squeezes air out of the lungs. The abdominal muscles contract more effectively when they have something against which they can work. When muscles contract, there is a “sweet spot” in the middle of the contraction where they contract most efficiently.
In an obese singer, these muscles, initially stretched by the gain in weight, have adopted a new resting length and have learned to effectively contract against a greater abdominal mass. When that abdominal mass is rapidly reduced, the muscles become loose and less efficient. Singers who experience a dramatic weight loss, such as after bariatric surgery, usually find a significant change in vocal power and the ability to sustain. It can take many months of abdominal strengthening, and at times even a slight regaining of weight, for that power to return. It’s really about the appoggio, a phenomenon controlled by breath support (abdomen) and breath control (larynx). With the loss of breath support, there often occurs a compensatory adjustment on the laryngeal end, in an attempt to rebalance the sense of support.
But not all of the laryngeal and pharyngeal changes are secondary to loss of abdominal breath support. Remember, there are fat cells everywhere! The palate, the tongue, and the pharyngeal walls all contain fat cells. With rapid weight loss, the shape, mass, and weight of these vocally important structures also changes. This, in turn, changes the size, shape, and reflective/absorptive characteristics of the supraglottic resonators. No wonder that with rapid or significant weight loss, a singer loses not only power and control but also color and resonance. And this loss of fat in the pharynx does not recover with abdominal tightening exercises.
There is no quick fix for singers who decide to change their bodies for a healthier one. Even someone with the great talent, ability, and determination of Deborah Voigt had to travel this journey. She has done so with great success, but many listeners feel that her voice, beautiful as it is, has changed. The question, then, is why go through this—and how to do it with minimum vocal cost?
As to the “how,” one answer is self-evident—the easiest way to lose weight is to not gain it at all! A healthy combination of correct diet; small, frequent meals; and exercise should help you to maintain an ideal weight—one that will not need drastic intervention later. You can move to this regime quickly or incrementally, whichever suits your personality. Make use of all available support mechanisms—friends, family, therapists—but find a life “style” that can support you at your ideal weight.
If you do need to lose weight, for whatever rational reason, first consult your doctor. Then, do it the same way as you gained weight—gradually. Whether your weight is going up or down, your vocal mechanism can adjust to an amazing degree, providing the change is gradual. And “gradual,” of course, means determination and persistence. Like a long crescendo, you need to be in the moment, constantly aware of where you were and where you are going. That’s the hard part.
As your body changes, so will your instrument. Just imagine that a violinist who has been playing his instrument comfortably for years is now handed his instrument after it has been completely rebuilt. He needs to reacquaint himself with the instrument—the fingerboard, the position of the strings, the height of the bridge, the sounds the bow makes with different attacks.
Rapid or significant weight loss represents nothing less than a collapse of the physical underpinnings on which the singer has built his or her vocal technique. The return to vocal excellence amounts to a significant commitment and an almost complete reworking of the voice from the bottom to the top. The constant process of technical re-exploration, the change in the balance of the body, the new proprioceptive clues from all parts of the vocal tract—these are part of a relearning process that continues until you have reached your ideal weight.
As to the “why,” there are as many answers as there are people. The physical, social, professional, and psychological issues that lead to, and result from, obesity are many. They can be life threatening at times, but usually just life altering in a crippling way.
Just remember, if you are overweight to the point where diet and exercise are not an appropriate or effective option and you are considering surgery, there is a vocal price to be paid. That price may be worth paying, especially if you are dealing with serious medical issues such as hypertension, obstructive sleep apnea, and diabetes—but there is a cost.
Because, after all is said, you are not just a singer, a vocal machine that needs to get on stage, but a person. You need to look after yourself—both your physical and mental health. And the little black dress should really be just an afterthought. Either way, this is a life-long commitment to caring for and reworking your health and your voice.
