A 5-minute warm-up for jaw, lips and tongue

Warm up like an athlete

Actors, presenters and singers warm up before they use their voices. A few minutes loosens your jaw, wakes up your lips and tongue, and makes clear speech easier — before a shift, an interview or a presentation.

Be gentle. Stop any exercise that hurts, and skip jaw exercises if you have jaw problems.

1. Jaw (1 minute)

• Gently massage your cheeks in small circles, just in front of your ears
• Slowly drop your jaw open as if yawning, then close. Repeat 5 times.

2. Lips (1 minute)

• Lip trills: blow air through loosely closed lips so they flutter ("brrrr"), like a motorbike — 3 times
• Smile and pout: spread into a wide smile ("ee"), then push your lips forward into a small circle ("oo"). Repeat 10 times.

3. Tongue (1 minute)

• Stick your tongue out and down, then up toward your nose — 5 times
• Touch each corner of your mouth with your tongue tip — 5 times each side
• Run your tongue around the outside of your teeth, behind your lips, in a circle — 3 each way

4. Voice (1 minute)

• Hum "mmmm" gently on a comfortable note — feel the buzz on your lips
• Slide your voice up and down on "ng" or "oo", like a siren

5. Sound drill (1 minute)

Say each line clearly, slowly first, then faster:

ma – may – me – my – mo – moo
pa – ta – ka, pa – ta – ka, pa – ta – ka
red lorry, yellow lorry (×3)

The attached Daily 5-minute warm-up fits on one page — stick it somewhere you'll see it.

Try it

Do the full warm-up now. Then do it every day this week — before school, work or a shift.