Tongue strengthening exercises are a short series of tongue movements done sitting up. You stick your tongue out and draw it back, reach the tip down toward your chin and up toward your nose, touch each corner of your mouth, and then say 'la' over and over. Between them, the four moves take the tongue to the end of its range in each direction. Speech and language therapists (speech-language pathologists in the US) and physios sometimes include movements like these in mouth and face exercise programs.

How to do the tongue strengthening exercises

Sit up straight on a chair, both feet on the floor and your hands loose on your lap. Face a mirror if you have one, as the voice guide suggests.
Stick your tongue straight out as far as is comfortable, hold it there for a moment, then draw it all the way back into your mouth. Repeat.
With your mouth slightly open, reach the tip of your tongue down toward your chin, then up toward your nose. Repeat.
Move the tip of your tongue to one corner of your mouth, then across to the other corner. Repeat.
Say 'la' firmly and clearly several times in a row, 'la, la, la, la', lifting the tip of your tongue to the ridge just behind your top front teeth each time. Repeat.

What you should feel

Work in the tongue and under the chin, and sometimes a mild stretch at the root of the tongue as it reaches out. The tongue can tire quickly. It should not hurt.

Common mistakes

Moving your jaw or head to help the tongue reach. Keep your head still and your jaw steady.
Rushing, so the tongue never reaches the end of each movement.
Shouting the 'la' sounds or straining your throat. Firm and clear is enough.
Scraping the tongue over your teeth as it slides out and back.

How often

A common starting point is 5 to 10 of each movement, once to 3 times a day. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Pain in your tongue, jaw, face or ear, or your jaw clicks painfully or catches. Stop and rest your mouth. If it happens every time you practice, see your doctor, dentist or physio.
You cough or choke on your saliva while you practice. Stop, sit upright and let it settle. If it keeps happening, or you also cough or choke when you eat or drink, get medical advice the same day. If you cannot breathe, speak or cough, call emergency services.
Things look double, your vision suddenly blurs or goes, your speech slurs or becomes muddled, swallowing becomes hard, your face or lips go numb, one side of your face droops or one side of your body goes weak or numb, you suddenly become so dizzy or unsteady that you fall or cannot stand or walk, your legs suddenly give way but you do not black out (a drop attack), or you get a sudden severe headache. Stop and call emergency services, even if it goes away.

From the clinic

The voice guide takes you through the four movements in the order above, with a few repeats of each before moving on. The video shows only the first two (out and back, then down and up with the mouth open), so the side to side and 'la' movements follow the voice guide. Go only as far as your tongue reaches comfortably. Nobody expects the tip to touch your nose or chin, and reaching toward them is the point.

The mirror shows whether your tongue moves straight or drifts to one side. If you notice a drift that is new to you, see your doctor in the next week or two. If the drift came on suddenly, it can be a sign of a stroke, so call emergency services, even if it goes away.

This page explains the general technique, not a stroke rehab program. If your speech or swallowing has changed after a stroke, or with a condition such as Parkinson's disease, a speech and language therapist should choose which exercises suit you. If you cough or choke when you eat or drink, food feels stuck in your throat, or your voice sounds wet or gurgly after eating, get medical advice the same day rather than starting exercises on your own. Swallowing that suddenly becomes hard is different: it can be a sign of a stroke, so call emergency services, as the stop signs on this page say.

If you have mouth ulcers, a sore tongue, or have had surgery on your mouth, tongue or jaw, check with your dentist or surgical team before you begin. After treatment for cancer of the mouth or throat, follow the exercises your cancer team or speech and language therapist gives you. For other face and mouth exercises, see the lip pucker exercise and the cheek puff exercise.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

Tongue strengthening exercises