APR 5, 2020
Why you need to add face workouts to your daily routine
Many of us spend a large chunk of our time sweating it out at the gym, exercising to get that ideal toned and trim body. But what about our faces? Our faces have 20 flat skeletal muscles that respond well to exercise.
Your au naturel answer to tight, plump, gravity-defying, and youthful skin is facial exercise! Face workouts are quickly gaining momentum as people realize their benefits in maintaining a healthy and rejuvenated look.
Let’s talk about what a face workout is and how it can help you achieve more supple skin and a slimmer face.
What is a face workout?
As mentioned earlier, your face is made up of lots of tissues and muscles that help you chew, make expressions, sneeze, blink, etc. Face workouts are specifically designed to target and engage all of these facial muscles.
Face workouts entail using your fingers to gently massage and tug at pressure points, engaging your lips, nose, tongue, eyebrows, and cheeks in various positions, holding them for a few seconds, and releasing them.
Just as exercise and stretching enhance blood circulation in your body, the same thing happens to our faces when we engage our facial muscles. Gentle massages stimulate the skin and help release any tension from our jaws and temples.
Facial exercises enlarge and strengthen the facial muscles, so the face becomes firmer and more toned and shaped like a younger face
- JAMA Dermatol. 2018
Benefits of Face Workouts
Improved Blood Circulation
Exercise will cause more active blood flow to your face. The surge of blood carries oxygen to your muscles and eliminates waste. It’s like a natural detox for your skin!
Reduces Scarring and Fine Lines
Movement and mild stretches can reduce the appearance of thick scars you may have had from acne or an injury. "Massage and exercises that stretch the skin affected by scarring can make a thick scar thinner and more pliable," says Dr. Olbricht from Harvard.edu.
Reduces the Effects of Gravity
Facial exercises can help fight the natural pull of gravity.Building strong muscles in the face can potentially help you retain some plumpness in the skin while reducing sagging — qualities associated with a youthful face.
Relieves Stress
Our face has numerous pressure points that can release stress when pressure is applied. A big part of facial workouts is gentle messages. If you suffer from sinusitis, gently pressing the sides of your nose and brow bone area can open up your nasal passages.
The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) that’s connected to your jaw can tense up without you even realizing it. Exercising the TMJ not only helps with toning but can also relieve tension and make you feel more relaxed.
All Natural
You’re probably aware of how invasive, expensive, and risky dermatological procedures and plastic surgery are. Botox is effective but won’t last forever either. Face workouts are a natural and totally risk-free way of maintaining your youthful looks.
Written by Keren Dinkin
Haute Contour:
The first of its kind facial gym in Switzerland