Face Yoga - 5 Facial Exercises You'll Be Happy You Tried

If you’re over 45 or heading in that direction, this is for you! Recently we explored strength training for the body,  and activating dormant muscles to be your most vibrant self. (If you haven’t seen the first 2 videos yet, you can tune in here) Activating our muscles in our bodies is logical, right? But what about above the neck too? What if we could keep our face as strong as our bodies? What if we could activate the facial muscles and get more tone and elasticity from the inside?  Just like regular yoga, we can move the muscles in an intentional and mindful way to energize every part of us. 

And yes, we know that these days, so many of us look to creams, products or procedures to look younger and I have no problem with that - whatever makes you happy is fine. But we may have been missing a whole other approach that has HUGE potential. I, personally, am very excited about this idea of face yoga– it just makes sense to me. Let’s explore...

There are many on social media that are talking about face yoga, and all the stuff out there can be almost overwhelming. So, the best ways is to investigate area by area: such as the forehead and  the "11" lines, the eye area, the nasolabial fold near the nose, the cheek area, the mouth, the jaw, the double chin, jowls  - you get the idea. There’s a lot! At this time, let's focus on the  under chin or the double chin. How does that even sneak up on us?

Posture: One thing we don't always consider is posture: Yes, we are all on our phones and devices for hours and hours per day, and we’re not only looking down, we’re bending our necks down, constricting the front of our necks, and developing bad posture. Some people are noticing tension headaches, neck and shoulder pain, and even back pain. What we train is what we gain, and that’s not a gain at all!

Exercise 1: So the first face yoga example we'll talk about is from Stacie Nardini, Harvard certified in anatomy, and Stanford certified in exercise physiology.  One of her face yoga exercises is to press  your tongue as wide and flat as you can make it up to the roof of your mouth. This action will start to  lift the underchin area. Every time you do that also clench your jaw and your teeth together, and press the tongue upward. You should feel the underchin area lift up. Keep doing this for 1 minute – lift and clench the jaw. the harder you press your tongue up, the more lift you’ll feel the changes in your chin.

Then slightly lift the chin and sweep hands from the center of your neck to the side of your neck and down the neck – this lymph drainage massage helps to move the excess fluid. You can  pat the center of your neck too. (see video for visuals)

Next I’ll give you 4 Exercises to help with double chin or even saggy skin under the neck. These are from a site called Blush with me- Parmita,  and the results people are getting are exciting. It's recommended to them in a series -  1 minute each.

Exercise 2-5

Level 1.        Wag your tongue. Literally open your mouth wide , and point your tongue to each corner of your open mouth. You’ll notice that you are feeling the underneck area as well as the muscles in your jawline. You’ll feel it in your tongue, and that’s normal.

level 2.   Repeat the same exercise but more rapidly, a more cardio version. To tighten cheek as well. Your mouth may be a little dry, but grab some water and keep on - you'll feel your chin getting more toned. 

Level 3.  This one is not a rapid movement – it’s designed to instead to firm up your jawline, it’s like you contract your muscle and hold it up.  All you do Stretch your tongue out and hold it up against gravity – it also pulls up the under chin area, but in a more vertical way.  

Level 4 – you extend your tongue in and out – you’re moving the micro muscles in your face. That one you should feel working!

It's exciting that there's so much to explore in face yoga. We’ll target another area next time. Feel free to email me your preference at [email protected].  In the meantime, enjoy the new facial strength you are creating. See what you notice - this stuff works!