Is Face Yoga Alternative for Facelift ?

 

Do Face Exercises Actually Work?

While more research needs to be done, face exercises (or face yoga) definitely show a positive impact. These exercises seem to enlarge and strengthen the facial muscles, causing the face to become firmer, and more toned, and slow down the effects of gravity and time. Besides, they’re practically free and require a few minutes a day, so there isn’t much harm in trying them out.

Many facial yoga experts and influencers swear by the benefits of practicing face exercises, but let's first understand what they entail. 

The human face possesses over two dozen individual muscles on each side - upwards of 30, depending on how they are counted. Facial exercises or yoga for the face are simple exercises meant to work on strengthening our facial muscles by using quick massaging techniques. These work particularly on stimulation of the skin, muscles and lymphatic system. Simple facial exercises involve massaging with small, repeated motions on the face. These may also include making exaggerated expressions that help in activating and toning facial muscles. 

How do face exercises (or face yoga) really work?

Like every other muscle in our body, our facial muscles also get stronger and slightly bigger when exercised. These bigger, stronger muscles provide firmness and volume, helping the face look fuller. Again, like all other forms of exercise, it has been observed that consistency is important for these results 

There also seems to be a link between facial exercises and an anti-aging effect on facial skin. Sagging skin and other age-related changes are partially caused by the effect of gravity. The former President of the American Academy of Dermatology, Dr Suzanne Olbricht, states that face yoga’s ability to reduce lines and sagging skin could be because toned muscles after exercise keep fat cells under our skin (which make our skin look plump) in place, preventing them from sliding down and sagging.

Moreover, the muscular activity obtained from exercising the face could potentially promote the production of two types of proteins in our facial skin - collagen and elastin – which give our skin structure and flexibility respectively. However, research still needs to demonstrate this in well-controlled studies.

An interesting study of women who performed facial exercise consistently for 20 weeks (30 minutes a day for the first eight weeks and every alternate day for the next 12 weeks), found that their skin visibly looked two years younger when reviewed by a dermatologist. These exercises can be done by everyone and could potentially counterbalance the aging effect and also enhance muscle function. Additionally, a face workout can create significant volume changes around the upper lip, jawline, and cheeks, making our face appear younger.

But there is a potential downside. Experts are of the same opinion that many signs of facial ageing like crow’s-feet, laugh lines, folds, and forehead wrinkles — result from repetitive facial muscle activity like frowning or smiling over time. So while facial exercises definitely do show promising results, excessive manipulation or massage of the skin results in overuse and fatigue of muscles which can also be caused by these facial exercises when they aren’t performed the right way . As with all other forms of exercise, moderation and doing them correctly seems to be the middle ground.