Face Yoga: The New Facelift? Exercises to Try at Home

Le Colibry is too scared to go under the knife. Injections? Maybe, but some people’s results aren’t necessarily reassuring… So, she’s always on the lookout for new   skincare regimens to encourage graceful aging. After her Kobido massage, recommended in another article, she decided to look into face yoga. It’s a simple technique that anyone can get the hang of, and appears to be quite effective when practiced regularly.

A lot of us work out the muscles in our body, but we usually overlook the muscles in our face. And yet, we have tons of delicately intertwined facial muscles. It makes sense that they would merit their own workout session! That’s where face yoga comes in.

To learn more, Le Colibry met with yoga and face yoga instructor Crista Dubois, who shed some light on the subject and recommended a few daily exercises for a firmer face.

What is Face Yoga and How Does It Tone Our Skin?

According to Crista, face yoga is a series of specific movements that target, tone, and strengthen the facial muscles.

Over a third of our body’s muscles are located in the face and neck. And they’re all intertwined.
“It’s very important to know where your facial muscles are and which way they move before you begin. Did you know that you can even strengthen the muscles in your nose?”

Crista recommends starting with two or three “poses” every day for a month. Most women like to focus on jawline and neck care.
“When your jawline and neck are well defined, the entire way you carry yourself changes for the better.”
Good to know: Clenching isn’t a good way to work out. And neither are injections, which actually paralyze your muscles. “They block muscle movement and preventfluids, oxygen, and energy from circulating correctly.”

Crista’s advice: Focus on specific “problem areas” with two or three exercises a day for 30 days. You’ll start to see your entire face begin to change.
“Facial muscles can be developed just like the muscles in the rest of your body. Consistency is key; don’t overdo it or you may end up not doing anything at all.”

How Does Face Yoga Make Our Skin Glow?

“Glowing skin is a side effect of a good face workout.”
Face yoga has a relaxing and regenerating effect on our skin. “When we work our face muscles, we stimulate our facial pressure points, which promotes relaxation. A relaxed face always looks healthier and brighter than a tense one.”
Face yoga is a very good way to relax the muscles in your jaw, eyes, and head that  become tense when you spend a lot of time in front of screens or on the phone, or if you have bad posture for other reasons. Working your facial muscles promotes better microcirculation and smoothes out wrinkles, giving your skin a healthy glow.

In addition to your daily exercises, acupressure can also stimulate different areas of your body to help release and cleanse accumulated toxins.

Crista’s Recommended Poses for a Firmer Neck and Jawline

• Tone your neck

Pose: Place your hands on the indents above your collarbone to stimulate your lymphatic system and get glowing skin. Relax your shoulders, drop your arms by yours sides, and look straight ahead.
Movement: Slowly lift your head and pretend to kiss the sky 5 times. Return your head to its starting position. Close your eyes and relax for 5 seconds. Repeat 10 times. You should feel all of the muscles in your neck and under your chin stretching.
Bonus: At the end of the set, place your fingers below your chin and press slowly down your neck toward your chest to help your lymphatic system to drain toxins.

• Strengthen your jawline

Pose: Place your right fist under your chin, like Rodin’s “Thinker” sculpture.
Movement: Slowly open and close your mouth, putting firm upward pressure on your chin with your first. Repeat 10 times.

• Tone your chin

Pose: Hold your jawbone firmly on either side of your chin with your thumb and index finger.
Movement: Keeping a firm hold on your jaw, bring your lower jaw forward, touching the inside of your lower lip to the top of your upper lip. Repeat 10 times.

Crista’s advice: Doing these exercises with your eyes closed allows you to really concentrate on working each muscle and, eventually, isolating your muscles.

Le Colibry’s Recommendations for Getting Started:

Try a hands-on session
If you have the time, a hands-on session will really help you get started with these basic poses.
In Geneva: Crista gives private and small group face yoga classes. Contact her for more information: .

Read up
Yoga du visage et techniques associées – Alain Pénichot and Pierre Nicou.
A great book. It’s in French, but there are lots of pictures! 

Videos from the experts:

Face Yoga Method: A comprehensive face yoga program developed by Fumiko Takatsu, an expert from Japan www.faceyogamethod.com
You can purchase access to specific courses depending on your needs: smooth out your forehead wrinkles, tone your face, lift your cheeks, brighten your eyes, etc. Some of her poses aren’t as simple as they look, but they get easier the more you practice.
Expect to spend: $17 for her 28-day course Big Bright Eyes – Eye Area Jump Start.
Try it first: Opening Binocular Pose

Face Yoga – 6 Exercices to Do at Home: Face yoga expert Danielle Collins made this video for Marie Claire Magazine UK:
watch it here

Ready, set, tone!