Face Yoga Techniques For Toned, Sculpted Skin

Sure. We’ve talked about how your regular workouts can affect your face, but what if you want to give your face the workout?

Well. You’ve come to the right place. Face yoga is a skin care trend that’s soared in popularity in recent months. So we’ve called in two experts to teach us exactly how to practice it from the comfort of your own tracksuit.

What is face yoga, anyway?

Face yoga is exactly what it sounds like: A face workout designed to tone your skin as well as the underlying muscles and tissues.

“The face is made up of muscles, ligaments, fascia and other layers of tissue that can hold tension and get tight; we need to work out the face, just like any other area of the body,” explains Candace Marino of @thelafacialist.

Face yoga uses “muscle exercises, conscious breathing and correction of body posture to tighten tone and lift the face,” says Vanamala Mayr-Reisch the founder of Face Yoga Australia, explaining that it can assist with smoothing wrinkles, restoring facial symmetry, and targeting areas such as frown lines, droopy eyes, and marionette lines.

The benefits of face yoga

According to Mayr-Reisch, consistently practicing face yoga can:

• Improve skin tightness and tone, leaving skin looking lifted
• Reduce inflammation on the skin
• Help increase blood circulation
• Release tension in jaw, neck, shoulders, and help prevent headaches.

While Marino also suggests face yoga can assist in slowing down the ageing process, by toning your facial muscles, resulting in sculpted, firm skin.

Two easy face yoga exercise to try at home

Ready to dip your toe into face yoga? Here are two techniques that Mayr-Reisch recommends and teaches at Face Yoga Australia to get you on your face tone-y way.

Exercise #1

Goal: To reshape your jawline, strengthen neck muscles, and lift a double chin.

Do this:

1. Sitting upright, place your tongue behind your upper front teeth
2. Look up towards the ceiling and begin to gently lift your head
3. Press your tongue against the roof of your mouth and repeat 10 times.
4. Come down and repeat for another two sets.

Exercise #2

Goal: To strengthen cheek muscles (which are key to lifting the face overall), reduce marionette lines, and smooth smoker lines. (Note! You need a pencil for this exercise.)

Do this:

1. Curl your upper and lower lips over your teeth
2. Pull up the corners of your mouth to a smile
3. Place a pencil horizontally between your lips and hold it gently with your lips.
4. Hold this position for 30 seconds.
   
   

Five useful tips for face yoga beginners

Okay, you know the benefits, you’ve got your exercises, but is there anything else you should know before diving into the world or face yoga? Yes! Here are five things to keep in mind as you get started.

1. Identify any habits you want to change
It could be frowning, pulling down the corners of your mouth, or clenching your teeth, says Mayr-Reisch. Becoming aware of them is the first step, then you can begin trying to avoid them in future and retrain yourself with better habits that are suited to your personal goals.

2. Prep well
Always apply a moisturiser before you start to give your skin a nice smooth base for your exercises. And once your canvas is nice and prepped, kick off your face exercises with a warm-up pose and stretch. “With assistance from your hand, drop the head towards one shoulder, stretching in the direction of the head, then switch to the other side. After you've stretched both sides, use both hands behind the neck and massage the muscles alongside the spine, and work up into the back of the skull,” suggests Marino.

3. Set yourself a goal
Consider what you think feels achievable and realistic to get you started and then stick to it for at least four weeks. Once you’ve reached the four week mark you may find you want to readjust your goals.

4. Don’t overdo it
Aim to practice once or twice a day max. And if you’re having trouble sneaking it into your day? “I always recommend incorporating it during downtime- so while watching TV or even in the shower,” says Marino.

5. Use upward movements
“As a rule of thumb, when we massage or manually work out the face, we want to always move in an upward motion,” says Marino. This is to encourage lifting and to help attain a firmer, sculpted look.