Does face yoga actually work?
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Face yoga is the latest skincare trend and it is all about exercise - but for your face rather than your body. Celebrities like Meghan Markle, Jennifer Aniston and Kate Moss all swear by holistic skin health1 and, frankly, if it is good enough for them then it is good enough for us!
So, it is really popular amongst the A listers - but does face yoga work?
What is face yoga?
As we grow older, our skin starts to show perfectly natural signs of ageing including sagging, wrinkles and fine lines.
Face yoga has been touted as a natural way to avoid having filler injections or going under the knife for a face lift.
How often should you do face yoga?
It is thought that to see results from your face exercise routine that you should perform your facial muscle exercises three to five times each week, for around 20 minutes each time.6
Five face yoga exercises to try
Here are some face exercises for you to try at home.
During each of these face yoga poses, try to keep your posture upright and straight, your chest open and do not hold your breath.
1
The warm up
Open your mouth as if you are yawning.
Keep your forehead still and move your gaze from eye level all the way up to the ceiling. Hold this for 10 seconds and then repeat twice more.8
2
Neck toning
Keep your shoulders down and then tip your chin up to the ceiling until you feel a good stretch.
Alternate between duck lips and sticking out your tongue, holding each pose for five seconds. Repeat three times.9
3
Face yoga for eyes
Press both of your middle fingers together at the inner corners of your eyebrows and then apply pressure with your index fingers to the outer corners of the brows.
Look up to the ceiling and the skin underneath the eyes upwards into a squint and then relax.
Repeat six times and then squeeze your eyes tightly shut for 10 seconds.10
4
Forehead smoother
Make both your hands into fists.
With your fingers facing towards you, place the knuckles of both of your middle fingers in the centre of your forehead.
Apply moderate pressure and then slide your fists to each side of the forehead, finishing at your temples. Repeat six times.11
5
Crow’s feet
Place your middle and index fingers of both hands just above your temples and pull up, feeling the stretch.
Squint for five seconds without moving your forehead and then relax.
Repeat this exercise three times.12
Does it actually work?
There have not been many studies into whether face yoga actually works or not.
A 2018 study from Northwestern University showed that 20 weeks of daily facial exercises did result in firmer skin and fuller upper and lower cheeks.13
This is an optimistic sign that face yoga could work. But the best way to find out is to give it a try and see if you see any face yoga results!
Senior Regulatory Affairs Associate
Joined Holland & Barrett: Apr 2019
Masters Degree in Toxicology and BSc Hons in Medical Biochemistry
Bhupesh started his career as a Clinical Toxicologist for Public Health England, advising healthcare professionals all around the country on how to manage clinical cases of adverse exposure to supplements, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, industrial chemicals and agricultural products.
After 7 years in this role and a further year working as a drug safety officer in the pharmaceutical industry, Bhupesh joined Holland & Barrett as a Senior Regulatory Affairs Associate in 2019.
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