Most people know that regular exercise is essential for a healthy, strong, and happy body. But did you know that exercising your face has its own benefits? Nowadays, facial exercises, gua sha, and facial massage are all the rage, and for a good reason. By providing a little bit of TLC to your facial muscles, you can relieve tension, enhance circulation, and achieve a more glowing and sculpted appearance.
Facial exercise is an age-old skincare practice, according to Marisa Garshick, MD, a board-certified dermatologist. “Facial exercise dates back many years, with reports [of techniques] originating in China, Mexico, France, and Sweden,” she says. Regardless of your skincare objectives, concerns, or preferences between professional and DIY, there is likely a facial exercise regimen that can help you achieve your desired outcomes. In this article, we share the thoughts of three skin experts, including Garshick, to share everything you need to know about facial massage and exercise so that you can work out your way to a bouncier, healthier complexion.
What are Facial Exercises?
Board-certified dermatologist Marisa Garshick explains that facial massage involves massaging your face with your hands or special tools to boost circulation, and it can be done in combination with a topical serum or oil. On the other hand, facial exercises are designed to strengthen and tone specific facial muscles, which can result in a more sculpted and lifted appearance.
As we age, our skin loses collagen, leading to sagging and wrinkles. Holistic skincare expert and entrepreneur Julie Lindh recommends facial massage and exercise to maintain plumpness and bounce, particularly in the cheeks. Although facial exercises don’t require weights or machines like regular workouts, the benefits are similar. As Lindh points out, “Muscle is muscle.” Facial muscles react in the same way as the muscles in your arms and legs when you exercise, increasing heat and microcirculation in those areas. The stronger the muscles beneath the skin, the tighter it looks on the surface.
Benefits of Facial Exercises
Facial exercises can offer numerous benefits for your skin, including improved muscle strength and circulation. Depending on the technique used and your specific skin concerns, you may experience a variety of advantages, such as:
- Improved Plumpness & Radiance: According to dermatologist Michele Garshick, facial massage helps stimulate circulation, resulting in a lifted and plumper appearance of the skin. Consistent practice of facial exercises can also provide sculpting and a natural glow to the skin, similar to the benefits of working out the body.
- Reduces Puffiness: If you have under-eye bags or your skin holds excess tension and fluid buildup, facial exercises can help to reduce puffiness by aiding your lymphatic drainage processes, according to Garshick. With consistent practice, you may experience a more sculpted and awake appearance, along with a sense of release.
- Contours & Sculpts: Facial massage can help define and lift your face, much like toning the muscles on your body. “When you do facial exercises, you’re contouring your face and shaping it up,” says facialist and skincare expert Cecilia Lindh. With stronger face muscles, you may see longer-lasting effects.
- Smoothen Fine Lines & Wrinkles: Face yoga and stretching, according to Garshick, can reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines by making your skin look smoother and plumper, in addition to lifting and tightening your complexion.
Although facial exercises offer a host of potential advantages and minimal risks, it is important to note that they cannot thicken your skin. Board-certified dermatologist Brooke Jackson, MD, FAAD, explains that facial muscles are typically thin and not designed to bear heavy loads, unlike the larger muscle groups in our bodies. “Strengthening one muscle group with repetitive exercise allows that muscle to thicken, get larger, and more defined. However, muscles of the face (think: the forehead, around the eyes, and on the neck) are generally very thin and unlikely to get appreciably larger from exercise,” she says. She also adds that there is no clinical evidence demonstrating significant benefits of facial exercises, so it is essential to keep your expectations realistic.
How to Facial Exercises Work?
Like working out your body, facial massage and exercises involve movements, stretching, and consistency to achieve their objectives. “Facial exercises include performing stretches and movements of the face to tone the face and create a more lifted appearance,” explains dermatologist Dr. Marisa Garshick. “Face yoga, similar to yoga for the body, helps to move the muscles in your face with various stretches and exercises.”
While facial exercise has several benefits and is relatively easy to perform, it’s important to have realistic expectations and not rely on it as a sole solution for all concerns. “While this may help stretch the skin, it may not replace other treatments,” Garshick advises. “It’s also important to avoid overstretching certain areas and to be gentle with the skin.”
What to Expect?
With facial massage, you can enjoy a range of temporary effects like improved circulation, radiance, and plumpness right after a session. However, for long-lasting results such as improved muscle tone and reduced signs of aging, it is best to be consistent with your practice. Facial massage can also help enhance the plumpness in your cheek area, according to Garshick: “One study revealed that a 30-minute daily or alternate-day facial exercise program sustained over 20 weeks may improve the facial appearance of selected middle-aged women, particularly with upper and lower cheek fullness.”
The pictures above showcase the results of a study conducted at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in 2013, published in 2018, that evaluated the effectiveness of facial exercises. The woman in the photos learned 32 exercises from Happy Face Yoga’s Gary Sikorski to strengthen facial muscles that tend to weaken with age. She then practiced these exercises for half an hour daily for eight weeks, followed by every other day for another 12 weeks. The photos, taken before starting the exercises, after eight weeks, and after 20 weeks, reveal that the woman’s skin looks more radiant and plumper, with reduced under-eye puffiness. As a result, dermatologists estimated the participants’ age to be three years younger on average by the end of the study.
Few Facial Exercises to Try
Brow Stretch
- Use your forefinger to push your eyebrows away from each other
- Helps with stretching out fine lines in the area
Circle your Tongue
- Place your tongue inside the mouth to make a circle around where the nasolabial folds are
- Go around five circles clockwise and counterclockwise
- Helps improve the strength and tone of face muscles
Fish Lips
- Suck in your cheeks like a fish, with your lips pursed
- Smile as hard as you can while keeping your eyes relaxed
- Hold for 10 seconds, then relax
- Do four reps of this facial exercise per day
- Works out your cheek muscles
Kiss Face
- Pout your lips like you’re about to kiss someone
- Smile as hard as you can with your lips still pursed, while keeping your eyes relaxed
- Hold for 10 seconds, then relax
- Do four reps of this move per day
- Helps work out your cheek muscles
The Whistler
- Make an ‘O’ with your lips, like you’re going to whistle
- Smile as hard as you can with your lips still forward in the ‘O’ shape
- Hold for ten seconds, relax, and repeat three times
- Pump your cheeks up and down 12 times with your lips still in an ‘O’ shape
- Relax and do this four times a day
- Helps improve the strength and tone of face muscles
The Bottom Line
Facial exercises are an easy and effective way to improve the tone and structure of your facial muscles. By consistently performing these exercises and following proper techniques, you can reduce tension, increase radiance, and enhance plumpness. While facial exercises may not be as potent as certain skincare products and treatments, they have several potential benefits for both your appearance and well-being. Given their simplicity, it’s worth trying them out to see the results for yourself. Even if you don’t see a significant difference in your skin, the act of practicing intentional self-care can help you feel relaxed and rejuvenated.
