Facial Firming Exercises

Facial Firming Exercises
Photo Credit woman"s face image by Jarek Miarka from Fotolia.com

Heredity, facial expression habits, sun exposure, gravity and aging all can converge on a face to cause loose skin, wrinkles and sagging, report doctors at the Cleveland Clinic. While the skin on the face cannot be tightened through exercise, the muscles attached to the facial skin can be exercised to provide better lift and hold on loose skin.

Pout

There are a number of facial exercises that are easy to perform and don't require any special kind of equipment. Pouting is an exercise that can help to tighten sagging jowls and loose skin on the cheeks. To do a proper pout, push out your bottom lip so that it covers your top lip, just like a two-year old. At the same time, smile as big as you can, holding the position for a count of 10. While you're smiling, tilt your head up slightly and feel and additional pull on the neck muscles. Repeat five times at least twice a day for results.

Finger Exercises

Using the fingers to provide resistance to loose and sagging areas is an easy way to strengthen loose facial muscles. To tighten skin around the eyes, particularly drooping eyelids, hold an index finger under each eyebrow and push up gently. At the same time, close your eyes. Strengthen the loose skin on the sides of the eyes where crow's feet tend to form by placing a thumb on the edge of each eye and pushing the skin outwards gently. Rest the other fingers on the forehead while holding the position for a count of five.

Face Stretch

Stretching the whole face at once can help to tighten muscles from the forehead to the chin and neck and can be performed anywhere at any time. To stretch the whole face, open your mouth as wide as you can and stick out your tongue. Open your eyes wide and hold the position for a count of five. Relax and repeat 10 times. To avoid getting a crick in your neck or hurting your jaw, open and close your mouth slowly while performing this exercise.

Swallowing

Working the muscles in the deeper layers of the throat and face can help to strengthen the connective tissue that holds up the skin under the cheeks, neck and jowls. It is best to relax when performing swallowing exercises to avoid discomfort. To perform a swallowing exercise, tilt back your head until you are looking at the ceiling and press the tongue to the roof of the mouth and swallow. Follow this movement by tilting the head to the right and repeating the exercise and then to the left, keeping the tongue pressed to the roof of the mouth during the entire rotation. Repeat the rotation four more times.

References

Article reviewed by Contributing Writer Last updated on: Apr 19, 2010

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