The health and beauty benefits of practicing yoga have been well documented. But did you know that stretching it all out could be just as good for your face?
'Face Yoga' has been making a name for itself as an alternative anti-aging beauty treatment for some time now. The concept involves using exercises to tone, lift and sculpt muscles in the face and counteract sagginess and puffiness for a rejuvenated appearance.
Back in 2015, a pop-up called SkinGym Face Fitness established itself in New York offering a workout called 'Face Love'. Its UK equivalent, FaceGym, is still going strong, with a location in the London's flagship Selfridges department store as well as a stand-alone studio in the capital.
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FaceGym describes itself as "the UK's only gym studio for the face and the original non-invasive face workout", offering clients the chance to have their muscles stretched and sculpted by dedicated 'face trainers'. This year, the trend reached LA too, thanks to the city's new Skin Fit Gym, which hosts dedicated face training classes for individuals and groups.
"Face workouts are the new facials," says FaceGym's founder, Inge Theron.
But what if you can't get to a brick-and-mortar studio for a session? Luckily, facial workouts are also thriving online, giving rise to gurus like British 'Face Yoga Expert' Danielle Collins, who guides followers through various facial exercises via a series of YouTube tutorials.
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One of Collins' most popular videos, published this March, is aimed at smoothing out frown lines. She suggests gently massaging the area between the eyebrows, as well as lightly tapping the forehead and gently pinching and pulling at the eyebrows to relieve tension and help stimulate the production of collagen. FaceGym also published an article this April detailing a series of DIY facial exercises that can aid lymphatic drainage and reduce the appearance of under-eye circles.
Is face yoga set to become a mainstream beauty trend? It remains to be seen, but when it comes to working out, maybe we could all use a little extra face time.
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