The visible signs of aging can be a real bummer…

Lines around the mouth, jowls, a sagging neck and wrinkles — including crow’s feet, the infamous “11” between the brows and horizontal lines across the forehead — can get to those of us even with the most positive outlook on aging.

No wonder anti-aging creams and serums line store shelves, while medi spas have popped up on every corner offering microneedling, Botox and fillers that promise to bring back that youthful plumpness. And for those who want a total overhaul, plastic surgery is always an option.

The downside to all this? It’s invasive and expensive. You’ve got to maintain the use of Botox or fillers once you’ve started — or you end up back at square one within a matter of months.

Luckily, there may be one thing you can do to turn back the clock on your appearance that involves zero knives or needles — and doesn’t cost a cent…

Give your face a workout

Your face is made up of layers of skin, fat and muscle that sit on top of your skull. When you start aging, the pads of fat that shape your face and give it that youthful fullness begin to thin and atrophy, causing it to sag.

There’s no natural means of re-plumping these fat pads. However, there is a way you can strengthen the muscles under the pads so that areas of the face might appear plumper and firmer.

One Northwestern University study showed that women who regularly practiced 30 minutes of 32 different facial exercises subtracted three years from their appearance after just 20 weeks. Their upper and lower cheeks were noticeably fuller, and the women said they noticed improvements in every area of their face.

It makes sense. But just like pumping up your biceps, it takes consistency.

Many dermatologists caution there are limits to what “face yoga” can do for appearance —and of course, they’d rather you buy into what they offer.

However, according to Harvard Health Publishing, there are a couple of specific areas where these exercises can be of benefit:

• Reducing the appearance of thick scars. Using facial exercises that include stretching and movement could loosen up and lessen the appearance of a tight scar.
• Improving gravity-related fat loss. Facial exercises could help improve facial muscle tone and help keep the fat in the face from drooping with the pull of gravity. However, the change is likely to be subtle and far less than accomplished by cosmetic means such as dermal fillers.

How to do facial exercise

The exercises done by the women in the Northwestern study were recommended by Happy Face Yoga founder Gary Sikorski. Here are just a few for you to try (links to videos are included):

• For the cheeks: First, smile without showing your teeth. Then, roll your lips outward in a sort of pursed expression. This will make you want to stop smiling, but keep trying to smile with the corners of your mouth so that you’re pushing your cheek muscles upward. Next, press a finger at the corner of your lips on either side and slowly and firmly slide them up toward your cheekbones. When you get to the top of the cheekbone, continue to press firmly for 20 seconds.
• For the jawline: First, put your hands at the base of your neck. Then, raise your chin and tilt your head back slightly. Extend your lower jaw, push the tip of your tongue against the roof of your mouth and smile. You should feel your neck muscles tighten. Hold for 30 seconds.
• For wrinkles: First, put three fingers from each hand between your eyebrows. Then, press down and pull up so you’re lifting your eyebrows. Stretch the eyebrows apart, then frown so that they come down. With your fingers still firmly pushing down on your forehead, slide your eyebrows in opposite directions toward either side of your head. Do 10 repetitions of the whole series.

You shouldn’t expect them to see dramatic results, but if you’re consistent, you can get a lift that helps you feel you’re putting your best face forward.

What else can you do?

• Exercise your body too: Research a few years ago by McMaster’s University found people (in their 40s) who frequently exercised, had skin more comparable to 20-30-year-olds than to others the same age. Specifically, they had thicker dermis layers with greater elasticity.
• Drink white tea: This tea contains more catechins than most other teas. Catechins prevent free radicals from breaking down elastin and collagen. Elastin keeps skin from sagging and collagen supports skin’s elasticity. This is beneficial against sagging and wrinkling.
• Reduce sugary foods: Processed sugars trigger the release of inflammatory messengers called cytokines. These break down collagen and elastin.
• Eat more of these 6 foods that increase collagen production.

Sources:

Association of Facial Exercise With the Appearance of Aging — JAMA Dermatology

Does your face need a workout? — Harvard Health Publishing

Do face exercises to slim your face work, or is it just another overhyped beauty trend? — Today