Everyone is well aware of how important physical activity is for the body, and some exercises can be more targeted and focus on specific areas. However, facial exercises might not be so familiar to you. Yes, facial exercises are a thing and can be incredibly beneficial for your overall health. The good news is that they are relatively easy to do at home with just some simple instructions. So, here’s your quick guide to facial exercises, why they are important, what they are and how to do them.
Why Are Facial Exercises Important?
If you’ve never heard of facial exercises before, then the entire concept may sound a little strange. What’s the point? Why are they so important? Not only can they tighten up the muscles in your face, which provides a more defined look, but they can also help with many health issues. Facial exercises can help to decrease teeth grinding, reduce the frequency and number of headaches you normally experience, and help you with jaw and face posture.
Just remember that it is possible to do too much. You want to exercise your face but not go overboard. It’s the same as if you were working out other areas of your body — you need to also give time for your face to relax and recover from its workout.
Facial Exercises Can Improve Blood Circulation
Another benefit of facial exercises is that they can improve blood circulation in your face. The reason why this matters is because it can have an anti-aging effect. When blood flow increases, your face will look plumper and brighter. This increased blood flow also prompts collagen production, which has an anti-aging effect.
Mewing Is a Specific Form of Facial Exercise
Now imagine there were some facial exercises you could do that would benefit your jaw and thereby your neck, strengthening them and making them healthier, while potentially giving you a more defined facial structure. That is exactly why so many people are giving mewing a try. Mewing is made up of various exercises that work on proper tongue placement in your mouth. When your tongue is properly placed, it helps with jaw posture and thereby strengthens your jaw.
Curious about how to do mewing exercises? MoveWell covers it in detail, walking you through each step so there’s no confusion. The one tip to remember is that during these facial exercises there should not be any pain. If you do experience pain, you are likely doing it wrong so it’s best to stop, read the steps again or watch a tutorial and give it another try.
In terms of how often you should do the exercises, aim for about 20-30 minutes each day. Because you are working to improve tongue and thereby jaw posture, the goal is that over time these exercises just become a habit and you continue to hold good posture even when not mewing.
Facial Massages Can Also Offer Benefits
You may also want to try adding facial massages to your routine, as this will complement the targeted exercise extremely well. You can do this at home, so there’s no need to visit a spa. The key is to go about a gentle massage, as you are just trying to get the fluids moving in your face. This will help to relax tight muscles and nerves, de-puff your face and can even help to flush out fluids.
It is suggested you use a facial oil or lotion to massage your face, as it allows your hands to glide across your face and not tug at the skin.
When done in moderation and properly, facial exercises can be very beneficial to your overall health and well-being and even have an anti-aging effect.