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Description
A relatively new addition to the skin care regimen, facial exercises isolate and engage muscles, adding definition to counteract the drooping, sagging, and migration of fat from gravity and aging.
Most programs call for doing facial exercises 3-5 times a week, 20-30 minutes each time.
Cheekbone Lift
Place your fingers over your cheekbones and gently lift the skin until it is taut. Open your mouth to form an elliptical "O," so you feel resistance in your cheek muscles. Hold for 5 seconds. Repeat 10-15 times.
Eyebrow Lifter
Press the 3 middle fingertips of each hand under eyebrows to force eyes open. Smile while furrowing eyebrows down against fingers. Hold while breathing deeply. Close upper eyelids tightly, rolling eyebrows toward top of your head. Hold for 20 seconds while breathing deeply and smiling. Release and relax. Repeat 3 times.
Upper and Lower Eyelids
Form "binoculars" over eyes by touching thumbs and index fingers together. Widen the circles by gently moving index fingers and thumbs away from each other. Keep fingers pressed against skin while scrunching lower eyelids as if squinting.
Happy Cheeks Sculpting
Smile with lips closed. Place index fingers at corners of mouth and press firmly. Slowly slide index fingers up cheekbones toward corners of eyes. Stop at top of cheekbones. Press to hold muscles in place for 20 seconds, placing middle fingers on top of index fingers for extra support if needed. Relax, then repeat twice.
Temple Developer
Press temples lightly while closing jaw, clenching teeth and moving chin upward. As you clench teeth and increase tension in the muscle as if trying to move your ears backward, concentrate on the temple area. Clench teeth tightly for 10 seconds, then clench down on back teeth for 10 seconds. Relax. Repeat 3 times.
Jaw and Neck Firmer
Make an "aah" sound with your mouth, then fold lower lip and corners of lips into your mouth and hold tightly. Extend lower jaw forward, closing your mouth as you visualize scooping up something heavy. Repeat 9 times, opening and closing mouth with each scoop. Raise chin about an inch each time until it is pointed toward the ceiling. On the final scoop, keep chin extended and hold for 20 seconds while visualizing the sides of your face lifting. Repeat sequence 3 times.
