Best and Simple Yoga exercises for slimming your face

Spending hours at the gym and counting your daily intake of calories will definitely help you gain a slimmer and fitter body. However, your face which speaks out your expressions, whether it is a smile or a frown, may not benefit much from this. Yes, your skin would glow but a healthy diet may not do much to get rid of those laugh lines that slowly appear as time passes by. So, how can you retain those lovely facial contours? Make-up provides a temporary solution and going under the knife may not be a preferred choice for many.

Image by © I Love Images/Corbis

Welcome to the world of facial workouts which will help to enjoy a well-sculpted and younger-looking face.  Just as the body muscles require a constant workout for gentle toning, so does the face. After all, the facial muscles work much more even when you are relaxing in your LaZ Boy chair whilst watching a humorous movie. Don’t worry; you can work on your facial muscles without leaving the comfort of your chair.

• Want to reduce that tad bit of unwanted chubbiness? Take a deep breath with your mouth. Hold the air in and transfer from one cheek to the other repeatedly. Exhale and repeat again a few times. This will help you to tone the muscles on either side of the cheek
• Pucker up your lips into the shape ‘O’ and blow out air through your mouth in quick successions.
• Suck in your cheeks while forcing out a smile. Hold for a few seconds and release. Repeat a 5-6 times.
• Raise your head towards the ceiling as much as possible (without straining your neck). Hold and repeatedly blow out air with your mouth. Bend your neck downwards, rest for a few seconds and repeat again. This exercise not only tones down the cheek muscles but also firms up the jaw line.
•  Press your lips together while blowing air under the upper lip and hold for 8-10 seconds. Repeat a few times.  This is a very simple yet effective way to get rid of the facial baby fat.
• Cover your upper lip with the lower one and try to reach out to your nose. Hold for 8-10 seconds and release. Initially your jaw muscles may strain a little. But repeated about 10 times will help tone the chin muscles.
• Open your mouth into a silent scream and hold for a few seconds. Relax briefly and repeat. This stretching gradually tones your facial muscles.
• The next time you pick up a drink (yes even water) try sipping through a straw. This automatically pulls in your cheeks; this is a simple yet very effective way to reduce the fat around your cheeks while highlighting the cheekbones.
• Gently suck in as much air as possible through your mouth and slowly release. This helps in tightening the jaw line.
• Get into a relaxed position and take a deep breath while rolling up your palms into a fist. Squeeze both eyes tightly shut until the facial muscles scrunch. Hold for a few seconds and exhale through the mouth and stick out your tongue. Open your eyes and stretch out your palms slowly. Relax and repeat 4-5 times.
• Pull up the skin of your cheeks with the middle and index fingers slowly while opening up your lips into a long ‘O’. Hold for a few seconds and release. Relax for a couple of seconds before repeating.
• Choose a subject in front of you and focus completely. Lift up your eyebrows whilst opening the eyes wide and hold for 8-10 seconds. Do not allow your eyebrows to crinkle. Relax and repeat.
• Gently hold the outside edges of your eyes with your fingers and slowly pull it in an upward movement. Pull up to a position where you can feel your cheeks move in the same direction. Hold for a few seconds and relax. Repeating this exercise helps to keep the unwanted crow’s feet and other fine lines at bay, besides toning up the facial muscles.

You do not have to take out an extra bit of time for these simple exercises; you can simply practice these while watching television, taking a short break between your cardiac workouts or whenever you choose. Say goodbye to wrinkles and say hello to a younger-looking you!!!!