Are your double chin and chubby cheeks making you feel insecure about your looks? Fat on the face is a problem that’s hard to tame for many of us. While cosmetic surgery is often touted as a “quick-fix” for this, all it might actually do is open up a Pandora’s box. What you really need is a safe, non-invasive solution that will sort out the problem inside out – and for good! Here are 8 all-around, all-natural steps to get you that sculpted look you’ve always wanted.
1. Lose Weight Overall To Lose Face Fat
If you are overweight, that’s where you need to start. As most fitness experts and nutritionists will tell you, losing weight only on specific parts of the body is difficult and almost impossible. What you can do, however, is lose weight overall to knock off weight on problem spots too. Unfortunately, if you’re someone that tends to hold their fat in the face, this is also where you will lose the weight last. Still, losing any extra pounds is sure to help you to some extent.
So, how do you lose fat? A healthy amount of weight loss translates to losing about a pound every week. You can do this by ensuring you have a calorie deficit – in other words, burn more calories than you consume. Aim to keep your calorie intake 500 calories short of what you burn a day through normal activities including exercise.1 And once this is on track, you can also introduce exercise to tone up your face and cut the fat.
2. Do Facial Exercises To Strengthen And Tone Your Face Muscles
A workout for your face may seem odd but it could deliver the results you need. In one test, women between 40 and 65 years old did facial exercises for 30 minutes every day (for the first 8 weeks of the study) and 30 minutes of workout on alternate days (between weeks 9 and 20 of the study). The exercises helped strengthen the women’s facial muscles and the face took on a more toned and firm appearance.2
Happy Cheeks Sculpting
Do this to lift and tighten up your cheeks.3
- Smile as widely as you can without baring your teeth. You should smile with the corners of your mouth too – feel your cheeks being lifted up.
- Next, place your index fingers on the corners of your mouth and then press the muscles down firmly as you slide the fingers up to your cheekbones.
- You should press deeply in, so you are able to lift the muscles over the top of the cheekbones.
- Hold at the top of the cheekbones for 20 seconds. Your cheek muscles should feel like they are tightening. Just take care not to go up too far or near your eyes – you’ll lose your grip.
- Breathe slowly and deeply throughout.
Scooping: Jaw And Neck Firmer
This exercise is designed to help you work the muscles on and surrounding your chin, including below it. It should take care of any sagging cheeks and help firm up your chin.4
- Start by smiling.
- Next, open your mouth and make “ahh” sounds.
- Tuck the corners of your lips and your lower lip into your mouth and hold this position tightly. Jut your lower jaw forward.
- Now, visualize using your lower jaw as a scoop and imagine you’re trying to pick up something heavy. Your chin should be pulled up an inch when you do this and your head can tilt back a bit.
- Perform the above step 10 times.
- On the last repetition, hold the raised position for about 20 seconds. Picture the sides of your face also being lifted.
- Release and repeat the entire sequence of 10 reps and the hold move 3 times.
3. Try Sukshma Yoga For The Face
You may have heard of facial yoga as a means to tone up your face. Sukshma yoga or micro yoga achieves this by using facial exercises that are both simple and very subtle in their movements. It should leave your face rejuvenated and your muscles and nerves relaxed and streamlined.5
Cheek Exercise
Tone your face up by strengthening those cheek muscles to make them seem more lifted and less sallow and saggy.
- Inhale from the mouth, puffing your cheeks up with the air.
- Hold them puffed for a few seconds.
- Exhale from your mouth, releasing the air.
- Do this 8 to 10 times.
Chin Exercise
Give yourself a nice defined jawline with this exercise that helps get rid of double chins.
- Put the thumbs of both hands below the chin to support it.
- Now press the chin from below and use your thumbs to move it up.
- Repeat this for 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Use Natural Remedies To Improve Skin Elasticity
Sagging cheeks can make you look puffier and less toned. If you work at improving the elasticity of your skin, you should see a change in how you look. Some common pantry ingredients can help you get firm, well-toned skin, making your face look more streamlined and sculpted. Incorporate the following natural remedies into your daily skincare regimen.
Cocoa Butter
The cocoa polyphenols found in cocoa butter can help improve skin elasticity and skin tone. It boosts collagen and reduces wrinkle formation after exposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun, too.6
Melon
Vitamin C, when used as a topical treatment, helps stimulate the production of collagen, a building block of skin that keeps it looking supple and firm. This effect has been noted in both young and older skin, making it a good firming remedy for people of all ages.7 Cantaloupe melon is a fruit that can work both as a source of vitamin C and as a topical remedy.7 Simply dab on the juice using a clean cotton ball and leave it for a few minutes before rinsing off. Don’t forget to eat some too!
Cucumber
Cucumber can help nourish your skin, soothing any irritation and easing swelling that could be making your face look fatter than it is. Simply apply the freshly squeezed juice of cucumber to your skin with cotton and leave on for a few minutes before rinsing off.8
Clay
Clay masks are known to help boost collagen production. Daily application of clay masks to animal test subjects was seen to boost the number of collagen fibers in the skin even as early as seven days into the treatment.9
For a one-shot face mask, combine clay powder with some cucumber juice and melon juice till you have a nice gooey paste you can spread easily. Now apply this on your face and chin. Wait till it’s dry before you rinse off.
5. Reduce Bloating By Cutting Salt Intake
Eating a lot of salty food can cause your body to retain more water and give you a bloated and puffy appearance on the face. To see a marked difference, monitor sodium intake, cut down on sodium-rich foods, and stay properly hydrated.10 If you need to use packaged foods or ingredients, buy only those that have under 120 mg sodium per 100 gm.11
6. Cut Down On Alcohol Consumption To Lose That Puffy Look
Alcohol intake can increase puffiness on the face, cause dehydration, and make you look bloated.12 Alcohol is also hugely fattening – after all, it packs in around seven calories per gram on average, making it similar to pure fat on the calories scale!13 Cut down on your intake and it should help you lose some weight overall – including on your face.
7. Sleep Well And See Your Face Tone Up
If you don’t sleep enough your face winds up looking puffy and swollen especially around the eyes. Researchers have also found that sleeping too little is associated with a higher body mass index (BMI).14 Sleep well and you will look more rested and less puffy. And keeping your BMI on point is going to help your face too!
8. Check For Medical Conditions
Sometimes, underlying health problems could be causing your face to look bloated and fat or giving you that double chin. If that’s the case, no amount of home remedies will help until you fix the root of the problem. Here are some possible medical reasons for your face looking plumper than it should.
- Thyroid problems could cause you to develop jowls over time.15
- Cushing’s Syndrome is associated with a classic round “moon face.”16
- Chronic sinusitis can cause your lymph nodes to swell up and make your face seem puffy and fat.17
- Salivary gland infections may also result in swelling in the jaw area and face.18
- Kidney problems may also cause the face to swell.19
If what you perceive as face fat is a recent development and you’ve also been noticing other symptoms, probe a bit deeper to see if a medical condition is to blame.
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