Face yoga, collagen, and self-massage: these solutions to prevent wrinkles.
For the past few months, I've had the same routine every morning. I get out of bed, slide my feet into my slippers and run into my bathroom to come face to face with my own reflection. I can stay there for several minutes, facing my mirror, as if hypnotized. I can't stop staring at anything but those little wrinkles around my mouth, my eyes and my forehead. It may seem silly that my wrinkles can affect my mood, but I can't help it. It has become one of my main concerns.
These wrinkles, these little signs of life, reflecting in front of me, remind me of memories of my youth, my first loves, the happiest moments of my life. But at the same time, they show me the passing of time, that I cannot control and the fact that I am inevitably getting older.
Like many, I accept them, but I don't necessarily embrace them.
And love them? Even less so.
I became so obsessed with these little wrinkles that I tried to find out more about them. On the internet, I found dozens and dozens of websites and articles proposing, supposedly, miracle cures to make them disappear. So I started my investigation to understand the origin of these wrinkles and thus find possible remedies to treat them.
It turns out that wrinkles are folds that appear naturally on the skin as we age. They have many causes. We immediately think of aging and the slowing down of collagen and elastin production in the skin, but this is not the only factor. They can also be caused by other factors such as sun exposure, dehydration, facial expressions, pollution, smoking and stress.
How to make them disappear? There are no miracle cures without surgery. However, it is possible to prevent them from appearing by moisturizing, eating a healthy diet, protecting yourself from the sun and taking care of your skin by using good skin care products and creams and by cleansing it morning and night.
While doing my research, I was intrigued by some of the techniques and products that have been developed in recent years and widely shared on social media. No extravagant promises or miraculous results, but simple solutions to prevent and reduce wrinkles.
I tested (and approved!) three of them, which I present here.
FACIAL YOGA
Face yoga doesn't ring a bell? I reassure you, at first, neither do I. But as we've seen in the last few years, the trend around yoga has only gotten stronger. It is everywhere: yoga for the back, yoga for menstruation, yoga for pregnant women and even yoga for sleep...
The latest addition is facial yoga. A yoga that has been able to adapt to the needs of modern city dwellers and that makes it so popular.
It is difficult to trace its precise origin, but similar gestures can be found in certain traditional Asian cultures.
The practice is simple and can be practiced anywhere, at any time of the day. It consists of making specific movements with the face to strengthen the muscles, reshape the oval of the face and plump the skin. It is also a good anti-aging technique. It improves skin tone and reduces the signs of aging. It is also good for your well-being, as this practice has relaxing properties and helps improve mental clarity.
To practice facial yoga, it is advisable to start with simple exercises, such as forced smiling, cheek puffing and tongue movement. For those who want to take it to the next level, here are two facial yoga exercises that I personally love:
The Fish Exercise, which is great for smoothing out the wrinkles in the nasolabial fold, which extend from the corner of the lips to the corner of the nose, and firming the cheeks.
Instructions:
- Blow up your cheeks by filling them with air. Keep your mouth closed. You can help by putting your hand over your mouth.
- Blow air from one cheek to the other. Repeat this movement about 10 times.
- Do the same thing, but this time send the air up and down.
- Exhale the air, forming a small " o" with your lips.
- Repeat the exercise at least three times.
The anti-dark circle exercise, to be performed to reduce them.
Instructions:
- Position your head upright
- Bring your eyes upwards
- Form a large "o" with your mouth
- Hold this posture for at least 5 seconds before releasing.
- Repeat the exercise at least three times.
COLLAGEN SUPPLEMENTS
There are many articles and testimonials touting the benefits of collagen supplements, but for me, it was a bit of a blur. I had images of botox and syringes in my head, but I was wrong.
I learned that collagen is naturally present in our bodies. It is even the most abundant protein in us. It is responsible for the firmness and flexibility of our skin. It is found in tendons, ligaments, muscles and skin.
However, our natural production of collagen decreases with age, leading to the appearance of wrinkles and other signs of aging. To compensate for this decrease, we can find collagen in certain foods such as salmon, meat, red fruits and eggs. It is also possible to take collagen supplements.
In addition to their mission to reduce wrinkles, these supplements will also reduce joint pain and improve nail growth.
I have started including collagen rich foods in my diet and using collagen supplements from Naturiste.
My product selection:
Highly hydrolyzed, this product helps with collagen formation and protein synthesis. It makes the skin supple and elastic and protects elastin and collagen fibers damaged by UV rays.
I also opted for Collagen Essential powder, which is a source of essential and non-essential amino acids for protein synthesis, as well as lysine, which helps in collagen formation. Collagen Essential has also helped me reduce my joint pain and that's great.
Lastly, I chose the Collagen Skin Care Set made with marine collagen. It consists of a face cream, an eye and lip contour gel, a body lotion and a hand and foot cream. All elaborated with natural ingredients, plant extracts and essential oils. These different products smooth and moisturize my skin, prevent dryness and reduce fine lines and wrinkles.
My favorite is definitely the eye and lip contour gel that brightens my eyes and softens my lip contour.
SELF-MASSAGE
The third technique I discovered to prevent and reduce wrinkles was self-massage. Although I had heard of this technique before from friends who were into it, I had never really delved into the subject.
As I started out, these same friends stressed to me that self-massage was not a miracle method that would get rid of all my wrinkles in the blink of an eye. However, it can help improve the appearance of skin and wrinkles.
Self-massage is a massage technique that you can do yourself at home. It can help improve blood and lymph circulation and stimulate collagen and elastin production. Facial massage is also great for relaxing, as it has relaxing properties that help to loosen muscles and relieve stress.
How to perform it? Start by making gentle and regular movements on your face.
Self-massage can be done with your fingers and/or hands, a massage roller, a massage stick or other accessories.
It is easy to integrate self-massage into your daily routine. Personally, I practice this technique every night before going to bed to relax and enjoy a moment of relaxation.
After several weeks of using all three solutions, I am starting to see significant results on the appearance of my skin. My wrinkles are less noticeable, and my skin looks firmer and more radiant. I have also noticed a decrease in the bags and dark circles under my eyes.
Self-massage, facial yoga, collagen supplements and my collagen skincare products have become part of my routine and are now part of my beauty and well-being essentials.
However, it is important to note that these techniques and supplements must be practiced and used regularly to achieve lasting results. It is not enough to do it once in a while and hope for a miraculous effect.
Note to self: these wrinkles are part of me and my history, and I must accept them. Despite their presence, I am a beautiful, unique and authentic woman. I constantly remind myself that I am beautiful just as I am, and I am grateful for all the experiences that have brought me here.
The little extra: Some vitamins and minerals help regenerate the skin by boosting the effective production of collagen. This is the case with vitamins C and E and zinc. You can find all these ingredients in the Naturiste multivitamins. Think about it 🙂
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