How Face Yoga Works on a Cellular Level

Age-Related Changes: Benefits of Face Yoga at the Cellular Level

Did you know that as you grow, there are changes in every nook and corner of your body? Well, yes. Growth comes from multiple underlying changes. Internal (genetic) and external (environmental and lifestyle) factors influence these changes.

Some of the critical cellular changes seen in your face as you age are;

• Collagen and elastin 
• Epidermal changes
• Reduced hydration and moisture
• Irregular fat distribution
• Changes in bone structure
• Increased sun damage

The good news is you can bring positive changes in these age-related outcomes with the help of face yoga.

Read on if you need to learn what these are and how the changes happen over time. We will explain the science behind it and why you need face yoga!

Skin Elasticity and Face Yoga Science - Changes in Collagen and Elastin

What are collagen and elastin?

Collagen is the body-building protein. It's almost 30% of your body's protein. Collagen gives structure, support and strength to your skin and other body structures. 

Elastin, as it sounds, is like an elastic substance. It's a protein that helps your body structures stretch out and shrink back. Elastin is why your chubby cheeks take back their standard shape even if someone pulls on them.

Now, what happens to these as you age?

Until your 20s, your skin is rich in collagen and elastin. So it looks firm, elastic and smooth.

As you age beyond your 30s, both collagen and elastin naturally decrease. There are age-related skin changes like sagging, wrinkles and fine lines on the face.

How Does Face Yoga Make an Impact?

When you repeatedly contract and release your facial muscles and skin during the facial exercises, a small amount of mechanical stress is induced on the facial cells. This stress triggers the formation of cells responsible for collagen and elastin production.

So try to boost collagen production with face yoga!

Peel and Heal Your Skin Layer - Epidermal Changes

The epidermis is the top layer of skin in your body. It has many essential functions, including protecting your body from the outside world, keeping your skin hydrated, producing new skin cells, and determining skin colour.

The epidermis is like the phoenix; It constantly renews itself.

Now, what happens to the epidermis as you age?

Cell turnover (the skin layer renewal) slows down, which results in dullness and uneven skin tone. 

Thinning epidermis - Due to less energy in the body, the skin layer thins out. Due to this, your skin may be more prone to damage and can't lock in moisture in it.

How Does Face Yoga Make an Impact?

This cellular repair with facial exercise is similar to what you have heard of regular exercises. 

With exercise, there's more pumping of blood. With more blood comes more oxygen and nutrient supply. With more nutrients, the metabolism of your skin cells improves, allowing them to improve their repair and healing potential. 

Science of Locking in the Moisture - Skin Hydration and Moisture Changes

Our skin layer has a great system where it locks in moisture. This superhero layer of skin called the 'stratum corneum' does not allow skin moisturising blobs to escape.

But what happens as you grow up?

The superhero layer also weakens and can no longer retain body moisture. The said process results in wrinkles and dryness in the skin.

How Does Face Yoga Make an Impact?

During this mechanism of face yoga for skin health, the appreciation goes to an increased blood flow. With more nutrients comes more moisture supply to your skin, which improves skin hydration.

Not just that, repeated muscle contraction also triggers the release of skin bonuses such as hyaluronic acid, which is excellent for hydration. 

So, what are you waiting for? Get that free hyaluronic acid from face yoga!

All Fat on Your Chin? Regularise Fat Distribution  

When you are young, fat deposition on your face is beautifully distributed. As your body cells start ageing, this distribution starts becoming uneven. It's as if the cell soldiers forget who they give fat molecules to. Thus, the plump and youthful appearance starts declining as you grow.

How Does Face Yoga Make an Impact?

With facial movements, the cells use the deposited fat as an energy source. Cellular rejuvenation takes place with face yoga. Thus, this prevents extra fat from going and stacking up in areas you don't want it to. It improves the contour of your face. 

With an increased lymphatic drainage around the face, the excessive fluid also gets lost, giving you a good face structure.

Facial Muscle Tone and Anti-Ageing Effects

Muscle tone is the amount of tension (or resistance to movement) in muscles. It explains the amount of movement we can achieve.

When you age, this tonicity reduces, and you lose your firm and lifted appearance.

How Does Face Yoga Make an Impact?

Repeated muscle activity produces micro-damage to the muscle cells. The activity pushes the muscles to regrow and heal faster. With this, you can overcome age-related muscle loss and tone to an extent. 

Bone Structure - Get That Chiselled Look

Bone structure defines the shape of your face. You may know that the calcium inside your bones reduces as you age, affecting your face's contour.

How Does Face Yoga Make an Impact?

Just like physical therapy improves bone regrowth after a fracture, face yoga-related movements help restructure and reconstruct your age-related weakened bones. 

Sun Damage Changes: Bring Back the Cellular Repair With Facial Exercises

As you go more and more into the sun, your skin tends to change. Some of them are wrinkles, age spots and uneven skin tone.

How Does Face Yoga Make an Impact?

With face yoga, you can prevent the changes related to sun damage. The improved blood circulation, collagen, and elastin formation can prevent wrinkles and age spots. 

How much rejuvenation have you missed by skipping face yoga from your routine? Too much? Well, it's time to learn from our face yoga experts.

For all those science heads out there, to make things more interesting, read on to know how these cellular mechanisms of face yoga work on a deeper level.

Let's briefly understand the profound cellular changes you get with face yoga.

Impact of Face Yoga on Cellular Metabolism - Deeper Level Mechanisms

Our cells have different rooms, just like our house. For instance, there is a room where they cook for energy. There is another one where they circulate nutrients and energy, like the electrical lines, and another where they exchange essential information, like windows.

So let's see how face yoga helps improve all the above functions from their home ground - The cells.

Bringing in More Energy - Mitochondrial Activity 

You must have heard about mitochondria, the powerhouse of the cell. Research studies show how much exercise and movement influence the function of mitochondria. So now we have increased energy production, which supports cellular function and the repair process. 

So, boost your facial powerhouse with face yoga.

Activating the Face Muscles: Myofibrillar Adaptation

Myofibrils are deeper contractile cellular structures on the muscles.

Repeated face yoga movements activate these structures, giving the muscles more strength and endurance.

Don't wait to get that facial muscle tone and anti-ageing effect.

Bringing Beauty with Collagen - Fibroblast Activation

So, you have read how important collagen is for your face. But did you know where these collages come from? Yes, Fibroblasts.

Fibroblasts secrete collagen proteins that help maintain the structural framework of tissues. With facial movements, you can increase your fibroblast production.

Also, face yoga and breathing exercises reduce stress and impact brain function. Thus, this lets your body continue its relaxed fibroblast activation of the facial muscles.

So that's how collagen production and face yoga go hand in hand. 

Fresh Oxygen and Nutrients - Angiogenesis and Anti Inflammation 

Angiogenesis means the formation of new blood vessels. Face yoga is like a magic wand that can create new connections between different cellular structures of the body. 

Fresh blood supplies good oxygen and antioxidants that help reduce chronic inflammation, thus improving skin health and appearance. 

With a repaired and freshly activated blood supply to the face, you increase the energy of facial cells.

Activating Chemical Messengers - Cell Signalling 

Just like how your phone signals connect you with your friends, cells have their chemical messengers to talk to each other. 

These messengers tell when and how to work for the repair and healing of your facial tissues. 

Facial movements and yoga exercises are like mini stressors to the small cells. These stressors push the production of these chemicals so that your face cells can modify any changes with age. That's how everyone together helps in cellular repair with facial exercises.

Improving your Genetics - Gene Expression 

You are all what your genes make you. That is right. But have you heard that some external factors can change the way your genes behave?

Scientists claim that exercise influences your genetic expressions and modifications. With the added benefit of yoga with facial exercises, the influence of stress hormones over your genetic hormones comes down. Improved mental health with face yoga can improve your gene expression. 

So, get going with face yoga for significant future genetic changes.

Neurological Adaptations and Stress Reduction

Regular facial yoga movements help form a bond between the nerves and muscles. It's like clearing the air between you and your neighbour, keeping things always friendly. 

This friendship between muscles and nerves can improve how facial muscles contract and relax. 

The gentle movements of face yoga can also activate your brain to reduce the production of stress hormones. Stress hormones have a very negative effect on your skin. The said mechanism of face yoga for skin health is an excellent one.

So, it's a two-way benefitted friendship. 

Fighting the Trauma - Cellular Memory and Release

If you did not know, your stress and past traumas get stored in your cell. They store it like small pockets of memory locked away, bringing all the negative changes to your skin.

Face yoga experts believe that physical movement in face yoga can help release these stored traumas from the cellular level by creating new positive bodily experiences and memories.

And this is how your cells work together when you do face yoga to give you that young and healthy look. 

But it would be best to remember that variations like genetics, age and overall health can influence the changes. As we have mentioned at the start of this article, even external factors can modify your results of face yoga.

Dr Abirami, Yoga Consultant at Nirva Health, says, "Understanding the cellular mechanism of face yoga gives you a clear picture of which face yoga must be used for whom. And personalise the exercises always according to the cellular changes."

The Final Thoughts!

Understanding how face yoga works at the cellular level helps you modify different face yoga techniques accordingly. Experts claim that a regimen of at-home facial yoga exercises for 20 weeks improves mid-face and lower-face fullness. 

So get in touch with our face yoga experts to learn all those techniques for a healthy, younger-looking face.