Could you knock years off your looks by going to the face gym?

Can exercising your face keep you looking young? Photo / 123RF

It's Britain's self-proclaimed "only face gym", promising "fast, effective, natural face-lift solutions" and insisting customers will look younger after just one visit.

As improbable as it may seem, the theory is that by doing FaceGym's exercises - a sort of face massage that involves having your face forced into all kinds of funny expressions - blood circulation, cell renewal and collagen production is boosted.

This lifts and tightens the muscles in the face. And experts agree that this is not just futile grimacing.

Facial cosmetic surgeon Rajiv Grover says: "Over the years I have observed that faces which have been exercised do seem to have been preserved well. If you exercise these muscles they can tighten up and give a better-looking profile."

Still, I find it hard to believe that a single "workout" will make my face look much different, so I visited FaceGym in West London's Kings Road. My workout begins with a "warm-up", which sees a mini Pilates ball pressed to my face and neck to release tension, before the muscles are kneaded.

Next comes the "cardio" section - swift upward whipping motions to get the blood flowing fast through my skin and face.

Then there's "strength training", with deep strokes that hoick my cheek muscles upwards and work my jawline.

Afterwards, I feel relaxed all over - and my face looks terrific. My lower cheeks don't sag, my eyes are more open, my brows a fraction lifted.

While a FaceGym "signature workout" would set you back £45, here their personal trainers share the perfect at-home session for you to try... and you might be surprised just how challenging they are!

AND NOW YOU CAN TRY IT...

No need for expensive creams, now you can do facial exercises at home. Photo / 123RF

RELAX YOUR JAW

THE PROBLEM: The masseter muscle, the main cheek muscle, can become stressed when you chew, grind your teeth or clench the jaw. This exercise massages out tension in this muscle to relax the face and remove knots.

NOW FACE IT

❋ Start by placing your (clean) right thumb against the inside of your cheek, and pinch it with the thumb an index finger until you fee pain or soreness.

❋ Hold this for ten seconds.

❋ Pull your cheek back towards your ears, then down, then towards the front teeth, then up: rotating it in a circle.

❋ Repeat the circle three times, then release.

SMOOTH OUT TURKEY NECK

THE PROBLEM: Flaccid muscles and loose skin on the neck can create an undesirable 'turkey neck', which is a natural progression with age. But you can give your neck a lift in the right direction by exercising the platysma - the main muscle running from the chin and down the sides of the neck.

NOW FACE IT

❋ Make 'a sad face', by bringing the corners of your mouth down as far as possible. You should feel the platysma 'pop' and go tense.

❋ Hold this for ten seconds and release.

❋ Repeat for up to ten times, or until the neck muscle gets tired.

PLUMP YOUR LIPS

THE PROBLEM: As we age, the lips naturally lose their fullness, but by strengthening the orbicularis oris we can make them look fuller again. The orbicularis oris is the muscle that surrounds the mouth and controls oral competence, giving you the ability to talk and to kiss.

NOW FACE IT

❋ This is an easy one: simply pucker up, as if you are about to give someone a kiss.

❋ Then lift your hand to your mouth and kiss your palm.

❋ Then, as you remove your hand, blow a kiss into the air, breathing out as you do so.

❋ Repeat this ten times.

STOP YOUR JOWL DROOPING

THE PROBLEM: Many people experience a drooping of the corners of the mouth, as the zygomaticus major and minor lose strength. These are the muscles that control facial expression and draw the mouth upwards and outwards, and are also known as the smile muscles.

NOW FACE IT

❋ With no help from your hands, go from a relaxed mouth into a big applecheek smile, without parting your lips, in three steps:

❋ First, pull the corners of the mouth towards your ears, then force them half-way up, and then fully into the apples of your cheeks.

❋ Release back down in three stages.

❋ Repeat ten times.

UNWRINKLE CROW'S FEET

THE PROBLEM: Tiny wrinkles in the corner of the eyes, known as smile lines or crow's feet, are often some of the earliest signs of ageing on the face, particularly among women. By exercising the orbicularis oculi - the blinking muscle - these wrinkles may retreat.

NOW FACE IT

❋ Lightly press the temples at the level of the corner of your eyes. By doing so you'll push the skin into the dip of your temple, leading to a slight tension. This isolates the orbicularis oculi.

❋ Let your eyelids droop to almost closed and then allow them to flutter.

❋ Hold this for ten seconds and release.

❋ Repeat ten times.

TURN THAT FROWN UPSIDE DOWN

THE PROBLEM: In Hollywood, frown lines and a wrinkled forehead are beaten using Botox injections. However, facial exercises can also tackle this ageing issue. This grumpy face targets the group of muscles on the forehead: the frontalis (forehead), the corrugator supercilii (brow narrower) and the procerus (the frown).

NOW FACE IT

❋ Place the heel of your hands on top of each eyebrow and press down so the forehead is slightly pulled upwards.

❋ Try to frown while holding the forehead firmly for ten seconds.

❋ Release, and repeat ten times.