Neck cording
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Wed Jul 03, 2013 3:41 am

I'm nearly 68 and have been practicing Carolyn's Facial Fitness for nearly five years. I'm a slim person (but not skinny), and perhaps could have been a candidate for neck cording. I didn't have neck cording before CFF and have never developed neck cording during all the years I've been doing CFF. Perhaps it's just not in my genes, but I also believe that massage helps to keep the dreaded neck cords away, by thickening the skin. CFF incorporates a lot of massage in the exercises themselves, so you're getting that benefit as well. The Brush is a brilliant addition to the basic programme, and I do it several times a week. I'm sure it all helps. Thanks to Nonie for helpfully providing the links for anyone wanting to give it a try.

free skin care · Wed Jul 03, 2013 2:47 pm

newera wrote:

lucyluc wrote:

you may have them but dont notice them because sometimes its only when you talk or open your mouth a certain way that they are noticeable.So if you are in front of the mirror at rest you may not see them but when you are out and about talking to people they will notice them.

I just had a look at a whole load of photos taken of me by my husband on a cruise last month, in celebration of our Golden Wedding Anniversary. I see a bit of looseness which I was already aware of (minor jowling), that I haven't been able to eliminate even with CFF, but I see no sign of cords in any of the photos. I have some photos of me speaking and leaning forward (not the most flattering of views) - but I still see no cords, I'm glad to report.

newera thank you for sharing. I really have never been able to accept the sentiment "nothing but surgery can help" and it saddens me to see such hopelessness.

When an aggressive face exercise program caused me to have what seemed like excessive skin under my eyes that was wrinkled and that bunched up into huge rolls when I smiled--a situation I never had just 4 months before--and then my face didn't return to normal even after a year of not doing that program, it would seem there was no going back. I even had a professional tell me there wasn't anything that could be done ie besides surgery and it was even suggested that I had fat pads seen in old people with bags.

I refused to accept that to be gospel, even though everything seemed to confirm those words. For instance, the program I did before, which for 15 years had kept my eyes youthful, seemed unable to undo the damage I had created. What's more, the norm--ie, face returns to what it was before, once you stop the program--appeared to not be happening to me. Sad

Still, I kept a positive mental attitude and kept researching and 21 months since I stopped that bad program, signs of my former face were back, thanks to a program I researched for about a year before trying it out for 8 months. My point being, it isn't always as hopeless as people make it out to be.

lucyluc wrote:

the vertical chords are more visible as one gets older.They loosen up;I dont think you can do much except surgery here. The dr tightens up the chords like tightening up shoelaces.Exercise wont help because the platysmal muscles have separated. I had a neck lift to tighten it up,I hated the dreaded chords when they were visible;its very aging and even if the rest of your face looks good, if your chords show, its hopeless!

lucyluc, here is an example of someone whose cords disappeared without surgery:

http://www.carolynsfacialfitness.com/karen

LoriA wrote:

Pardon me, but are there other pictures of neck cording, perhaps of people carrying less weight? I'm still not entirely sure what is meant here.

LoriA, here are more examples (in the images that are paired up, the one on the left shows cording):

free skin care · Wed Jul 03, 2013 4:53 pm

Great contributions here. Nonie, you give me hope.

Even surgeons don't seem to be clear on whether the platysma is too tight or too relaxed when these cords show, or if it's just hanging skin, caused by years of gravity and platysma action. Perhaps what we call 'neck cords' have various causes.

Mine really feel like just skin, not the underlying platysmal muscle (which I can tense up), BUT, the hanging skin is indeed right under where the muscle cords show when tensed. This would indicate that I need better skin elasticity there - thus I'm using massage and dermaroller. But I have to say, even the wonderful Dr Des Fernandes, with glorious skin due to rolling and (he says) his products, has these hanging cords. Sigh...

free skin care · Fri Jul 05, 2013 10:49 am

I totally agree.I dont think exercise will fix a stringy neck because the chords have pulled away from the muscle, they need to be stitched back into place.If you have the face of angelina jolie and a stringy neck you're just ugly.Find the best board certified plastic surgeon and if you get your neck done might as well get other tweaks too.A lot of times drs will do a procedure and then do some of the procedures for free cuz they are already doing surgery anyway.

free skin care · Mon Jul 08, 2013 8:29 am

SeanySeanUK wrote:

FlexEffect couldn't have done any permanent damage if its been corrected with CFF which is worth highlighting.

Sean, what I get from what Nonie says is that the damage would have been permanent IF she had kept doing FE or just quit exercising without switching to another program. We shouldn't have to move to another system to correct results from another system.

Just my take.

I will say that I have both the older and more recent editions of FE. I gave FE a go for a couple of weeks, and it left my face looking stressed and kind of saggy, so I quit. Plus, as others have noted, all the skin pulling gave me pause. However, I do think some of the exercises are fab and plan to give them a go when my face is more "experienced" with exercise. I'm currently doing the beginning Eva Fraser and it makes so much more sense to me to start off really gradually with the small, weak muscles of the face than to start gung-ho like FE or even Carol Maggio (who also left me looking tired after doing the whole routine for a couple weeks). Face feels better than it ever did doing FE or Maggio.

free skin care · Mon Jul 08, 2013 11:28 am

It's the pinching massage that Loulou talks about on Ageless - about 3 times in each place and just move around the face/neck. I think some people add a twist but I don't. I have never previously gone in for massage of the face as such (never had a facial in my life) but have come to believe 'challenging' the skin can help it thicken - and pinching works for me.

free skin care · Tue Jul 09, 2013 5:08 am

fawnie and Cookie D - I don't think in the massage info of Ageless it actually mentions the hollow specifically (or indeed in any programmes that I can recall). I just decided to try it one day as I was massaging my neck... Seemed a pity to miss it out! But I honestly didn't expect much to happen, or as quickly as it did - could have knocked my over with a feather. Hope it works for you if you try it. Smile

free skin care · Wed Dec 04, 2013 10:52 am

Well, Nonie, the before and afters of the first 2 women are convincing, especially the second lady because we see more of her neck.
The third person is iffy to me. I see an improvement, but is it the light, I don't know. But the first 2 sets of pics have a definite improvement in the neck.

free skin care · Wed Dec 04, 2013 9:20 pm

Help me! I'm shrinking! Lolololololol!!! Shock

(That's me in those tiny photos)

Christine

free skin care · Thu Dec 05, 2013 3:49 am

I just did a little research on these neck cords and the official name of them is platysmal bands. Here is an "official" photo of them from a dermatologist's website:

They ARE caused by weak neck muscles and neck exercises can help. Here are some that are said to be helpful:

Exercises to Improve Platysmal Muscle Banding

free skin care · Fri Dec 06, 2013 2:21 pm

Panda1 wrote:

Tyger wrote:

Nonie aka AD wrote:

I used to dislike defined body muscles on women with a passion. They did not look feminine to me at all so I preferred the tone of ballroom dancers to that of fitness models.....

So in a way, you could say I have acquired a taste for extreme tone so that I never have to worry about shapeless sagginess knocking at the door.

I too have never liked to see women with overly defined muscles and looking too masculine - but I now qualify this by saying young women. I think having muscles in senior women is much more attractive than the alternative of slackened skin (and I doubt I'd care whether I looked unfeminine or not, as I think the ageing process tends to de-feminise women anyway), so I am aiming to follow in Ernestine Shepherd's footsteps... Very Happy

(who I think retains her femininity anyway).

And I'm the exact opposite. I'm ok with very toned young women, but I think it is aging on older women. It is possible to exercise away the slackened skin without getting too toned. So to each his own:)

I was meaning young women with muscles like Madonna - which I find overly toned. And she is still quite young! Once past menopause, it gets harder to pull in slackening skin with just toning exercises that would suffice when younger (even young people can find this a problem when losing weight too quickly). So personally I would rather fill out with more muscle than let the skin hang. I want to continue wearing a swimsuit into my dotage without worrying about sag!

free skin care · Sat Dec 07, 2013 10:34 am

packratmack wrote:

Tyger wrote:

I was meaning young women with muscles like Madonna - which I find overly toned. And she is still quite young!

Hi Tyger, I am sure Madonna would be flattered that you think she is still quite young at 55. She sure acts young. Good for her.

Well she is still relatively young! And since the retirement age (at least in the UK) is rising and rising, anyone in their 50s will soon be almost a teenager Laughing

Nonie - thanks for doing the link to Morjorie (I'm not too IT literate and can mess it up). I think we all have to re-adjust our exercise regimes as we age. Some people just give up and say they can't fight it! But I don't want to have to cover up!

Re the original post about neck cords, there are exercises to thicken the neck muscles for bodybuilders (some probably not dissimilar to Carolyn's, but with weights). I read about them a while ago but realised I would have to do a structured programme not to look unbalanced, so maybe Carolyn's will be good for the moment, until I get cracking on heavier weights.

free skin care · Sat Dec 07, 2013 5:30 pm

Tyger wrote:

I think we all have to re-adjust our exercise regimes as we age. Some people just give up and say they can't fight it! But I don't want to have to cover up!

I agree. I'm always checking out new things that will add to or modify my exercise regime. Low impact vs high impact. Different types of equipment. I work on balance a lot. I consider how the types of exercise I do will benefit me when I get older. Even if I could only do yoga, I would still be able to maintain a good level of strength and endurance. That's one of the reasons why yoga will always be a part of my fitness program. A practice that can move with you through the years. Its' so important to keep some flexibility. I lift heavy weights which tends to tighten me up. So, the yoga is a great complement. I sometimes wonder how many years I will be able to lift heavy but, when I see photos of people like Ernestine, I realize it can be for a good long time. Maybe, with some modifications.

This thread has gone pretty much off topic. So, I will steer it back by saying that I do see the improvement in Margarita's neck in the photos that were posted. Tightening up that platysma muscle helps the neck and jawline look better.

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