Nasolabial folds: Ageless, Carolyn's FF or FlexEffect?
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Wed Oct 03, 2012 4:39 am

Which facial exercise program is the best for nasolabial folds?
What experiences have you had with the programs you have tried?

My case:
I've been lurking here for a while and finally decided to join to ask advice.

I mostly do not have bad wrinkles on my face given that I'm in my mid thirties, however I do have large lips which I find have probably contributed to increasing nasolabial folds, because my face is petite. I'd say my face structure is similar to keira knightley's except with x3 bigger lips!

When I was younger I was happy about this but now I notice my friends with small lips do not have this problem. I suppose the wrinkles we form depend on face structure which is why I don't believe on size fits all, I am sure some face exercise programs are better for differently shaped faces.

My wish:
I would like to start an exercise program that is not too intensive, nor aggressive because
a) I have extremely fair, pale, sensitive skin that does not take kindly to tugging. I only do extremely gentle facial massage or my skin gets red and breaks out from the friction.

b) apart from my NL folds, I only have small lines on my forehead, neck and none around my eyes so I don't need anything too drastic.

c) a program that does not give me monkey mouth, which I've read about here, because I naturally have a very strong mouth area esp because I played a wind instrument for years, this did not stop nl folds btw. I tried to stop myself from pouting too much etc as I find my mouth is my 'strongest' feature.

I've done some of the free happyfaceyoga exercises on youtube by Gary Sikorski for about 4 months now as I was not ready to commit to buy anything.

For example I was doing exercise 6 (not allowed to post link as I am a newbie) to lift my cheeks as I believed, from what I read here and elsewhere, that building my cheeks would help with NL folds but I found this exercise really built up my top lip and the fold created by smiling with the long O even if it made my cheeks feel tight, seemed to emphasize my NL line not flatten it out or plump it.

I want a program that will really help with my nasolabial folds. Can anyone recommend one that worked for them?

Does anyone else have a longish, narrow, petite face and big lips and find success with a particular program?

Thanks

free skin care · Wed Oct 03, 2012 5:10 am

Hi Illumine

I don’t think that there is a program that is “best” for nasolabial folds because we’re all starting from different places and with different issues. What I do know is that if you have nls that its not just about exercising but also treating the skin and getting that to rejuvenate. Yet I so darn well wished I started when I was your age, instead of in my 50’s because I truly think facial exercises are by far one of the best preventative measures a young person can and should take.

Now with your wish, you say you don’t want to start a program that’s intensive or aggressive, well the programs you list above will all seem intensive because they do require you to use resistance, and so if your skin gets red and breaks out from friction from simple massage, I’m thinking you may be want to try something like Facercise. Aprile has very sensitive skin too and that works really well for her. Alternatively as you have done a few of Gary’s Happy Face Yoga exercises, may want to instead get that program, and I’ve got it myself and I do like it. I also have the original Face Yoga by Rose Han Tran (who Gary learned from) and that’s also another option too for you.

With monkey mouth, from what I’ve read you can get that with any program out there. It really depends on the strength of your muscles and how hard you work them, so in your case I would suspect that the advice would be to work the mouth gently and not intensely.

Does that help? Look at the websites before and afters also and you should get a better idea too!

Best

Theresa

Thu Oct 04, 2012 4:36 am

OK thanks Theresa, I'll still be on the look out here.... I remember seeing different people claiming that various exercises helped their NLs. I've started massaging them gently with natural oils outside and also putting pressure inside. I am hoping that will also help!

free skin care · Thu Oct 04, 2012 5:30 am

Sure be on the look out by all means. I always thought Id have NLs forever and it never bothered me, and I am pleased to say that my NLs line (which we all have when we smile, but when we stop smiling those pesky lines would still be there on me!) have vanished. Its not to say I don’t have the depression when I smile, because I don’t think there’s much that can be done for that, but now when I stop smiling I don’t have the creases that used to be a permanent fixture on my face, and I have to say that I used to believe it was one particular thing that did that, but now in reflection its probably the combo of everything I’ve done over the last 10 plus years as well as the thing that got rid. I’ve written about it on the forum before so there’s no need to go into it, but there’s new things coming out every single day and by far one of them will be sure to fix it for you. The pressure inside and outside and oils sounds good!

free skin care · Sun Dec 30, 2012 9:16 pm

I do Flex Effect and find their NL exercise and cheek lifting exercises effective. Considering that my mother complained about hers from about mid 30s and her father had seriously bad ones, I seem to be preventing this (age 47).

Mon Dec 31, 2012 9:21 am

Any facial exercise programme that lifts the cheeks should eliminate or at least lessen the N/L folds. I can't speak personally for other programmes, but CFF has done it for me. I'm 67 and there is a smooth transition now between the area above the 'smile' and the area below it. I still have smile 'lines', but they're feint.

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