Your face works hard. There are about 16 muscles, a dozen bones and arteries, veins and blood vessels that help your face do the things it does -- smile, sneeze, chew, speak, laugh, kiss, cry, and a whole lot more.
Like all other muscles in the body, your face muscles absorb and store a lot of stress and tension -- unless you relax and release.
So coming to yoga can be like a facial for your face muscles. The Yoga Site recommends the following exercises:
1. Palming -- Find a comfortable seated position, either on floor on a cushion or in a chair. Sit with your back straight. Begin with your eyes closed. Focus on your breath as it moves in and out of your nostrils. Cool air in, warm air out. Rub your palms together very fast until they feel warm. Then cu them over your closed eyes. Repeat.
2. The Great Rub -- Place the index and middle fingers of both hands in the middle of your forehead. Rub your forehead by making small circles with your fingers. Move your fingers across your brow and to your temples, pausing there to give them a gentle massage. This is an area where we hold stress and tension that can often lead to headaches. Then move down from your temples to the hinge of your jaw, pausing to massage your jaw muscles. Repeat.
3. Clenched Smile -- Grit your teeth and open your lips as wide as they will go. Feel your lips, cheeks, chin and neck stretch to their limit. Hold and Release.
5. Scrunches -- crunch your face real right. Purse your lips, draw your cheeks in toward your nose, pull your eye brows down and bring the flesh of your chin up toward your mouth.
Hold and release. Repeat.
6. Cheek Pinch -- pinch your cheeks, by grabbing bits of flesh and giving them a squeeze. Benefit: improves circulation!
So treat your face to something nice today, and if you can do it while doing yoga, even better!
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