BLOG 155: 5 FACE YOGA TIPS FOR BUSY MUMS

Many people find Face Yoga first because they’re interested in lifting their faces naturally, but it doesn’t take long before they realise how many deeper wellness benefits there are to making Face Yoga a regular part of their daily routine.

For me, it is those benefits for our health and wellbeing that are the most important part of Face Yoga. I’ve designed the Danielle Collins Face Yoga Method to be very holistic, and I love to hear from all of you how valuable it is as a form of loving self-care.

Taking time for self-care is vital for all of us, but especially for all the busy mums out there. I’m a mum of two girls – a five-year-old and a nine-year-old. Combining being a parent with running a successful business is hugely rewarding. However, it is also hectic, chaotic, and time-consuming!

I know that I couldn’t do half the things I do if I didn’t make self-care a priority. But when you’re a busy mum, finding the time to concentrate on wellness habits, like face yoga, can be tough.

We have so much to juggle that our own needs can easily slip down the to-do list. We can end up feeling like taking time for ourselves is selfish because there are so many other demands on our time and attention.

Even I feel like this sometimes, and I have spent years teaching others about the importance of self-care. But when those feelings come up, I remind myself that self-care isn’t selfish. It’s a necessary part of being a good parent. When we make sure our own needs are met, we’re better able to show up for our families too.

I had a lovely conversation on Instagram Live recently with Ali from Bodylove Pilates and Bodylove Mama in Australia. We talked all things face yoga as part of a series she’s doing to encourage mums to prioritise self-care.

You can catch up with our chat on my YouTube channel.

Inspired by that conversation, I’m sharing my five top tips for busy mums who want to start doing Face Yoga.

1. START SMALL

Whenever anyone asks me how to get started with Face Yoga, my first tip is to just commit to a couple of minutes a day to start with. This is especially important when you are a busy mum with plenty already on your plate.

Trying to fit a 20 – 30-minute Face Yoga practice into an already packed schedule is a recipe for overwhelm. You might start off with the best of intentions but carving out that amount of time for a new habit is unlikely to be sustainable.

I’ve designed each of the techniques I teach as part of the Danielle Collins Face Yoga Method to be done in just one minute. When you are starting out, I suggest just choosing one or two techniques that target the area of the face you want to work on, then trying to do those every day.

Once you start to feel the benefits of Face Yoga, you’ll likely find you’re inspired to spend longer on your practice. You might then move to doing a ten-minute session each day, or even work up to a full 20 or 30 minutes.

But the important thing is to start small. It is a much easier commitment to make if it is just an extra couple of minutes at the end of your skincare routine.

2. DO IT REGULARLY

Any form of exercise or wellness habit will be most effective when you do it regularly. Face Yoga is the same. It is doing it consistently and regularly that will lead to the best results.

You might just be doing a couple of minutes a day but try to commit to doing it every day. 

I find it is easiest to be consistent with a new habit if you can integrate it into your existing schedule. The beauty of face yoga is that it is a very portable activity – no need for any equipment, just your hands. This means you can do it pretty much anywhere.

Most of us watch some TV each day, so perhaps you could take a few minutes to do some face yoga while you catch up with your favourite show. Or you could do some facial massage in the bath or shower.

Many people make face yoga part of their normal skincare routine. It’s an ideal time, because your skin is already clean, and you can do the techniques after applying your usual moisturiser, facial oil, or serum.

Personally, I find that evenings are best for my face yoga practice. With two children to get out the door, mornings are often chaotic and all I have time for is a minute or so of gua sha. So, I save my face yoga for the evenings when I have more time.

On the other hand, some people tell me they love to do face yoga first thing in the morning. It helps them start the day off feeling calm and relaxed. It also means they get it done early!

There’s no right way to do it. Find a time that works with your own schedule.

3. CHOOSE TECHNIQUES THAT FIT YOUR AIMS

Ideally, your Face Yoga practice includes techniques that focus on each of the major areas of the face. This is when you’ll see and feel the most improvement. However, if all you have is a few minutes at the end of the day, you don’t need to put yourself under pressure to work on every area.

Perhaps there’s one area that you particularly want to address. You might have noticed you hold a lot of tension in your jaw, for example, or your brow area. You might want to reduce forehead lines or tone up your neck.

If you only have limited time, it is perfectly fine to just focus on one or two areas where you want to see results. No, you won’t get quite the same overall benefit as if you did a whole-face routine. But by releasing tension and strengthening the muscles in one area of the face, you will see a knock-on effect on other areas too. All the muscles are interconnected, after all.

Just pick one or two techniques that focus on the area you want to work on and aim to do them for a minute each day. You can always build your practice from there.

4. WORK INTUITIVELY

One of my aims with Face Yoga has always been to teach people these techniques so that they can do them for themselves, at home, for free. Especially when you are a busy mum, finding time to go to facial appointments can be tricky, so I really wanted this to be a practice anyone could easily access from home.

Since you are the one doing the techniques, it is especially important to be guided by your intuition, your inner teacher. Only you can listen to your body and know what is right for you that day.

Sometimes this might mean you want to use a little more pressure, some days it will mean being very gentle. You might feel that you want to spend longer with one technique than usual or need to change up your routine to release tension in a particular area.

One thing I do urge you to remember is that harder is not always better. We’re often tempted to press hard with facial massage and facial acupressure, thinking that working deeper will bring more benefits.

However, this isn’t always the case. When we’re working with the lymphatic system, for example, we want to keep a featherlight touch. Similarly, the delicate skin around the eyes needs a light and gentle approach.

5. MAKE IT NON-NEGOTIABLE

Something I have found vital since becoming a parent, and especially in the past few years, is choosing three wellness practices and making them a non-negotiable part of my day. 

In my case, the three things I aim to do every day are:

1. Go for a walk in the fresh air, ideally in nature
2. Yoga
3. Face yoga

Your list will look different, of course.

This doesn’t mean that I spend hours on each of these every day. As a busy parent, that simply isn’t possible. There are days when it might look like a quick walk around the block or a few minutes in child’s pose. Then, there are other days when I have more time and can spend longer on each practice.

The important thing is to make sure each of these self-care practices is part of your day, even if you can only spend a few minutes on them. This way, you’ll always get some self-care into your day.

One good thing about being a mum is that we tend to be very efficient with our time. I know before I had kids, I was actually less good about making self-care a priority. Because I had more time, it was easy to put off going for that walk – I knew I’d have time tomorrow.

Now, I need to be much more intentional about prioritising wellness, but it means I do grab the time when I can. Parents are brilliant at time management – I often think it’s our secret superpower.

LEARN FACE YOGA

If you are a busy parent looking to make face yoga part of your daily self-care, I have plenty of resources available to help.

Please feel free to explore this blog and my YouTube channel for techniques to get you started. 

However, if your schedule is already packed, my best recommendation would be to get one or both of my two books, Danielle Collins’ Face Yoga and the Face Yoga Journal. They help you learn plenty of different face yoga techniques, each of which takes just one minute a day.

Both books are designed for you to dip in and out, so you can find techniques that target the areas you want to focus on and follow along with the instructions. You’ll also learn plenty of wellness hacks, affirmations, and skincare tips.

My newer book, the Face Yoga Journal, also includes space for you to record your practice and reflect on your progress as well as easy 1 minute techniques to do daily.

You can find both books, as well as plenty of other resources, in my online shop.