BLOG 167: NATURAL WAYS TO LIFT YOUR FACE FROM AN AGE REVERSAL EXPERT

I had a wonderful chat recently with Larisa Petrini, an age reversal and epigenetic expert specialising in non-invasive reverse ageing programs. Larisa’s work focuses on how we can have younger skin and a younger body through lifestyle changes – something that aligns very well with my Face Yoga approach.   

Larisa joined me on the Face Yoga Expert Podcast to share some of her insights into how we can look and feel young, healthy, and vibrant. You can find the full episode here. 

In 2009, Larisa had a highly successful career in the corporate world. But an unexpected divorce, coupled with a misdiagnosis of thyroid cancer, caused her to reassess her path. She took a very honest look at her life and how she’d gotten to this place.  

After two months in the jungle, Larisa knew she had to make a change. She decided she wanted to help other women avoid reaching crisis point in their personal lives and careers. She qualified as a health coach in 2013 and hasn’t looked back, gaining subsequent qualifications in sleep coaching and epigenetics. 

What I especially love about Larisa’s approach is how personalised it is. She bases everything she does on genetic information, which means she can help her clients avoid a trial-and-error, one-size-fits-all approach. She believes that we’re all different and there’s no such thing as one solution that works for everyone. 

Having said that, there are some common factors that we can all be aware of when we want to improve our skin and our overall wellness naturally. Larisa had some great advice to share, so I’ve pulled some of her tips together into this blog post. 

THE TEN BEAUTY THIEVES 

One thing Larisa talks about in her work is the ten beauty thieves – the things that stop us from looking and feeling young, vibrant, and healthy. If we want to look after our health, keep our skin looking gorgeous, and maintain our vitality as we age, these are the things that we need to look out for. 

The first two are fairly self-explanatory. The first is weight gain, and the second is processed food – which often go hand in hand. Both can affect our skin, as well as the rest of our health. 

Here are the other eight beauty thieves: 

3. LACK OF PHYSICAL EXERCISE 

Regular movement is vital to our health but that doesn’t mean that we need to kill ourselves at the gym to get the benefits. Larisa says that consistently doing moderate-intensity exercise, like walking, can help us burn more calories than pushing ourselves too hard at the gym. 

We don’t even need to get up to 10 thousand steps, which is often given as the magic number. Science has now shown that 7 thousand steps a day are enough to give the benefits of walking.   

Larisa recommends making sure you get those steps outside in nature. When we’re exposed to natural light, our bodies produce serotonin, known as the happy hormone. As well as lifting our moods, serotonin plays a crucial role in sleep, so exercising outdoors will also lead to better quality sleep. 

4. DRUGS AND PILLS 

Larisa works with clients across the world and says she’s noticed that her US clients are especially prone to reaching for medication before they try lifestyle changes. Many of the women she works with will be taking pills for anxiety, insomnia, and depression that they don’t necessarily need. 

There are many lifestyle solutions that can help with sleep issues and mental health problems. Larisa recommends trying these first before opting for drugs and pills that can have side effects. 

5. TOXINS 

Our modern lives mean that we are exposed to many different toxins daily through our environments. These can be hugely damaging to our health. 

Although it can be almost impossible to avoid environmental toxins altogether, one of the things we can do is pay attention to the beauty products we use. Many conventional beauty products are packed with ingredients that are harmful to our health. 

Instead, we can look for high-quality skincare and other beauty products that don’t contain these nasties.  

Part of the reason I wanted to create a skincare range to complement my Face Yoga teaching was to give people a safe, toxin-free alternative to some of the conventional skincare options out there. I worked with a skincare expert to create the Fusion by Danielle Collins range, which focuses on natural, vegan, and highly effective ingredients. 

So far, we’ve released a beautiful moisturising serum and a hydrating face mask. You can find both products via my shop. 

6. LACK OF SLEEP 

Larisa is a certified sleep coach and is passionate about the importance of high-quality sleep to our health and our skin. Although the amount of sleep we get does matter, Larisa says that it is when we sleep that has the most impact. 

This is because of the link between sleep and our hormones. At around 10 pm, our levels of melatonin (a sleep hormone) are highest. Then, between 10 pm and 2 am, our bodies release most of the hormones that play a role in our metabolism, muscle development, and appetite. 

Maximising our sleep between those times is therefore amazing for our health and has a huge impact on how we age at a cellular level. 

7. WEAK MUSCLE MASS 

We naturally lose muscle mass as we age. Once we hit forty, ageing accelerates and we start to lose muscle mass faster, especially if we’re not doing anything to combat this effect. 

For women, muscle loss is often made worse by cycles of extreme dieting. Larisa says that most of her clients are used to going from fad diet to fad diet, so she works with them to get away from this dieting mentality. 

Many of the women she sees are undernourished. They often think that they are overeating, but it is the opposite – they aren’t getting the nourishment they need. This slows the metabolism and means they lose muscle mass even faster, especially if they aren’t exercising. 

Muscles aren’t just important for aesthetic reasons, but for our health in general. So, taking steps to slow this natural muscle loss as we age can help us to feel young and vital for longer. 

8. STRESS 

Stress is something I talk about a lot in my face yoga practice. So many of us are overstressed, overworked, and overwhelmed – especially women. And the pandemic has only added to this, leaving many women juggling work, home, and childcare in new and complicated ways. 

Stress can be a complex issue. It is often as much about our mindset and the quality of our thoughts as anything else. But managing stress is one of the most important things we can do to slow down the signs of ageing. 

If you are a long-time follower of mine, you’ll know how passionate I am about the importance of daily acts of self-care to help us manage stress and release tension. One of my main aims through my face yoga classes and workshops is to help people find calm, rest, and relaxation. So, I was pleased to hear Larisa mention stress as one of her beauty thieves. 

9. LACK OF VITAMIN D 

This is something we’re all becoming increasingly aware of – vitamin D plays such an important role in our physical and mental health. It is worth checking to see if you are getting enough. Many of us are deficient and almost everyone needs to take a vitamin D supplement, especially in the winter months. 

10. LACK OF MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIPS 

Something that is often overlooked is the importance of our relationships to our health and how we age. However, there’s scientific evidence that demonstrates that meaningful, high-quality relationships are crucial to our health and longevity. 

Larisa says that many of us don’t give our relationships high enough priority in our lives. It is why part of her offering is running retreats for women that help them to build these high-quality relationships with one another. 

A NATURAL APPROACH TO SKIN – IT STARTS IN THE GUT 

The ten beauty thieves that Larisa went through all impact our skin, as well as the rest of our health. But if we really want to look after our skin, we need to look after our insides as much as the outside. 

Larisa says that our skin’s health is 70% to do with what we eat and about 30% related to what we do to keep it healthy from the outside. 

Of course, skincare and non-invasive techniques (like Face Yoga) can make a huge difference in how our skin looks and feels. But we need to complement these things by nourishing our skin from the inside by focusing on good nutrition. The most expensive face cream in the world can’t compensate for a poor diet.   

When it comes to good nutrition, Larisa always begins with the gut. It is where health and beauty both start.  

Even if we’re eating all the right foods, if our guts are out of balance, our bodies won’t be able to process those foods or take in the necessary nutrients. This is why Larisa always starts with a complete gut reset protocol when she sees a new client. 

As with all her work, Larisa cautions that diet is a personalised matter. Even “healthy” foods might not be the right choice for everyone. However, she does advise avoiding what she calls “the whites” – sugar, dairy, white flour, and ideally alcohol. Cutting these out of your diet will leave your face looking gorgeous and glowing. 

TAKING THE NEXT STEPS 

In her practice, Larisa offers an in-depth genetic report to clients that gives them a personalised strategy for maintaining their health and staying young and vibrant. But even if you aren’t in a position to do a full genetic analysis right now, there’s plenty you can do to prioritise your health and wellness through your lifestyle. 

Hopefully, these tips have given you some ideas for how to get started. My shop is also full of resources to help you lift your face naturally and make self-care a daily priority, including on-demand Face Yoga workshops, my two books, and my natural skincare range.