BLOG 80: MY 5 TIPS FOR REDUCING A DOUBLE CHIN NATURALLY

The area under the chin is one that often starts to sag as we age and the muscles weaken. Poor posture can also give us a double chin because it encourages fluid to build up in the area.

Today’s post is all about reducing the appearance of a double chin naturally. These are simple, easy tips that take very little time at all, but can make a noticeable difference to how your chin area looks and feels.

I’m a believer in the power of incorporating small changes into our daily routines. This ‘little and often’ approach is what The Danielle Collins Face Yoga Method is all about. These five tips might not seem like much on their own. But when you do them regularly, you’ll see an improvement in the definition of your chin and jaw.

The trick is making changes manageable. Going from zero to a hundred straight away is the kind of momentum that is difficult to maintain in the long run. But gradually building wellness habits into our daily routine makes them feel like less of a challenge. It’s a more sustainable approach.

So, with that in mind, here are my five top tips to help you reduce a double chin naturally.

1. POSTURE

In a world where we spend much of our time slumped at our desks in front of computers, or looking down at our phones, it is no surprise that many of us develop poor posture. We often hunch forward, dropping our chins down onto our necks.

This position encourages fluid build-up under our chins. It also causes the muscles in this area to weaken because we are allowing our chins to drop down instead of activating the muscles to hold them up.

So, a simple change you can make to address a double chin is to be more aware of your posture as you go about your day.

I say it is simple because it doesn’t require you to put any time aside or use any special tools. But it does take time to train ourselves to hold a good posture again! Your body will naturally fall into the position it is used to, so you need to work at becoming aware of your posture and correcting it whenever you notice you are hunching.

Practise it now. Standing straight, lengthen up through your whole spinal column. Imagine that you have a string pulling up from the crown of your head, tugging you towards the ceiling.

Find a neutral position for your shoulders. You don’t want them to round forward, but you also don’t want them to pull too far back.

Start by dropping your chin down towards your chest. Notice how it feels in that position. You might become aware of how much pressure it puts on the back of your neck and how it compresses the area under your chin.

Now, lift your chin into a neutral position and feel how it opens up the whole area. 

As you go about your day, try to remember to hold this posture as much as you can. You’ll forget, of course, but go back into it whenever you think of it. 

Over time, your muscles will become accustomed to holding you in this position and it will start to come more naturally.

2. TONGUE POSTURE

This is another tip that you can work with whenever you remember throughout your day. 

Tongue posture isn’t something we think about much. But many of us let our tongues fall loosely in our mouths. When we press it up against the roof of our mouths instead, it lifts the whole area under our chins.

Try it now. Place your hand lightly under your chin and let your tongue fall loose. Then suction it up against the roof of your mouth. You should feel the difference it makes to this area. When your tongue is up, the muscles are tightened and lifted.

Keeping our tongues at the top of our mouths has another benefit – we need to breathe through our noses. Nasal breathing has many benefits, including slowing down your breath and getting more oxygen into your bloodstream.

The more you practise nasal breathing throughout the day, the easier you will find it to breathe through your nose at night, leading to better sleep.

Whenever you remember, take the tip of your tongue behind your teeth and suction the rest of it against the roof of your mouth. You might need to swallow to get it into the right position.

3. FACIAL EXERCISES

Of course, it wouldn’t be a list of face toning tips from me without some Face Yoga exercises. There are many techniques you can use to tone and strengthen the muscles under your chin, lifting this whole area.

One of my favourites works with the tongue. Turn your head to one side and lift your chin slightly. Bring your lips together. And then move the tip of your tongue up to the roof of your mouth and back down again.

Do this up to thirty times, and then repeat it on the other side.

This move opens and lifts the neck area. It also tones and strengthens the muscles, giving your chin more definition.

One thing I should add here – it’s sadly not possible to selectively burn fat in a certain area. Facial Yoga is fantastic for toning and lifting the face, and strengthening your muscles. But if your double chin is caused by excess fat in this area, facial exercises won’t burn off the fat itself.

To address excess fat under your chin, follow guidelines for losing fat throughout your entire body, such as eating healthily and getting plenty of exercise.

4. MASSAGE

Excess fat is one cause of a double chin. Another common one is fluid building up in this area, perhaps because of posture issues.

Massage is a brilliant tool for reducing bloating and puffiness, both in your chin area and elsewhere. It also helps to lift, tone, and define your chin.

Before you do any facial massage, make sure your hands are clean. I prefer to do it with a clean face too, so I can apply some serum to help my fingers glide more easily. I use my Fusion by Danielle Collins serum, which was specifically developed for use with Face Yoga and facial massage. 

First, form two hooks with the index finger and middle finger of both hands. With your knuckles pointing towards your skin, pull these hooks from the centre of your chin out along your jawline.

Lift your hands off and replace them at your chin to repeat the move.

Next, form two V-shapes with the middle and index fingers of both hands. Smooth them over your jawline, starting at the chin and moving across to your ears. It is easier to do one side and then the other with this move. 

As you do the massage, keep your spine long and your chin in its neutral position, so you can practice that good posture at the same time.

Continue to massage for around a minute.

5. GUA SHA

Gua sha is a traditional Chinese massage technique that uses a tool made from crystal to tone your face and release stagnant energy. It also brings the benefits of crystal healing – you can find gua sha tools made from jade, rose quartz, and clear quartz.

Again, make sure your hands are clean first and apply a little serum or oil to your skin to help the gua sha tool move smoothly.

Gua sha tools come in different shapes. My preferred one is known as a dolphin-shaped gua sha because it looks a little like a dolphin leaping through the water. I have some available via my shop.

Place the index finger of one hand on your chin. With the other hand, glide the shaped side of the gua sha tool from your finger over your jaw and up towards your ear. 

Repeat this for around a minute and then move to the other side.

This move helps to reduce bloating, tone and lift the muscles, and define the chin area.

FINISHED

Hopefully, these five tips have given you some ideas for how you can reduce your double chin naturally by incorporating small changes into your daily routine.

If you’d like more ideas and tips for how you can make Face Yoga a regular habit, I have a ten-day course to help you get started. I also share plenty of face yoga techniques via my apps and in my book, Danielle Collins’ Face Yoga.