A Skin Care Expert Explains Why You Must Pay Attention To Your Posture

Face yoga, like its body counterpart, is fundamentally about connecting with and taking control of your body and face. The facial practice is about getting in touch with your own skin, bones, alignment, and muscles—and helping them work in balance and harmony. Sure, it's a practice that can help you look younger and more symmetrical, but ultimately it's just about developing a better relationship with the skin you are in. 

"When I turned 30, I started buying expensive creams and started getting facials. And I felt almost like I was giving up my power over my own skin care, and I had to have somebody to do something for me. I didn't like the feeling—and wanted to take the control back," says skin care expert Fumiko Takatsu, founder of the Face Yoga Method. Eventually she would go on to found her own practice of face yoga, which became very popular. She's been featured in publications and media outlets around the world. 

Now of course asymmetry on your body and face is normal—we all have it, it makes us beautiful, and nothing short of extensive plastic surgery will make us symmetrical even if we wanted to be—however, what she's talking about here is asymmetry that's caused by imbalances. 

This is true especially as we age. "As we age our posture gets worse because we start losing muscle mass," she says. This loss changes everything from how we stand to how we move—as we have to compensate for that muscle loss in other ways. This shows up in the face in a few ways. The first is just general alignment issues. But she also notes that she sees it in the jaw, too. "As we lose core muscles, our shoulders come up, and our jaw moves forward," she says, noting this can account for puffiness and less definition. 

The solution? Good old-fashioned core workouts. Yes, having a strong core can affect how your face ages. "And that's why I think it's so important for us to do body and core exercise, even when we get older, because when you have a good posture, it affects your face," she says. "That's why I love yoga so much because every day, when I exercise, I can feel my alignment, I can feel my fascia, and I have a passionate conversation with my body."