Face and Eye gymnastics

People have been concerned with aesthetics and cosmetics already in antiquity. This was also true for the GDR. Even back then, a tired, aged and wrinkly skin was considered a disadvantageous feature. By wrinkling one's nose, raising and pulling together the skin of the forehead, pouting and squinting, parts of the dermal tissue and muscle activity are stressed only partially which eventually leads to unattractive wrinkles.

For cases like this, practicing face gymnastics has proven to be the method of choice; both in East Germany as well as elsewhere. The sporty activity occupies about 5-10 minutes a day and promises “astounding” success.

The best way to practice face gymnastics is to do it in the morning after cleaning your face. Simply use some lotion to moisturize the skin and you are ready to start with the workout. Sounds strange, but that is exactly what's intended: The conscious and controlled stress of otherwise inactive muscles and skin areas. This is how it works:

• whistle a song, blow your cheeks before pressing the air into all corners of the inside of your mouth

• perform speech practices in front of the mirror while pronouncing the letters A, I and O at least ten times

• if you don't already feel like yawing after this exercise, please do so anyway for a couple of times

• now pull your lower jaw back and forth as well as into all other directions

 Eye gymnastics

This method can also be incorporated into the face gymnastics routine.

In case of extreme symptoms of tiredness, when your eyelids just won't stay up and you don't have time to rest or to apply an energizing eye mask, these exercises are just right for you:

• stand in front of a wall with a distance of about 1 meter (also works while sitting)

• now try to scan the entire wall surface with your eyes without moving a muscle

• starting in the upper right corner, follow an imaginative line down towards the floor, then along the floor to the left lower corner, up again and so on

• perform this eye circle for 10 times, then practice again in the contrary direction

• in the following, lift your gaze to the ceiling, then lower it quickly

• after the 10th change of gaze look to the left and to the right into the corners of the room

• end the exercise with rolling your eyes

In case you have practiced everything correctly, all signs of tiredness should have disappeared by now and you will look awake and fresh again.

(Source: ABC der Kosmetik, Fachbuchverlag Leipzig, Franz Guske, 1960 )