How to properly massage your face for relaxed and revitalized skin?
On a daily basis, your skin is put to the test and marked by many factors such as stress, fatigue and tension. Taking a moment for yourself and pampering your face and muscles becomes essential. Thus, facial massage proves to be a suitable solution to preserve the youth and vitality of your epidermis. Discover the techniques, our advice and the treatments adapted for a successful facial self-massage.
SUMMARY
- The benefits of facial massage for the skin
- The different facial massage techniques
- How to integrate massages into your daily beauty routine?
I) The benefits of facial massage for the skin
Self-massage involves using your own hands to apply various movements and pressure to the face to relax the muscles and stimulate the skin.
Its first benefit is the feeling of well-being and relaxation it provides. Treat yourself to some time just for yourself to reduce stress and anxiety. Your mind focuses on the movements and sensations of the massage, which takes away everyday concerns and allows a deep state of relaxation. This practice therefore increases emotional well-being and helps improve mood, making individuals more resilient to stress.
Additionally, it is a powerful technique for improving the health and appearance of your skin. Activation of blood and lymphatic circulation brings more oxygen and nutrients to your skin cells, thus promoting their renewal and repair. The result ? Skin that is visibly younger, more toned, and glowing with health. By reducing tension in your face, you prevent the formation of new wrinkles and contribute to the rejuvenation of the skin.
At the same time, the gestures practiced regularly during massages are anti-fatigue: they therefore offer a real boost to the elasticity and tone of the skin. This is especially true for sensitive areas like the eye area, where the effects of massage can reduce the appearance of dark circles and bags, brightening your eyes to reveal a rested face.
Finally, facial massage contributes to the detoxification of the skin, eliminating accumulated toxins and preventing the appearance of imperfections. Indeed, massage supports the skin's natural processes to eliminate impurities through stimulation of lymphatic circulation which plays a crucial role in detoxification of the body. On the other hand, the oxygenation and cellular regeneration caused by the massage eliminates dead cells and accumulated impurities , leaving room for fresh, revitalized skin.
II) The different facial massage techniques
A few facial massage techniques are key to getting the most out of it. To begin your massage, stimulate your lymph nodes by placing your thumbs below the outer corners of the jaw and at the top of the neck. Make 3 circular movements from bottom to top. Then, apply an oil to your face, using gentle movements, placing your palms on your cheeks, forehead, chin, pressing your palms for a few seconds before releasing.
A) Lymphatic drainage
Lymphatic drainage is a must to eliminate toxins and reduce swelling . This is practiced using gentle and fluid movements to encourage better circulation of lymph, this clear or slightly yellowish liquid which circulates in the lymphatic system, a complex network of vessels, nodes and organs parallel to the blood circulatory system. . Composed mainly of water, it plays an important role in regulating fluids in the body. Unlike the blood circulatory system, the lymphatic system does not have a central pump like the heart. Lymph drainage therefore helps to reduce excess fluid, thus helping to maintain fluid balance in the body.
In practice, it involves forming a hook with your thumb and index finger and going up from your chin to the top of your jaw, pressing to draw the jaw line. Then, simply do the same thing on the cheeks and cheekbones to redefine them and smooth nasolabial wrinkles. Continue on the frown lines with your fingers, between the two eyebrows to gently lift the skin upwards, alternating each hand. For the forehead, in a similar way, but this time with the palms of the hands, gently go up, pulling the skin from the top of the eyebrows towards the hairline. Repeat each movement 3 times.
B) Toning and relaxing massages
This massage has the particularity of being both toning, because it stimulates the facial muscles for a natural lifting effect but also relaxing since it helps release tension for immediate well-being. For this technique, the secret is to always go from the inside to the outside and from the bottom to the top. It involves pinching (pressure points between the two fingers for 1 to 2 seconds) your skin using the second phalanges of the index and middle fingers. Start with a movement between the chin and the end of the nasolabial folds then from the corners of the lips to the top of the cheeks. And finally, finish at the level of the cheekbones. The goal is to stimulate your skin, like for frown lines, where it involves gently pinching between the eyebrows for a few seconds.
For the eyebrow, move your thumb and index finger along the eyebrow to its tail, lifting gently.
Here again, repeat each movement 3 times.
C) Preventive massage
Preventive massage focuses on using even gentler techniques to revitalize the skin and facial muscles before the signs of aging appear. It is a proactive approach to beauty, emphasizing prevention rather than treatment. It helps your skin stay firm and elastic by specifically targeting the signs of aging, to delay and reduce the visibility of fine lines and wrinkles. To do this, use your fingertips to make light circular movements over the entire face, starting from the middle and moving towards the ends. This stimulates circulation and prepares the skin. Still using gentle movements, make upward movements along the neck and jaw, from the cheeks towards the temples, and from the middle of the forehead outwards. This helps fight gravity and boosts skin elasticity.
Focus on key areas like the eye area: Using your ring finger, gently tap around the eyes, starting at the inner corner under the eye, working up around the eye to the outer corner, and under the eyebrow. This helps reduce puffiness and dark circles.
III) How to integrate massages into your daily beauty routine?
Incorporating facial massages into your beauty routine is a simple process because even a brief daily massage can do wonders for your complexion and overall skin health.
Before the massage, you must prepare your skin with a fatty substance which facilitates movements and prevents pulling on your skin. Choose your oil based on your skin's needs.
If you have dry and/or sensitive skin, turn to our Precious Radiance Oil. Our Bio-active Yellow Banana and the Pomegranate, Macadamia and Roucou Oil complex repair, nourish and protect the skin.
If you have normal to oily skin with imperfections, use our Precious Nutritive Oil. Our Green Banana Bio-active and Green Tea and Avocado vegetable oils promote the healing of imperfections, tighten pores and regulate sebum production.
Finally, if you have combination skin with a dull complexion, apply our Pink Oil Glow Booster Serum. The combination of our Bio-active Rose Banana, Ginger Root and Marshmallow extract evens out the complexion while hydrating and revitalizing the skin. It’s a guaranteed healthy glow!
After the massage, the treatments are just as important! In fact, we advise you to apply a moisturizing cream in order to maximize the beneficial effects, providing intense hydration and sealing in the benefits of the massage. To do this, opt for our Radiance Soothing Gel which boosts the skin's hydration mechanisms to guarantee 24-hour hydration.
Incorporating these techniques into your beauty routine can start with a few minutes each morning or evening of simple gestures to stimulate circulation and wake up the skin. Over time, and as you become more comfortable with the movements, you can explore more advanced techniques and spend more time on specific areas that might need special attention, such as the jaw to relieve tension.
Our last tip for an effective routine with self-massage is to be gentle, because the skin of the face is delicate, contrary to what one might imagine, pressing hard during massages does not accentuate their effectiveness because Light movements avoid pulling or stretching the skin unnecessarily. The secret is to listen to your skin, if you feel pain or discomfort, adjust your technique or the pressure applied.
Facial massage should not be seen as a chore, but rather as a special moment of connection with yourself. Whether you only have a few minutes or an afternoon to spare, you can adapt the duration of the massage according to your schedule and your needs. The important thing is to stay regular to fully benefit from the effects.
