Face Pilates

Face Pilates, the program I created to exercise and massage the face and neck, is six years old!!!

I developed Face Pilates in 2020 and taught classes to dozens of people for years. And while I no longer officially teach the program, I do still practice myself. So does my mother, who does a meager 5 minutes daily.

And while appearance is only one aspect of any exercise and self care program, it sure is fun to see before and after photos. Here is my mother after six years of consistent practice. Next month, she turns 72.

Before and after six years of Face Pilates. Dora is a great student because she practices consistently—three to five minutes most days of the week. Look at how much more toned her face and neck are, and look at the lift in her eyes and cheeks. The first photo was taken in winter, the second in summer, explaining the tan. She is one month shy of 72 years in the second photo.

I took my face photo from 2020 and asked AI how a woman would look aging naturally for six years. This is what it projected for me. Clearly a lot more gray and pigmentation, but also sunken eyes, one eye quite droopy, and more wrinkles. Interestingly, it didn’t change the neck, but we know that usually the neck ages quite a bit.

AI really doesn’t expect me to age well after six years. I joke that this is truly how I should look after raising three kids and being a small business owner for a decade… lol!

But I haven’t aged typically because daily I do lymphatic stimulation for the head, neck, and face. In fact, many days, I do it more than once. I think of lymphatic stimulation like brushing your teeth or showering. Don’t just clean your outsides, clean your insides too! And regularly. In fact, I think it’s so important not just for your face and neck, but also for your brain, that I’ve created a free 8-minute instructional video you can watch here.

I also exercise the muscles of my face, neck, and tongue. And I do face massage and Gua Sha regularly. If these interest you, just ask for instruction at your next Optimize lesson. Or purchase my 40-minute Face Massage lesson for $20 and I’ll send you the link to the video. I just created this video and it shares all my favorite massage techniques for the chest, neck, face, and head.

When you press on your cells, like in self massage, it stimulates them to make more hyaluronic acid. This is the same stuff you buy to put on your face to reduce wrinkles. But you can make it naturally through self face massage. Each molecule of hyaluronic acid binds 1600 molecules of water, plumping up and hydrating your tissues. This is fantastic for the health of your tissues as well as for appearance.

The interesting thing about my face progression is that not only have I exercised, massaged, and moved the lymph in my face, but I also made some significant changes to myself in the past six years. In 2022, I stopped seeing estheticians and using expensive face creams. I went completely natural. No retinol, no lasers, no fancy serums, no more lash or eyebrow serums either (but see how my eyelashes are longer from simply using castor oil instead). And to the horror of every dermatologist, I stopped using sunscreen and wearing sunglasses! I am smart about my sun exposure and helping my skin adapt and almost never burn. And I do wear hats. But no more sunglasses since 2023. And as of last year, I make many of my own skin care products, like wild harvested and organic rose hip oil. I have a minimalist approach to skin care, but a maximalist approach to tissue health.

Before and after six years of Face Pilates. Since I haven’t worn sunglasses in three years, you can see some in between the eyebrow wrinkles which are produced from squinting. But the forehead and neck have fewer wrinkles even though I’m older, and the eyes are less sunken and more lifted. I also think my skin has a healthier, pinkish glow from improved circulation and reasonable sun exposure. You can see the nasolabial lines starting to form, so this isn’t about not aging at all. It’s about aging better. In the second photo, I’m age 47.

What stands out to me the most is the eyes. They are deeper and more sunken in 2020, with the right eye a little droopy. But in 2026, they’re more lifted and brighter. The image quality on phones in 2020 wasn’t great but you can see the beginning of horizontal forehead and neck lines, which are reduced six years later. Since I don’t wear sunglasses yet spend a lot of time in the sun, I do squint, which exacerbates the wrinkles between the eyes. And I have new wrinkles around the mouth. But Face Pilates isn’t about not aging. It’s about supporting the tissues for healthier aging and better appearance while aging naturally.

Looks aren’t everything. The stories students share about the changes to their lives are inspiring:

• reduced headaches

• less neck tension

• no more dry eyes

• eyes less puffy

• less teeth clenching and grinding

• reduced sleep apnea and reduced need for CPAP machine

• reduced snoring

• improved sleep when practicing before bed

• the ability to open the mouth more for better dental care

• weighing more but looking leaner in the face

• feeling more relaxed

• improved facial awareness

And Face Pilates feels good. It’s a simple, inexpensive form of self care. It’s relaxing. I love doing it before bed. And since so many of your cranial nerves feed the face and neck, I believe Face Pilates does wonderful things for your nervous system and brain, not just the tissues you’re exercising and massaging.

I have no interest in botox, fillers, and other common ways of fighting gravity. I plan to continue with exercise, massage, and gua sha and can’t wait to see how that supports my tissues into my 50s and 60s.

For a taste of Face Pilates, try my 40-minute Face Massage lesson for $20. Once purchased, email sophia@optimizewithsophia.com and I’ll send you the link.