Aaah, Saks Fifth Avenue – the iconic NYC shopping mecca located right next to St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Ever since skin became “in,” more and more New Yorkers have found themselves taking the pilgrimage to Saks to visit the little slice of heaven that is the Beauty Department. As the elevator doors open to the shiny tiled floors and glistening countertops stocked with high-end perfumes, creams, and lipsticks, it’s easy to get lost in the midst of all the glitz. However, if you hang a right and head straight to the back, you’ll find the one and only FaceGym location in the United States.
Ever since its springtime arrival from London, FaceGym has captured the interest of skin care aficionados…including myself. If you simply search the ‘About Us’ on FaceGym’s website, you’ll immediately get an understanding of their mission–workout the “unused 40 muscles in the face.” From a physical standpoint, working out every muscle–including the ones in your face–makes complete sense. I mean, we regularly go to the gym to strengthen our muscles and keep our body healthy…so why not keep our facial muscles tight and toned as well? To me, that’s a much better (and potentially economical) alternative to fighting aging and wrinkles than a series of expensive needles every few months. So, after much curiosity as to how exactly one works out their face, I scheduled my first FaceGym appointment on a Thursday evening. On the menu? The Signature Electrical.
Despite the sunlit studio, picturesque windows, and relaxing vibes of a trendy NYC yoga studio, I had to keep reminding myself that I was not there for a relaxing facial, but a workout. After signing in, my trainer, Lucia, brought me over to my chair, got me in the zone, and started going over what the experience would be like. After taking a look at all the tools–mini medicine balls, derma rollers, jade scallops, serums on serums–I felt like any newbie to the gym: intimidated. Luckily, my trainer (and face) would be doing all the work–all I had to do was lie back and let Lucia work her magic.
My 40-minute training session started like any other gym day–a good stretch. After a few minutes of rolling around a mini medicine ball around my face, pulling and stretching out the muscles in my face, I felt the blood start pumping and some heat starting to generate. Odd, right? Lucia then started to put my face through its paces during cardio and strength sessions. Yes, I learned my face can do cardio and I much prefer it over regular cardio. With some lightning fast tapping to slow, pressurized kneading I saw a youthful glow starting to spread across my face and…dare I say some natural contour?
Then Lucia spoke the best sentence a girl could hear: “Okay, now we’re really going to get your cheekbones to POP!” She switched on the star of The Signature Electrical: FaceGym’s Pro device and I could hear the electrical currents whizzing as she started gliding the tool up my neck towards my ears. It actually tickled and after she saw that I felt comfortable with the vibrations, she increased the power and got to work on my face, skating the Pro over and around my cheekbones, along my jawline, up towards my forehead. After 10 minutes of this, I was almost done. I snuck a peek in the mirror and couldn’t believe how tight and lifted my skin looked! For the cooldown, Lucia used a gilded derma roller and some serums to help lock in that glow and cooled down any redness or puffiness with some jade.
As I stood up from my chair, I felt like I could cut glass with these newfound cheekbones. I was a little worried that only I would notice the results, but my sister, who was waiting out front for me to finish my training session immediately said “Oh my god, you are GLOWING!” Okay, so FaceGym was sister-approved but who else would notice? After tearing myself away from Saks, we met up with a few friends for dinner and a concert. I was met with similar reactions about how healthy my skin looked, what highlighter I used, etc. After telling them that I just came from FaceGym (“Facewhat?!”) and entertaining them with some videos of my workout, they were all eager to try out the service as well. The great thing about FaceGym is that there is something for everyone. Prices can range from $70 to $275 and the workouts can be as short as 30 minutes to as long as 75 minutes, making it super easy to fit in a workout during your lunch break.
My final verdict on FaceGym? While I admit that it’s a bit of an investment, preventing wrinkles and aging through non-invasive methods by actually strengthening the muscles in my face seems way more appealing (and effective) compared to spending a lot of money on injections that only freeze facial muscles. After seeing the immediate and noticeable results of FaceGym, I’d be willing to incorporate workouts into my beauty routine whenever my wellness budget allows! I already pay for a gym membership, so why not take a break from leg day every once in a while and give my face a sweat?