Flex Effect or Facercise?
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Tue Dec 28, 2010 9:50 am

I'm sure this has been asked many times before but I would really appreciate some advice. I was all geared up to get FE but then read about Facercise on here and now I'm in a real dilemma! Although I'm on the wrong side of 50 I have always looked quite a bit younger than my age...till the menopause hit me last year then it was downhill all the way! What I'm after in particular is (hopefully!) my jawline to be firmed and my upper eyelids to be lifted if poss and de-puffed. From what I've seen the FE pics seem more honest somehow but I would be really, really grateful if anyone could give me the benefit of their experience and help me choose! Thanks x

free skin care · Wed Dec 29, 2010 4:30 am

I think FlexEffect is a little more comprehensive (at least for me) than Facercise. Facercise has a lot of energy/visualisation stuff that I just struggled with. So I guess if you like that stuff and are good with it, Facercise is great (I wish I was), but for me FlexEffect is a bit more physical which I prefer. Just personal preference here though - each to their own. Plus you might also want to look at other programs out there - those aren't the only two. Eva Fraser has a good one, as does Carolyn Cleaves!

Wed Dec 29, 2010 4:52 am

Hmmm...don't think I'm one for visualisation either! Flex Effect is more expensive but everyone seems to think it's worth it (and as there are none to be found on ebay I think that must say something). I've seen Eva Fraser on TV over here and she doesn't inspire me as her face is weirdly immobile, in my opinion. I also am not that impressed with the pics on Facercise either really so I think it looks like FE is the one for me. Hope it works!

free skin care · Wed Dec 29, 2010 5:14 am

I can understand it appears more expensive, but you get more product for your money than you do with Facercise. For one, they have their own forum and workshop forum. Second you get the book, dvd, cd and a workout log. The other thing is that its actually enjoyable. I also like how the dvd demo's not just the core resistance stuff, but you get the advanced stuff to use later on (but I have to confess I just jumped straight in and started doing the whole lot and its worked for me so far, but I've done a lot of other programs prior to that so maybe thats a reason why?).

daydreamer wrote:

Hmmm...don't think I'm one for visualisation either! Flex Effect is more expensive but everyone seems to think it's worth it (and as there are none to be found on ebay I think that must say something). I've seen Eva Fraser on TV over here and she doesn't inspire me as her face is weirdly immobile, in my opinion. I also am not that impressed with the pics on Facercise either really so I think it looks like FE is the one for me. Hope it works!

Wed Dec 29, 2010 5:20 am

Yes I'm a bit like that-I jump in with both feet and give it everything I've got...but then as I've said give up two weeks later when I can't see results. This time though I will stick at it. I'll have to as my husband is paying for it!

free skin care · Sun Jan 02, 2011 1:58 am

Both are great programs--among the very best out there! So either would be a good (first) purchase. My main issues are with facial fullness and my cheeks, and I like being comprehensive, so I prefer FlexEffect (plus you get all the massage, skin, and bone techniques). It's a fantastic program, imo. But other people prefer and love Facercise, which is more of a toning program, and the new Advanced (super-sets) Facercise program has gotten very good reviews. In the end, most people like to use exercises and approaches from more than one program.

Also, try searching for past threads on facial exercises on EDS; there's a wealth of info there. One of the best threads was titled something like "Facial Exercises: Share Your Progress and Results" (I can't remember the exact name), so that thread might be particularly helpful to read, and it's not as long as some of the other threads. Or, if you know what you'd like in a particular program and what your trouble areas are, we can let you know the pros and cons of the two programs, based on your interests. Smile

Sun Jan 02, 2011 8:37 am

Hi CM, I think I'll go for Facercise to start with as you suggest and maybe then I could progress to Flex...but hopefully I won't need it! My concerns are just that I've noticed a general slackening (thank you menopause Mad

),plus I would like to firm my jawline and "open" my eyes a bit and anything else is a bonus!

Sun May 22, 2011 10:23 pm

cm5597,

Do you like Carole Maggio or Flex Effect better for Nasal Labial fold lines? I only just started using Carole Maggio's workout, and her N-L exercise doesn't seem like it's that effective. Does Flex Effect have a better exercise for N-L lines?

Also, about the new superset workout you mentioned ...what is it? I have Carole's beginning and advanced DVDs but never heard of anything else. If it is something new, is it good? What are supersets?

free skin care · Mon May 23, 2011 1:23 am

I always had nl lines right up to and beyond my 50's and have to say that I managed to get rid of them last year using the latest FlexEffect stuff. The cross stretching was the real key for me and I did what they don't recommend - but hey it worked for me (in that I did it straight away and didn't wait - but then again I've done them for the last 10 years).

FlexEffect is very different to Facercise. None of this imaginery stuff about your expanding or shrinking etc. I tried Facercise several times but just couldn't get my head round it and never felt the so called burn!

The superset is a newbie invention of Maggios (Facercise) in which she has you do all the exercises in 8 minutes (aka a superset).

fitnessbunny wrote:

cm5597,

Do you like Carole Maggio or Flex Effect better for Nasal Labial fold lines? I only just started using Carole Maggio's workout, and her N-L exercise doesn't seem like it's that effective. Does Flex Effect have a better exercise for N-L lines?

Also, about the new superset workout you mentioned ...what is it? I have Carole's beginning and advanced DVDs but never heard of anything else. If it is something new, is it good? What are supersets?

Mon May 23, 2011 4:10 pm

Thanks, TheresaMary. I'll look into cross stretching.

free skin care · Mon May 23, 2011 6:38 pm

Cross-stretching is a technique found on the Flex Effect CD/program. You can't get it separately.

Wow TM - you got rid of your NL's with this. I'm impressed.

For anyone out there: I've used Flex Effect and Facercise and Happy Face Yoga and all three have great points. I am not a "proponent" of one over the other.
I love Deb Crowley of Flex Effect - She's the real deal - no facial surgeries, etc. She genuinely does what she believes in. I like her cheek and her eye exercises - the lower face ones and neck - not so much. There have been complaints of overbuild in the lower face region. That was something I struggled with and then just quit those exercises.

Carole Maggio's facercise has a superset that takes around 7 minutes (it says 8 but I've timed it and it's closer to 7.) It does the job and in short order and I don't feel like I've ever overbuilt my lower face. But that's just me. Also her lip exercises are better than FE's (again my opinion).

You won't get the forum of Flex Effect with Carole Maggio's facercise but I personally never used it but a few times to look around. If you are one to use it - it's an added bonus. Plus the cross-stretching - which apparently has done great things for TM's nl's.

As for me - I combine. I do some of the FE cheek exercises most days and CM about three days a week. I add in other things like a wonderful all-in-one from Eva Frasier and The Sexy Seventy Ellie! It's become second nature to move my face and it's worthwhile - whatever you choose.

The main thing is to DO IT and stick with it. Make a commitment of at least 4-5 days a week to start. Success in facial exercise is measured in maintaing the motivation.
Best of luck no matter what you choose Smile

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2011 1:49 am

Hey Sis, not sure how you missed it, as I've written about it all over the place. To be honest, I didn't intend getting rid of the NL's, just thought I'd always have them, as my mother and grandmother had them too so I figured it was just a curse of genetics and so when I started the cross stretching, it wasn't even on my mind about the nl's. I threw all caution to the wind and just did the advanced stuff, but I've done stuff for the last 10 years to my face so knew it was pretty strong already and maybe thats why I got benefits. It was my dh who noticed it before I did. He mentioned it casually one morning that the lines from my nose to mouth had gone. I ran to the bathroom mirror to look, and they were still there just much fainter than norm and within weeks they vanished! I was hone happy and overjoyed lady!

sister sweets wrote:

Wow TM - you got rid of your NL's with this. I'm impressed.

free skin care · Wed May 25, 2011 8:46 am

fitnessbunny wrote:

cm5597,

Do you like Carole Maggio or Flex Effect better for Nasal Labial fold lines? I only just started using Carole Maggio's workout, and her N-L exercise doesn't seem like it's that effective. Does Flex Effect have a better exercise for N-L lines?

Also, about the new superset workout you mentioned ...what is it? I have Carole's beginning and advanced DVDs but never heard of anything else. If it is something new, is it good? What are supersets?

Hey Fitnessbunny,

My personal preference is strongly in favor of the FlexEffect version of this exercise, over the Facercise version. The reason why is because in the Facercise version, you are stretching that area and then using purely visualization to help contract the muscle. You are supposed to visualize "the energy" moving up and down. It took me a long time to mostly get this. And in the Facercise version, you are applying no resistance to the muscle and not even moving the muscle once you contract it. You just contract and hold.

In the FlexEffect version, you elongate the muscle and then contract it....elongate and contract...so the muscle moves. Also, you are applying resistance to the muscle under the NL lines, so I prefer that, too, as it allows you to better fill in the region under NL lines, getting more youthful fullness.

Ultimately, I think we all have different preferences for exercises among the various programs out there. Like Sistersweets, I like being open-minded and experimenting with different programs (though my favorite is FlexEffect). I think each has something valuable to offer.

Also, there are many reasons why people get NL lines, and sometimes it has nothing to do with the NL area (e.g., if your upper cheeks are sagging, this can create NL folds) or even with the muscles themselves (e.g., could be due to fluid build-up). So I just wanted to add that different people find that that different approaches work for them (e.g., TheresaMary found that cross-stretching really helped her, so perhaps in her case, it was a skin issue that created her NL lines, so improving the skin got rid of the lines for her).

Hope this helps! Smile

free skin care · Thu Jun 02, 2011 5:01 pm

TheresaMary wrote:

I always had nl lines right up to and beyond my 50's and have to say that I managed to get rid of them last year using the latest FlexEffect stuff. The cross stretching was the real key for me and I did what they don't recommend - but hey it worked for me (in that I did it straight away and didn't wait - but then again I've done them for the last 10 years).

Wow this is wonderful TheresaMary I do hope others see this!

free skin care · Thu Jun 02, 2011 10:26 pm

TM - I guess I did miss it...
Thanks for clarifying.

TheresaMary wrote:

Hey Sis, not sure how you missed it, as I've written about it all over the place. To be honest, I didn't intend getting rid of the NL's, just thought I'd always have them, as my mother and grandmother had them too so I figured it was just a curse of genetics and so when I started the cross stretching, it wasn't even on my mind about the nl's. I threw all caution to the wind and just did the advanced stuff, but I've done stuff for the last 10 years to my face so knew it was pretty strong already and maybe thats why I got benefits. It was my dh who noticed it before I did. He mentioned it casually one morning that the lines from my nose to mouth had gone. I ran to the bathroom mirror to look, and they were still there just much fainter than norm and within weeks they vanished! I was hone happy and overjoyed lady!

sister sweets wrote:

Wow TM - you got rid of your NL's with this. I'm impressed.

Fri Aug 12, 2011 4:24 am

TheresaMary, how long were you doing cross-streching before you noticed results? Did you wait the recommended two days between treatments?

I just got FlexEffect and am eager to try it. I am so glad it worked for you.

free skin care · Fri Aug 12, 2011 5:55 am

I did have the two days rest between cross stretching sessions, but got to hold my hands up and say I didn't follow the advice about waiting, just did it from day 1 (and not the only one though - just look at the thread about the new edition - you'll see I was one of many) but have to admit that I had done facial exercises for least 10 years prior to doing that. Also I did the 2nd edition for a while on and off for a few years prior to it.

free skin care · Fri Aug 12, 2011 8:01 am

LBH wrote:

TheresaMary, how long were you doing cross-streching before you noticed results? Did you wait the recommended two days between treatments?

I just got FlexEffect and am eager to try it. I am so glad it worked for you.

I wouldn't try cross-stretching until you've done FlexEffect for a few months. In the book, that is the general recommendation. (So that means that it was okay for TheresaMary to start cross-stretching right away, since she had been using the 2nd edition of FlexEffect for while, but beginners should hold off in the beginning.) After all, it's good to work your way up to such things...starting with massage and the exercises, so that your skin and facial tissues become stronger first. HTH Smile

free skin care · Fri Aug 12, 2011 8:05 am

Just to add there were several people who did it at the same time as me, who hadn't done facial exercises for a prolonged time before like I had (Kassy A - where are you) and had fantastic results. I suspect they put that in as a disclaimer so they don't get inundated with complaining messages but there is absolutely nothing that I've seen that suggests you can start it straight away. Deb doesn't actually say in the book you can't do it right away, she says to do it when you feel confident. In fact recently someone asked that question and she said to them to try it out - so don't know where that comes from about 6 months but its nonsense!

free skin care · Fri Aug 12, 2011 8:56 am

TheresaMary wrote:

Just to add there were several people who did it at the same time as me, who hadn't done facial exercises for a prolonged time before like I had (Kassy A - where are you) and had fantastic results. I suspect they put that in as a disclaimer so they don't get inundated with complaining messages but there is absolutely nothing that I've seen that suggests you can start it straight away. Deb doesn't actually say in the book you can't do it right away, she says to do it when you feel confident. In fact recently someone asked that question and she said to them to try it out - so don't know where that comes from about 6 months but its nonsense!

The 6 month timeline comes from the fact that Sean and the other trainers initially recommended on the forum not attempting cross-stretching and the other advanced techniques for 6-12 months. Deb did chime in recently and say that people could dive in early, once they feel confident enough. I thought that the book had a similar recommendation (like hold off for the first 6-12 months), but I don't have the book in front of me right now. FWIW, to add more balance to the discussion, there were a few people who tried cross-stretching too early and ran into problems with doing too much too soon, so you should just know that there have been both positive and negative results from starting too early...just want to insert some words of caution and help you be aware that it's important to figure out what's best for you. All the best Smile

free skin care · Fri Aug 12, 2011 9:12 am

To me if Deb says its okay then its okay. She is the founder of the programme and I've noticed many times Sean says things that I dont see her agreeing with and it sounds strange sometimes. I don't believe he can actually speak for Debs or conveys her thoughts at all. I have also noticed its only him who makes such comments, not Cathy or Loli from what I have seen. Not to say I dont think he is helpfu but believe its worthwhile being cautious with his suggestions as times because they do misrepresent Deb's original programme in my mind.

Sat Aug 13, 2011 2:39 am

Thank you for replying. I have been doing Tanaka since January and Vaculifter for about two months. I have done Carole Maggio for about a year and recently have added gua sha to my morning OCM routine. So I feel like my skin is pretty tough by now. I will proceed cautiously though.

It is hard to be patient when some people (ThersaMary) report losing their NL lines!

free skin care · Sat Aug 13, 2011 10:05 am

I just looked it up in the book. My bad, TheresaMary is right; there is no exact recommendation for timeframe. So maybe the 6-12 months recommendation was coming from Sean; it was just repeated so many times that it was etched into my mind.

Here's some very helpful words from Claudia, that she posted on the forum soon after the 3rd edition was released:

"Cross Stretching should only be started after you have mastered the FE massage, and you feel as though you are only gaining positive results from FE massage.

If you have any appearance of stress after FE massage YOU ARE NOT READY for Cross Stretching.

Cross stretching can be slightly uncomfortable. HOWEVER, it is NOT PAINFUL.

It may leave your face flushed in color after a quick run through. It does NOT leave over night stress that must be disguised with make-up

You should start out lightly and gently. Work your way up, NOT DOWN with how heavy your hand is.

If you are NEW TO FLEXEFFECT... YOU ARE NOT READY for Cross Stretching. Please do not haste to this technique. It is an invitation to disappointment. You should allow yourself the benefits from Resistance training, and progressively aggressive FlexEffect Massage.

Allow yourself a MINIMUM of 3 - 6 months of FE Resistance Training and FE Massage before moving forward with Cross Stretching.

Please use common sense. Don't fight through stressful results. ASK QUESTIONS... be patient."

With the background you listed above, LBH, you can probably get started earlier than most. But waiting a few months and then starting to do it slow and steadily seems to be the advice given by the Crowleys.

HTH Smile

Sun Aug 14, 2011 6:17 am

Thank you CM. I will heed this advice!

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