There are many parts of your body you can sculpt (to some degree) with exercise: buttocks, chest, and arms, for example. But these body parts have one thing in common: they have muscles that you can exercise to increase definition in that area. Your jawline, on the other hand, doesn’t have any muscles, so it can’t be sculpted this way.
But one thing that can improve the definition of your jawline is a nonsurgical facelift, which can reposition the jaw in a youthful position so that it’s less obscured by features of aging, such as weight gain, jowls, and turkey neck.
What Defines Your Jawline
The jawline is defined by the jawbone (mandible). All the muscles that move the jaw are located in your cheek or in your neck. Much of the jawline is defined by bone without any muscle whatsoever, with most muscles attaching higher up on the jaw or underneath the jaw. There are some superficial muscles in the area that relate to the movement of your skin and lips, but exercising these muscles is unlikely to result in significant definition. If anything, it might end up obscuring the jawline in a similar fashion to excess fat.
How the Jawline Gets Obscured
There are three main reasons for a weak or obscured jawline. First, it could be developmental. Many of us don’t develop our jaws during youth because we are not chewing enough hard or tough foods to stimulate jawbone development. That’s why you probably had (or will have) your wisdom teeth removed.
On the other hand, your jawline might be obscured by weight gain. If you put on weight, your body might store fat in your neck or cheeks, which can lead to the loss of definition in the jawline.
Finally, you might have had a strong jawline, but over time your teeth might have gotten worn down, which causes your jaw to move upward and backward. This obscures your jawline behind the natural tissues that are present.
Weight Loss Could Help (or Not)
We do not want to say that you shouldn’t exercise, and that exercise won’t help improve your jawline. In particular, if you are exercising regularly and losing weight, you might be able to reduce the amount of fat deposited in your face and neck, which can let your jaw stand out more easily.
But this might not work, and it could backfire, in fact. Part of the problem is that your body has a preprogrammed distribution of how and where it will store its bodily fat. Your body might keep fat stored in this region until you are well below a healthy weight, taking it from other parts of your body first.
Second, if you do lose that fat, you might find that there’s something else obscuring your jawline: skin. Weight loss could leave you with skin that hangs loose around the chin and under the neck, causing turkey neck to take the place of your poorly defined jaw.
Put Your Jaw in a Better Position
If you’re unhappy with poor jawline definition, it might be because your jaw isn’t where it’s supposed to be. Over time, our teeth can get worn down and broken, which causes your jaw to move up and backward. This means that it will be more obscured by any type of fat or skin in your cheeks and neck.
In a nonsurgical facelift, we can restore your teeth to their youthful proportions. This can push your jaw down and forward. Adding volume to your teeth restores the proper relationship between the jaw, cheeks, and neck, which can dramatically improve the appearance of your jaw. It even works if your skin is not as elastic as it used to be.
Learn More about Facial Rejuvenation in Hilton Head
If you’re in the Hilton Head area looking to rejuvenate the appearance of your lower face, including getting a better jawline, we can help. Please call (843) 706-2999 today for an appointment with a cosmetic dentist at The Durham Office, offering Beyond Exceptional Dentistry in Bluffton.
