Fitness expert Joanna Hall answers your questions

I exercise regularly and eat sensibly. I am happy with my body shape and I feel and look fit, trim and healthy, apart from one part of me – my chin. Or, rather, my double chin. Can you advise on any exercises to get rid of it? It makes everything else look out of proportion.

Without exercise, facial muscles, like all muscles, weaken and the connective tissue tends to lose its elasticity. Some individuals have sworn the appearance of their face has improved by performing a series of daily specialist exercises to help tone, define and even give a lifting effect. When the supportive muscles of the cheeks, mouth, jawline and forehead contract and release, the local circulation of blood and nutrients improves, and this can result in a natural healthy glow and reported improved facial firmness.

Double chins, however, are not a muscle group – they are an accumulation of fat which, although it does have a small circulatory system, has accumulated over the muscles of the throat and jawline. So while it may be possible to achieve a slightly more toned jawline, the benefits you may achieve will not be so effective with your double chin.

There are a number of facial exercise CDs on the market and improvements can be made, but I’d recommend you try the Eva Fraser Facial Fitness Programme (evafraser.com). You can attend a course or get a home support pack.

Regular aerobic exercise and expending more energy than you are consuming keeps excess body fat in check, but you do need to be realistic. Look at others in your family – if immediate family members have a similar facial appearance, then minimising yours will be harder as your body has a genetic predisposition to store more fat under your chin.

Joanna Hall is a fitness expert (www.joannahall.com). Send your exercise questions to: Weekend, 119 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3ER ([email protected]).

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