I Went To A "Face Gym" And Now I Only Answer To The Name "Discount Bella Hadid"

This is for anyone who's ever broken a jade roller.

Hi people!!! I'm Syd, I write for BuzzFeed and live in New York City with my lil' puggaccini carbonara named Phoebe.

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The other day, I was doing my regular rounds of watching hot people's stories on Instagram when I became particularly fixated on this one of Bella Hadid's.

Balla Hadid / Instagram

Bella wrote in the story: "No ad, just a true shoutout to my @madalainaconti. She's the only one I let touch my face and helps me so fucking much with the pain in my jaw and any skin problems I ever have. Lymph drainage helps the body detox which then helps with the crazy inflammation/puffiness I get from my Lyme (disease). It really helps me. She's a boss, so sweet, and has magic hands! Thank you queen!"

As someone who has a messed up jaw thanks to TMJ (Temporomandibular joint disfunction) as well as sinus issues AND persistent acne, I was ***VERY*** interested in whatever was going on here.

Syd Robinson

For instance, I once broke a goddamn $30 jade roller(!!!) by rolling it against my jaw muscles too hard. My shit HURTS!!!!!!!!!!!!

I immediately did a deep dive and learned that Bella's go-to esthetician, Madalaina Conti, is the national training manager at something called FaceGym.

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Madalaina posts a lot of her own "face workouts" on her Instagram, so if you're interested in trying this stuff out at home, I'd say she's worth a follow!

FaceGym is a spa/gym(?) experience and their slogan is "It's not a facial, it's a workout." I'm not really sure how else to describe this place, but I knew I had to see if FaceGym was actually worth Bella Hadid's ~Insta clout~. So I went!!! 😌💅✨

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*me walking to FaceGym and saying hi to the kind receptionist*

When I got there, I got suited up in a FaceGym headband to keep my Bangs™ out of my face, took off my face mask (all workers wore face masks and all clients were easily more than six feet apart, JSYK!) and took this absolutely heinous "Before" picture, which I truly cannot believe I'm posting on the internet!!!!!!!!!!!!

Syd Robinson

As you can definitely see, I have some pretty bad eye bags with lots of puffiness. This isn't because I don't sleep, it's because of all my sinus issues caused by my deviated septum. Basically, this makes me always have some kind of sinus pressure and headache going on. Oh, and I blow my nose. A LOT. Hopefully this treatment will help!!!!!!!

To start, my girl Kelly applied some gentle cleanser to my face and then began "stretching" my face with this rubber ball.

Syd Robinson

I LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!

Syd Robinson

This Face Ball felt soooooo fucking good. It really did get my blood flowing and stretched my face muscles in *just* the right way. Kelly also told me this would work better for me because — ahem — I can't break it with my ~force~. 😇

My rating: 8/10

Next up was this ol' pinch 'n' flick massage, which brought us into the "Cardio" section of the workout.

Syd Robinson

This was VEEEEEERY nice. This is where my face actually started to feel "the burn" — I could definitely tell that the muscles were "working out," if you will.

My rating: 8.5/10

And this one? Ooooooh...THIS!!! ONE!!!!!!!!!! 🔥🔥🔥

Syd Robinson

With this massage, I could feel all my stress getting pulled from my jaw muscles. If I could just relive this moment forever, I would.

My rating: 9/10

After ✨Cardio✨, it was then time to ✨Sculpt✨.

Syd Robinson

Kelly brought out this thing — kinda like a ninja throwing star, only for your face — that they call the Multi-Sculpt. It has six edges, each for a different specific use. Here's how FaveGym broke it down on their website:

Long Edge: De-puffs, contours, aids lymphatic drainage

Grip: Sculpts, aids lymphatic drainage, releases tension

Medium Edge: Aids lymphatic drainage, sculpts, and defines cheekbones

Teeth: Increases circulation, plumps out fine lines, and stimulates collagen and elastin production

Short Edge: Lifts, de-puffs the eye area, and releases eyebrow tension

Tip: Reduces facial tension

This thingy felt good and would totally be great to use on yourself if you have sinus problems! Like the Face Ball, it's also pretty tough to break.

My rating: 7/10

Then it was time for the first of the main attractions: the Pure Lift!!!!!!

FaceGym, Syd Robinson

Now this was some real Bill Nye scientific mumbo jumbo, but it definitely did something!!! This thing uses what's called electrical muscle stimulation, or EMS (I made a joke asking if it stood for "emergency medical services" — Kelly did not laugh) to shock your skin with little micro currents that supposedly strengthen your face muscles and "visibly lift, tone, and tighten."

Once Kelly applied the Collagen Infusion Serum (which acts as an activator), she began running the Pure Lift around my jawline and cheekbones. It felt like a bunch of little static shocks and was pretty weird at first — it also made my mouth and neck muscles twitch funnily. It was both entertaining and pain-relieving, so I enjoyed it.

My rating: 7/10

To show me the difference, Kelly did the right side of my face (your left, dear reader) first. I then polled my Instagram followers to see if they saw a difference, and here are the results of that:

Syd Robinson

So...69% (nice) said they did notice a difference. Personally, I'll say I noticed an immediate difference in person, and the right side of my face felt a lot tighter and more lifted. But looking back on the pictures, I'm not so sure I do...?

But then I was like, maybe my general facial asymmetry is throwing me off??? So THEN I compared the right side of my face before the Pure Lift to the same side after, and I think it actually looks pretty different!!!!!!!!

Syd Robinson

I feel like my eyebrows and eyes look more lifted and my jawline is a tiiiiiiiny bit more bicycle seat-y. Also, am I hallucinating or does my nose kinda look smaller?! Yes? No? Maybe? What are your thoughts?!

Anywho, moving on! It was time for the Big Kahuna — the treatment Bella Hadid likes, apparently — the Cryo Contour!!!!!!!!!

Syd Robinson

This treatment has gotta be somewhere along the cool sculpting spectrum. It's "a high-pressure shot of frozen CO2" that "plumps skin and locks in moisture." It's also supposed to stimulate the production of collagen, which is a word I've heard a lot of my friends who are really into skincare say.

It was honestly a little scary!!! The machine they used looked like a big hot glue gun and sounded like a lawnmower! Put that right up next to your face and it's shocking for sure. Still, the air felt nice on my face! Not sure I saw much of a visible difference after, though.

My rating: 5/10

Lastly, we finished off with the Multi-Sculpt again, but this time, for lymphatic drainage.

Syd Robinson

What can I say? I always enjoy a good Multi-Sculpt!

My rating: 7/10 (again)

OK, so here are my ✨final thoughts✨.

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If you're someone with jaw pain, sinus issues, or are just plain into facials, you'll LOOOOOOVE FaceGym. The massages feel FABULOUS and definitely loosen up some muscle tension. You'll walk out of there feeling temporarily unclenched, and it's great.

I do think the Pure Lift made a noticeable difference, but its results were pretty temporary. Kelly mentioned that a lot of brides get it on their wedding day, which I think makes sense!

For more ~lasting results~, she recommended doing these "exercises" regularly, just like going to a normal gym — and they do sell their products online and even offer online classes, so technically, you can — but I, for one, don't have the follow-through or the money to make this happen!!!

As for the Cryo Contour, I don't *think* it did enough for me to want to do it again, especially at the asking price of $190. IDK though??? I'd like to ask Miss Hadid her thoughts.

My overall rating: 7/10

So, what do you guys think? Would you try FaceGym? Tell me in the comments!!!!!!!!