Hold your head up high. it's more than just a saying, it's a beauty secret -- one that most photographers like myself already know. Sucking in your chin and holding it up is and easy way to take pounds -- and years -- off your face, according to this article from The Daily Mail.

And just as exercise helps your body become taut and slim, exercises for your face can help slim the chin. Says facial fitness expert Eva Fraser: "By exercising certain muscles in the face for ten to 15 minutes, several times a week you can maintain, or even recreate, a good jawline. There's no magic wand, but as long as you have the discipline and patience to maintain it, this method is far more effective than any facelift."

Complimentary haircut and make-up will also do wonders for your chin. Share your beauty tips in the comments below. And check out the gallery below for clothing that will slim your shape.

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Madonna's people are talking. And what they have to say gives a visual of one high-energy 50-year-old woman whose 51-date Sticky and Sweet tour has her working hard and feeling great.

"The harder Madonna works the happier she is," says a longtime friend. "Because she was a dancer, that's why. It's practice, practice, practice."

Besides ensuring her shows are perfect and her family is happy, Madonna is all about taking care of herself. A massage helps prep her for performing. So does a facial. And of course: Free weights, to maintain that rock-hard and strong body.

I like how Madonna operates. Work, family, a little pampering, and a nearly-perfect physique -- not to mention truckloads of money. Seems to me it doesn't get much better than that.

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Have you taken a peek at our Summer Slimdown Guide yet? It's full of tips for a healthy and fit summer. We didn't forget (and we hope you don't either) that losing weight isn't just a numbers game. For many people, a lack of self-confidence is a contributing factor to weight gain. When you don't feel good about yourself, you're less likely to take care of yourself and, in time, extra pounds can creep up on you.

Taking care of your health -- both physically and emotionally -- is important. When you care for your own well-being, you're better able to manage your life effectively and energetically and you're better able to care for your loved ones. If your self-esteem could use a little boost, try some of these ideas:

• Meditate. Taking a few moments each day to re-center will help you to feel better about yourself.
  
• Pamper yourself. Schedule periodic "pampering" treatments -- get a facial or a massage, visit a spa, or get a pedicure.
  
• Associate with supportive friends. Spend time with those who make you laugh, those you can count on for support, and who love you unconditionally.
  
• Live healthfully. Eating right and exercising don't only improve the health of your body, they improve your mind and spirit as well.
  
• Do something for others. Put yourself and your needs aside occasionally and do something for others -- it's amazing how focusing on someone else's needs can give your self-confidence a huge boost.

Check out the gallery for more info. And be sure to read through the Summer Slimdown Guide -- it's chock full of tips to help you finish the summer season in style.

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In most parts of the U.S., the sun is starting to shine a little more brightly, encouraging us to come out and play. Not only does the warm weather get us all frisky and ready to tackle all kinds of fun outdoor activities -- a change of season is also a reminder to take a look at our current skincare routine to make sure we're still meeting our skin's needs.

It should go without saying, but I'm still going to say it -- first and foremost, make sure you're applying sunscreen every time you go outside. Hats and sunglasses will help protect your face from sun damage, too, but it's a good idea to get into the habit of applying a moisturizing sunscreen every morning.

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Oh... a day at the spa. Sounds like a relaxing bit of heaven, doesn't it? How does a nail infection sound? Or a lethal overdose of hair-removal treatment? Spas offer a variety of services nowadays -- not just the run-of-the-mill facial and massage. So you should check your spa out as thoroughly as you would check out a new physician. Here are some tips:

• Don't make your first appointment over the phone. Visit the spa, ask for a tour, and see if it appears professional, organized, and sanitary.
• Ask questions! Ask if the staff is licensed and what their training was. You can also ask about the years of experience. If you're getting treatments such as Botox (and if you are, really, think twice) make sure whoever is administering it is a licensed physician or a nurse under a doctor's supervision.
• Ask friends if they've been to the spa before and see if the spa has an online rating.
  
• The spa should have a questionnaire or verbally ask you questions about existing health conditions, allergies, and so forth. If you don't feel an appropriate question has been asked, speak up! You have to advocate for you own health.

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What's the big deal about a facial? I used to ask this question of my facial-fanatic friends until I had one myself. I imagine that anyone who has ever gone for a professional facial would agree that they're pretty great. Other than the extractions, pretty much everything about this ultimate pampering experience is fantastic.

Some facials are definitely better than others -- one in particular that sticks out for me included lower leg and foot, full arm, shoulder, neck and head massages during the normally fairly boring bit where they leave you to relax while the face mask sets -- but extra massage or no, pretty much any facial will be a worthwhile experience.

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There are few luxuries in life that I enjoy more than spending a day -- or even just an hour -- at a spa getting all prettied up. Sure, the results may only last a day or two and it tends to cost a small fortune, but taking the time to relax and rejuvenate, with the added benefit of looking good afterward, makes me feel pretty good about myself.

While I would love to enjoy a spa day at least once a month, it's not really possible because of the cost. I'm sure that many of you are in the same boat. But just because you can't afford to hand over hundreds of dollars on a regular basis for various beauty treatments doesn't mean that you have to go without. Why not try a few DIY treatments instead? Sure you've got to do the work yourself, but it's still relaxing to take some time out to focus strictly on you. Plus, it's a heck of a lot cheaper. It can also be fun to have a DIY beauty night the next time you're having an evening with the girls -- instead of hitting the bars, you can eat pizza, drink wine and have a few laughs while painting your toes.

I've had a look around the web for some good Do It Yourself instructions and found pages that focus on pedicures, manicures and facials, so take a look and see which you'd like to try:

DIY Facial: I think this may be my favorite of all the at-home, on-your-own treatments because it looks really simple and I imagine you'd finish with a really healthy glow. Start with a cleanse using your regular face cleanser, follow with a steam either in the tub or over a bowl of hot water, and then give yourself a massage using an exfoliator. The next step is to apply a mask, then treat yourself to another massage but this time with your regular moisturizer. Finish by applying some eye cream and your skin will look great. If you want to look really fab, check out this site for instructions on how to properly shape your eyebrows so that they perfectly frame your face.

DIY Manicure: OK, I find that painting my own fingernails can be a nightmare. Trying to use my non-dominant hand to do anything is tough and adding nailpolish to the equation often equals a huge mess. But I'm sure for those of you who have similar problems, if you take your time, this DIY Manicure will have your hands looking spa-perfect. Start by removing old nail polish, trim nails to desired length, soak hands in warm water and then use cuticle oil to soften. Follow this by pushing back cuticles with a cuticle stick, exfoliate and then moisturize hands before carefully applying polish. I'm sure the time and delicate work will be worth it!

DIY Pedicure: This one is especially useful now that summer is coming to an end. A few months of going bareful has likely left a lot of feet out there looking and feeling pretty rough. A Do It Yourself pedicure is pretty similar to the manicure, which is great because you can use a lot of the same tools. Like the manicure, begin by removing polish and then soak your feet. Once they're nice and soft use a pumice stone to buff off all that rough, dry skin and then exfoliate off any leftover dead skin. Trim your nails before moisturizing your feet and applying cuticle oil. Push back cuticles and finish with a polish. You can either use the same one as on your hands or mix it up by choosing a complimentary color.

Once you've completed your big beauty day you can either stay and home and chill out while watching a movie, or head out on the town and show off all of your hard work.

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Since I began writing for That's Fit I've learned about some seriously wild and wacky health and beauty products but the absolute best one that I've come across is the "butt facial". The procedure, which is exactly what it sounds like -- a facial for your butt -- is all the rage at a number of spas across the US.

Going for anywhere from around a hundred dollars to as much as nearly a thousand, clients get their bums scrubbed, polished, bronzed and more, in order to get the best posterior possible. It's mostly women who are are shelling out the big bucks for the procedure, which is meant to make your bum look tighter and smoother.

I think my favorite part is that it's still referred to as a facial, albeit a "butt facial". I think "buttcial" or "bumcial" would be more appropriate. Either way, I know I love getting facials (on my face), so I admit that if I had the cash I'd give a buttcial a try. Would you?

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Recently yoga instructor Annelise Hagen in New York city was hit with inspiration as she surveyed her classroom, which was full of students with contorted faces as they stretched and balanced in various yoga poses. Why don't we exercise above the neck? she thought. And so "yoga face" classes were born, and eventually The Yoga Face book, with moves designed to tone the facial muscles and perhaps reduce a person's need for Botox or cosmetic surgery as they grow older.

So with facial "poses" like the "Marilyn Monroe" and "Lionface," do yoga techniques for the face really work? Some say yes and some say no, what do you think?

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If you're into beauty gadgets with questionable usefulness, then this MP3-with-built-in-facial contraption is just what you need. Coming out of Japan (where else!), this MP3 player has an attachment that generates negative ions for a mini-facial while you groove happily to your own hand-picked tunes.

Gadgets for better skin are always awesome as far as I'm concerned, but is having it attached to a MP3 player really that useful? How about something we hold up to our faces anyway, like a cell phone? If my skin got clearer for every minute I talked on the phone ... now that would be a great invention.

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Depending on what your needs are, you've probably got a slew of face and skin care products stashed in your bathroom right now. Some of them work, and some of them don't, but if you're like a lot of people then you're probably slowly getting more and more tired of all the artificial colors and preservatives, and even the dangerous chemicals, that come in most commercially manufactured skin care products. So have you ever tried making your own?

I admit I never have, although these recipes for skin care oils look easy enough that I just might give it a shot. And they have mixes to try for everything from general facial balancing to specific concerns like eczema -- and even a specialized hip and thigh formula. And I bet it would be such a nice time working with all those essential oils making the house smell all wonderful!

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Merck has stopped promoting the mandatory use of Gardasil that targets the human papillomavirus (HPV). It's probably no coincidence that their turn-around comes at the same time that reports from the National Vaccine Information Center are surfacing about fainting and dizziness reported by dozens of patients as side effects of Gardasil. There are also some concerns that Gardasil may cause infertility.

An early version of the Virginia house bill contained a clause addressing liability issues "if a female who is inoculated with the HPV vaccine becomes incapable of naturally conceiving a healthy child carried to live birth or experiences impaired fertility as a result of the HPV vaccine".

Legislators got that idea because the vaccine contains Polysorbate 80, which is linked to infertility in mice. The Merck HPV vaccine also contains sodium borate which is a common roach killer in each of its three doses. The National Library of Medicine (NLM) of the National Institutes of Health notes of sodium borate that it "is now known to be a dangerous poison, it is no longer commonly used in medical preparations." That was published in 2005. Yet the FDA in 2006 approved the Merck vaccine with this "dangerous poison" to be "commonly used" in these vaccinations. The symptoms of sodium borate poisoning according to the NLM citation include many of the side effects being reported after less than six months of the vaccine usage. These include convulsions, collapse, and seizures that include twitching of facial muscles, arms, hands, legs, and feet.

How many of these young women taking this vaccine will find out that they are barren 10 to 15 years down the road and what will their options be if they are forced to take this drug because of legislation mandates?

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My nemesis ... the enlarged pore! Many women (and men, for that matter) deal everyday with pores that are larger than they'd like, and they're not only unsightly -- but prone to clogs and inflammation as well. So if you look at people with invisible pores with envy, take a proactive approach to your facial health and try these tips for minimizing large pores as much as possible:

"Polish" your face with a grainy cleanser. It's something you can do at home, and it helps slough off dead skins cells from the surface so your pores can do their job: breathe. Other at home solutions include avoiding foundation on areas of your face where pores are enlarged (only makes them look bigger, and may contribute to clogging) and using products designed for smoothing the appearance of pores.

If you're up for going out for professional treatments, talk with your facialist about options such as getting a facial or a microdermabrasion treatment. Depending on your particular situation and skin type, they can best help you decide which direction to go.

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