Plastic surgeon controversially warns people against running due to impact on their face

There a wide range of health hacks, trends and bad habits which professionals are keen for us to avoid at all costs but a plastic surgeon has now controversially warned against running.

Running has become all the rage in recent years, whether it's newbies doing the couch to 5k runs in the park, or a random bloke running across the whole of Africa to raise money for charity.

Even though it's very much a solo sport, there's also a huge community across the world, particularly through shared events like Parkrun and marathons.

For anyone who wants to get fitter, running is a great way to start, with one man who was a total beginner deciding to run 5k every day for a month, which led to some impressive results on his body.

If you want to have great cardiovascular health, manage weight, or even just feel better mentally, then nearly every expert in the world will agree that running is a great place to start.

However, a plastic surgeon has now urged people to avoid it all costs, due to the potential impact running can have on the bones and most notably, the face.

American plastic surgeon Gerald Imber posted the controversial TikTok, saying: "Don't run. Period. I'm so tired of saying it. The story is this. Running feels great. That's terrific, you get a high from it. Your knees go, your ankles go, your hip goes, your skin goes and your face sags. That's a pretty high price.

"And that's not enough. On top of it all, you're speeding up the fact that you're going to get shorter from the constant pounding. For me, that's enough. Why don't you just get on a bike and forget about running?"

And Imber is no imbecile; runner's face is certainly a commonly used term in the community, as some athletes experience leathery, saggy or tired-looking skin after a long run.

However, two doctors have suggested that this may not be down to the running itself but instead the conditions they are running in, whether it be extra exposure to UV rays running outside, or simply not looking after yourself through skincare routines.

Susan Massick, MD, a board-certified dermatologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, described runner's face as an 'urban myth'.

She said: "It's an urban myth to associate running with skin sagging—the physical activity of running itself is not causing the texture or the elasticity of your skin to change."

According to Dr. Kiya Movassaghi, an avid triathlete and nationally recognised board certified plastic surgeon, running is not to blame.

She added: “People are simply confusing causation with correlation. What we call ‘runner’s face’ does indeed often correlate with a runner’s body type and lifestyle, but running does not specifically cause one to have a gaunt face.”

So, while there are some risks associated with running, the many benefits mean that it's still worth taking part in. And it's perhaps even more surprising that a plastic surgeon is warning against it, considering half his work might come from those who are upset about having wrinkles or saggy skin anyway.