Why aren't double chin exercises possible?

First, it is important to keep in mind that there is no such thing as loosing weight in a certain spot aka “spot reduction”. The human body likes to lose weight in an even manner, for the most part. So, unfortunately, exercises that you might be doing specific to the chin and neck region will do nothing to lessen the amount of fat in that area. If you are you are on a rigorous exercise program involving all areas of the body, with both cardio and weights, there is a good chance that the fat in the area under the chin will lessen (and other parts of your body will improve as well, another benefit of exercising!). That being said, if you are sick and tired of exercising, and have not seen much improvement, I would recommend that you see a board certified plastic surgeon to consider submental liposuction. Good luck!
 

Double chin deformities can
adversely impact facial aesthetics and for this reason patients frequently seek
treatment of this condition. This condition can be caused by abnormalities of
the facial skeleton, loose skin and neck fat collections.  Unfortunately, all of these problems
require surgical intervention. 
Neck exercises wouldn’t impact the underlying anatomic problem.

For this reason, patients with
double chin deformities should consult a board certified plastic surgeon.  This surgeon should be able to
formulate a treatment plan that’s appropriate for this
problem.

There are two main layers of fat in the neck;

The fat under the skin, which will fluctuate with weight gain or loss.

The fat under the muscle layer- the subplatysmal layer, which has been shown to be there even in starvation victims.

Working the muscles out will only cause the platysma muscle to be come more visible and contribute to the bands in the front of the neck.

In a young person, a "double chin" is usually the result of fat between the skin and the platysma muscle.  This can be removed easily with liposuction often done with local anesthesia only.

Think about it this way.  Just because you are exercising your neck muscles does not mean that you are losing fat from your neck.  It may help to tone the muscles and make them stronger, but it also does not mean that you are changing the shape of the muscle.

You need to feel comfortable with the recommendations of your physician.  Go ahead and try the neck exercises as long as you want.  We will be here to help you when you realize that it is not giving you the results that you want or expect.

You bring up a good point - can I, as a patient, take control to have my neck look better? Maybe yes, maybe no. If you have extra fat then NO exercise of the facial muscles will give you the result you can obtain with surgery. If there is a "little" laxity, then exerices makes sense. This is the problem with general questions - that require the doctor to make assumptions that may not be real. It also relies on the patient being able to accurately explain their concern as they look for the best, least effective and most predictable result. Hello, that's what a consult is for.

Find a Board Certified MD in your area and your concerns may be dealt with correctly. You have taken the first step. Keep heading in the right pathway.

 It would be nice if they did. see a good experienced surgeon and let him determine what surgery would correct your problem, whether it is liposuction, platysmaplasty, etc.

I agree 100% with Dr. Placik. If you are successful in contouring your neck and chin with an exerciser, it will be what we refer to in medical terms as "a case report"; in other words it would be a very unusual occurrence.
My mantra in surgical terms is "do the least to accomplish the most". If a patient can have a great result with something short of a Facelift, that technique should be employed. However, if the indications exist for a Facelift, there is no substitute. Please understand that chin exercisers and other such gimmicks are being sold to you on a "miracles-do-happen" basis.

Physicians can only recommend treatments that have been shown to produce clincial results that are significant beyond those that might be obtained by the placebo effect. If a device has not been studied and published in the medical literature it is not recommended normally. A double chin, usually needs surgery. Some treatments though, result in a good result when not expected to. These paradoxical results become the impetus for more study. Some people with loose neck muscle (platysma) bands get a better neck profile angle when Botox is injected (as an off-label use). One might expect the muscle to hang looser from the Botox but it appears that maybe the muscle when not treated contacts and makes a straight line losing its nicer acute angle and appears to hang down. The Botox minimizes this tightness and the muscle then falls back in line with the neck angle until it can contract again. So as this is an unusual finding, one can not easily say that neck muscle exercises would help a double chin, but they might. As more people try what you've mentioned we might learn that it truly works.

Your question about chin exercises and toning the neck muscles for better shape is one that applies for other areas in the body. The idea is that toning muscles in a specific area will tighten skin and burn fat from that area, but it just doesn't work that way.
When a muscle is being exercised, it releases a hormonal signal into the blood stream which circulates through the entire body that it needs energy. This first comes from what is called glycogen in the liver, not fat. Extreme exercise from large muscles is needed to start burning fat, and it will come from the fat in areas where the body likes to give it up, not necessarily the fat overlying the muscle being exercised.
That is why liposuction works, because it targets the fat resistant to change with diet and exercise. In fact, exercising facial and neck muscles usually makes things worse, by exaggerating the "turkey neck" muscles and deepening facial wrinkles (that's why Botox works.)