A Gym Routine for Healthy Skin

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All of us want that glowing, perfect, clear and beautiful skin. But, did you know that you gym routine can make or break that dream? I am so super guilty of this. Up until a little while ago I would go to the gym with that day's make-up on, or even worse, whatever was left from the day before. Yikes!

To avoid my skin mistakes, follow this simple 1,2,3 on how to take care of your skin before and after your workout. It may seem a bit intense if you are like me, but it will help. Promise. ​

Cleanse Your Face

We have already talked about sweating out toxins while at the gym last week, so it is no wonder that our face sweats toxins out too. Make-up is a natural blanket to the skin, by wearing make-up to the gym, we are stopping toxins from being released and welcoming an onslaught of clogged pores. ​Best to wash your face before working out to get it clean and healthy.

If you are going to the gym between work and everything else, just bring some make-up removing clothes in your gym bag. They may not do as great a job as cleanser, but it's better than nothing. ​

Tone

You can kinda think of this as toning your skin before toning your body! Using a toner after cleansing is always important, especially before hitting the gym or after using a cleansing cloth. Toner will help reduce pore size, calm skin, and take off any remaining make-up that could clog pores. This is super important since you will have more blood going through capillaries and your pores will be enlarged. ​No need for remnant make-up to get your face into trouble, especially wen you are going through all the extra effort to keep it clean.

A nice perk of toning is that toners usually have calming qualities so your skin will be less red post-workout! ​

Moisturize

Moisturizing your skin is extremely important for keeping it young and healthy. If you are 18 or older, there is no reason to not use some form of anti-aging moisturizer on your skin. Just think of it more as keeping skin youthful rather than fighting age that may or may not be seen yet.

Apply moisturizer to the neck and face , making sure to keep it out of the eye area. If you use an eye cream- which I totally recommend- be sure to use the eye cream before using the facial moisturizer. The pores around our eyes are much smaller than the pores on our face. Eye cream has smaller molecules so it can be absorbed around the eye area. By putting eye cream on after face cream, you could be limiting it's efficacy without even knowing it.

Protect

Protecting the skin from harmful ​free radicals and sun damage is especially important if you are working out outside. Most face lotions have sunscreen in them, but if yours does not, opt for some 15 spf that was made for the face. Our faces our much more sensitive to chemicals than the rest of our bodies, using a sunscreen that is meant for the body could cause burning or breakouts for skin on the face.

If you are outside a lot during your sweat sessions, a vitamin C cream may be a good addition to your skincare routine. Be sure to do your research on vitamin C creams before buying, not all are created equal. After being mixed with creams, vitamin C has a shelf life of one month. If your vitamin C product is a liquid base that was not mixed at the purchase, it's results may be less than desired or non-existent.

Put Hair Up

Pulling your hair back into a somewhat loose bun or ponytail will help keep oils from your hair off your skin. This will help if you find yourself breaking out a lot or have more oily hair than you would prefer. ​Be sure not to pull too tight though, tight skin around the hairline can create more oil and cause weakening of the connective tissue in your facial skin.

Post Workout

After your workout is complete, start this whole facial routine up again. It is important to get all the impurities that you have just sweat out off your face and out of your pores. This is especially true if you plan on wearing make-up later that day.  ​

If your skin gets red or irritated after a gym session, try bringing some iced green tea in a spray bottle and spritzing it on after you have cleansed your face. The form of antioxidants that abound in green tea have strong anti-inflammatory properties.