Caring For Your Skin Before, During, and After Your Workout

Being active has become an integral part of modern lifestyle. Americans reportedly spend 40 minutes a day being active, whether it be exercise or sports. A huge benefit to the skin include lowering stress levels, meaning lower cortisol and lesser chance of inflammation. Another one is that sweat exudes the harmful bacteria that’s inside your pores, effectively “cleaning” your skin. However, you should still be careful when being active so you can preserve your skin’s fitness, while you’re working on your overall fitness. Here are things you can do:

Before your workout

• Cleansing – This means washing your face with a mild facewash, and remove any makeup. You don’t want to add more dirt to your skin while you’re sweating during your workout. Not having makeup is also key to avoid any clogging of your pores because they actually open up when you sweat, and that allows makeup, along with dirt and other harmful bacteria to irritate your skin and cause acne breakouts.
• Moisturizing and Sunscreen – Yes, you will be sweating, but you don’t want your skin to dry out. Why? Sweat not only removes the water from your skin, but also the sodium, making it even much drier. Using sunscreen on the other hand should be a given, especially when you’re doing outdoor workouts like jogging.

During your workout

• Avoiding contact with your face – You might be tempted to wipe the sweat off your face with your hands, but this is a huge no. Workout equipment is full of germs and bacteria that when transferred to your face, can cause all kinds of nasty things. People already touch their faces 23 times an hour, on average, so try to avoid this as much as you can.
• Hydrating (your skin as well) – Make sure you drink water to replenish what you have lost from sweating. Being fully hydrated allows you to not only complete your workout but also makes your skin less dry. You can also directly hydrate your skin by bringing a small bottle of thermal water mist to occasionally spray on.

After your workout

• Taking a shower ASAP – If you can, you should take a shower immediately. You don’t want the sweat and dirt and bacteria to linger on your face for any longer than it should. Not only will you feel much better and relaxed, but your skin will feel much cleaner. 
• Moisturizing – You want to continue moisturizing your skin right as you step out of the shower. Locking in the moisture just as your skin is still slightly damp is one of the keys to having supple skin. Doing this just after you shower prevents inflammation, itching, wrinkles and cracking.