Taking care of your skin should not be optional. If you never plan a big party, if you never marry, if you never see anyone else in your lifetime, great skincare is vital to your body’s health. Your skin will reveal every health problem you experience.
So how do you take care of it on a surface level? Here are some suggestions, based on our own experience:
- Wash your face every morning and evening with a high quality face wash. DO NOT USE SOAP. Especially if you are over 30. It is entirely too harsh! My personal favorite is the Gel Cleanser made by NuSkin. It is perfect for combination. I have been using this cleanser for six years, and have found nothing else that compares in quality. The price ($22 with shipping) may be high, but the bottle lasts five to six months.
- Exfoliate at least once a week. Don’t think of this as an “extra.” Your face really needs it to keep shiny and fresh
- Moisturize with a product made specifically for your skin. Make sure it contains a minimum of SPF 15 in it. Apply SPF to your hands each morning! They will show your age before anything else. Moisturizing and using sunscreen is the most important step. Skin that is unprotected will be very unhappy when you are 60 (sun damage = wrinkles).
- If you have problems with acne, go to a dermatologist. They’re worth every penny you’ll spend on them. While you’re there, have them check any moles that look suspicious! Good skin care doesn’t just take care of your face.
- Avoid heavy makeup! Your face looks beautiful without it. Trust us on this.
- Drink water and lots of it. Your entire body benefits from H2O, but your skin reaps the most benefits. It keeps your skin (brain, heart, kidneys, liver, lungs, toenails…) clear and happy.
- Work out regularly. Think of it as a sweat lodge for your skin. Your body heats up, and all the gunk that is in your skin sweats itself out.
- Get enough sleep. Your skin reveals when you are tired. So does your attitude!
While writing this, I realized that I’ve slacked off on the working out. Forgetting how vital it is for a happy body and mind. I’m hoping this week will motivate us as we motivate you!
What skincare tips do you have? Please share!
A.
I love Nuskin! :)
All great tips, except for washing your face twice a day. If you wash your face at night immediately before bed, and wash your pillowcase frequently, it is actually much better for your skin to NOT wash it again in the morning. Three different dermatologists at different practices told me this as I was moving around, and when I finally listened to the last one (I couldn’t bring myself to listen to the first two, because we have been told as women to wash our face every morning for so long), it made such a huge difference in my skin! Seriously — try it for a few weeks and let your skin adjust. I just wish I had listened to the first dermatologist!
I love mineral makeup…specifically BareMinerals.
It contains SPF, is breathable for the skin, and looks flawless in pictures, too!
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@julie – really? wow! maybe this is a silly question but how frequently do you change your pillowcase now that you’re doing this?
Yep — washing my face twice a day stripped it of all the oils to the point that, even with applying moisturizer twice a day, my face went into “panic mode” because it was missing its own natural oil and overproduced more oil to make up for that fact. Once I stopped washing my face in the morning — all problems solved. I never had any real skin problems, but now my skin looks radiant, and I’ve completely given up wearing makeup (which I love!).
I’m fanatical about clean sheets, so I need to wash my sheets at least once a week, and usually change my pillowcase midweek as well. But, there are times when I am visiting family and sleep on the same pillowcase for 6 nights and it doesn’t seem to make a big difference on my skin, since I do wash it well before bed, and always apply moisturizer at night early enough to allow everything to absorb as well as possible before going to bed.
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I gently exfoliate every day with an exfoliating facial sponge for that smooth, fresh look and feel. I too do not wash my face 2x/day (but 1x) but I also don’t wear foundation at all. Totally agree with working out and sweating out toxins and drinking lots of water. Thanks for the tips!
Warning for the BareMinerals!
I know people who had severe skin reactions to this product, including breaking out with a weird rash. So test it out way before your wedding if you are thinking of converting.
I couldn’t go without washing my face in the morning… my skin is too oily.
The cleanser I’ve found that I really like is by Philosophy – Purity Made Simple. Also, the Aveeno exfoliating pre-moistened pads are great too!!
I’ve found that after I hit 30, my skin became much more sensitive. Rashes, strange pimples, redness….So I watch what I use. Purity Made Simple is great.
Also, I’m not as big of a fan of the Mineral Makeup because the mineral they use for the sunscreen irritated my skin…. but that’s me.
The most important thing I could say – and this is coming from personal experience – is to wear sunscreen and to NOT sunbathe!!! I will be 33 in February, and I already have age/brown discoloration on my face from when I used to “lay out” as a teenager/young adult. What’s even worse is that once that comes up, you have to stay out of the sun even more because it will darken in sunlight!! Lasers are expensive, and creams only work a little…. stay out of the sun when you’re young – that’s the best advice! (And I have skin that tanned easily!)
FWIW, I stockpile pillowcases and change mine every two nights (and flip the pillow over for the second night), so I don’t sleep on the same side of the pillowcase twice without washing it. It helped clear up some oily-ness I developed right before I turned 30.
The other face care thing I’ve learned recently is to use eye cream under your eyes and dab it on because the skin under your eyes is very sensitive. It, as well as lots of water and a good nights’ sleep, will keep dark circles at bay.
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