Burpees, squats, running, and yoga can do wonderful things for your muscles, cardiovascular system, and mental health. However, all that hard work does wonderful things for your skin, too. Regular exercise combined with a regular skincare routine will make your skin’s natural glow hard to miss. Here’s what exercise can do for you.
1. Exercise improves blood flow.
Exercise gets your heart pumping and the blood flowing, increasing your circulation to move more blood and oxygen throughout the body. Regular exercise also improves your circulation when you’re not exercising. All that extra blood nourishes your skin cells, providing vital nutrients
2. Exercise helps remove toxins from the skin.
The increased blood flow that brings helpful nutrients to your skin cells also removes harmful toxins. Your bloodstream acts as a superhighway. You’ve got trucks bringing helpful nutrients to all of the stops along the route.
At the same time, it trucks out all the waste and garbage. Plus, exercise increases the speed and rate at which those trucks can move. Essentially, your skin set spends less time exposed to toxins and byproducts of biological processes.
3. Exercise helps manage stress.
Stress can cause all kinds of damage to your body. It can alter your skin’s natural protective function, cause acne, and increase the severity of certain skin diseases. Exercise has been shown to help manage and reduce stress by causing the release of feel-good endorphins.
Regular exercise is often used alongside medication, a healthy diet, and treatment by a mental health professional to treat anxiety and depression, two major causes of stress. Exercise can also help manage blood sugar and high blood pressure, which can both cause stress and be caused by stress.
4. Exercise keeps your skin looking young.
A 2018 review explored the various ways exercise can prevent your skin from aging. Specific ways that exercise keeps your skin looking young include:
- Improving DNA repair mechanisms
- Boosting protective proteins
- Improving glucose metabolism
- Keeping your mitochondria (your body’s energy producers) up and running efficiently
- Maintaining communication between your cells
When you add in the fact that exercise speeds up the process of nutrient delivery and waste removal, it can act as Nature’s fountain of youth.
5. Exercise maintains overall physical and mental health.
Exercise can influence the health of your muscles, bones, nervous system, and immune system. While exercise can’t prevent all illness or mental health issues, it can put you on a path to the best possible outcomes. Better overall health means better overall skin health too. Your skin is your body’s first barrier against infection. If your body is functioning to the best of its ability, your skin can function and feel healthy and strong.
Tips for healthy skin while you exercise
While regular exercise is important for the health of your skin, exercise can cause chafing, cuts, and nicks. Take a little extra care of your skin to make sure it can keep up with your daily exercise regime by:
- Cleansing the skin after exercise: Perspiration evaporates and leaves salt and other substances on your skin. When that perspiration is hidden in dark, moist areas, it can feed bacterial or fungal growth. Wash your body as soon as you can after exercising. A gentle cleanser like SkinResourceMD’s Total Facial Cleansing Gel is an excellent facial and body cleanser that’s soap-free, non-irritating, and nourishing for the skin. It’s gentle enough for the face but strong enough for your entire body.
- Moisturize your skin regularly: After you’ve cleansed your skin, make sure to apply a moisturizer. Moisturized skin is strong, flexible, and better able to resist damage. Oil Free Antioxidant Facial Moisturizer is a nourishing moisturizer for your face. It’s full of antioxidants that help repair and prevent skin damage from harmful free radicals. SkinResourceMD’s Total Skin Moisturizer is a good option for the rest of your body. It’s gentle and full of ingredients that hydrate and strengthen your outermost protective layer.
- Always apply sunscreen: Whether going for a run, hike, or bike ride, everyone needs to protect their skin from harmful UV rays. Apply sunscreen 10 to 15 minutes before you go out into the sun. A physical sunscreen like Essential Solar Protector is a good choice because it prevents UV rays from penetrating your skin. This SPF 47 formula also contains moisturizer to hydrate your skin at the same time.
Simple and consistent
You don’t need to train for a marathon to improve your skin’s health through exercise. Moderate intensity activity performed three to five days a week for 30 to 45 minutes at a time is enough to benefit your whole body, including your skin. However, it’s consistency that will make the biggest difference. Schedule a consistent time to exercise, invite friends or family, but most of all, have fun. Your body (and skin) will thank you.
