Preparing for a physique competition can really cause havoc on your skin.
Without question, your skin undergoes a lot of stress due to off season/in season weight fluctuations.
Add in rigorous training sessions, make-up application, tanning and, of course, environmental stressors such as the sun and cold winter days and you have a recipe for tired, weathered skin.
However, there are things you can do to reverse or combat the effect of these stressors on your skin.
Now rather than beat the same old drum of limiting sun exposure, avoiding tanning booths and harsh abrasive chemicals.
As well as avoiding drinking alcohol and all the other advice you have heard thousands of time I am going to give you an overall strategy that will work for you without question!
Not only does this strategy work but it will save you a ton of money in worthless lotions and potions!
My Unfailing Advice for Beautiful Glowing Skin
I strongly suggest you take a nutritional inside-out approach to your skin care.
As Bikini and Figure competitors, we know this information to be true because we see how our bodies change for the good simply from the foods we eat.
So although creams, lotions and potions have some merit they should never be a replacement for the inside-out approach to healthy glowing skin.
The inside-out approach is the foundation I build my skin regimen on and the one I hope you adopt as well because it works!
When taking the inside-out approach, I suggest you do the following:
Supplement a nutritious diet with vitamin A-E. Vitamin A maintains and repairs skin tissue.
Vitamin B forms the basis for skin, hair and nails and lack of it can result in itchy and scaly skin.
Vitamin C, D, and E reduces skin damage caused by the sun, smoke and pollution.
Supplementation is important because as competitors we metabolize our vitamins and excrete them rather quickly through sweating and urination.
Hydration is key, I know you have heard this 1001 times, but are you drinking enough?
Shoot for at least 1 gallon a day out of season and 2 gallons in season. Proper hydration keeps your skin bouncing and plump.
Avoid weight fluctuations, this one is a biggie!
Too much weight loss contributes to your skin’s loss of elasticity.
Your skin is like a rubber band. The more you pull and stretch it, the less elastic it becomes.
The best thing you can ever do for your skin, in my opinion, is to stay with-in 10 pounds of your stage weight year round.
Not only will this compliment your skin tone but also help with stretch marks.
One way to keep yourself in check is to put your Bikini or Figure competition suit on periodically and snap a few pictures and compare them to your show day pictures.
Believe me, this keeps things real for me, and it will do the same for you!
Give your skin time to recover!
Your skin is an organ, and like any other organ in your body it needs to regenerate and regeneration happens at rest.
Getting enough sleep every day is crucial for healthy vibrant skin.
I do my best to get my 8 hours of restful sleep every day, and I also take time out to meditate three times a day for 10-15 minutes.
Now that you have set your foundational inside skin care regimen now it’s time to work on the outside of the skin and here is my simple formula.
Match your skin type to an organic moisturizer. Know your skin type and then use organic skin care products designed for your skin type.
One way to do this is to perform a tissue test. Wash your face with warm water and then pat it dry.
Wait for an hour, so that your skin can return to its natural state.
Dab your face with a clean tissue, paying particular attention to your T-zone (the area across your forehead, nose and chin).
If you see oil throughout the tissue, you have oily skin, if it’s just as it was, you have dry skin.
If the tissue is a little oily, the skin is healthy. If it’s a combination skin type, take note to the areas of your face this is prevalent and address accordingly.
The next step is to find a simple organic moisturizer and with sunblock and apply daily, and you’re all set.
Remember this hard and fast rule when it comes to your skin care.
Focus 90% on what goes inside your body and 10% on what you apply on the outside.
Do not over think it and fall for ridiculous claims of overnight wrinkle and skin cures.
The majority of them do not live up to their claims, and the ones that do are not worth the expense.
It’s no different than our training; the best training regimen is no substitute for a poor diet nor is expensive lotions a substitute for a poor inside-out skin care regimen.
Questions? Comments? Did you find this post helpful? Let me know in the comments section.Thanks!
AND if you want to discuss how you can improve your stage beauty flow (Make-up, Hair and Tan) or have an upcoming show that you would want these services provided. I would love to help!
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Shawn, this is a great post! And very important! I would like to add that green drink smoothies are a huge “IN” thing to do now and can/will provide the best source of nutrition when cooking a nutritious meal is not in the cards. I love green drink smoothies, and I eat as naturally as I can. I also do meditation and yoga; both are daily rituals. There are good tips here, but each person needs to find what works best to keep them in optimum health including taking care of their skin.
I agree Piper everyone has to find a skin care protocol that works for them. However working from the inside out is a principle, that if possible should be followed by everyone. Thank’s for your feedback, you always provide great insight for all our cutie subscribers.