There is no one-step solution to beautiful, glowing skin but I can tell you that I have over a decade of “trial and error” experience. I’ve experienced a lot of failure (and eventually success)!
My teen years were marked with the long-term effects of hormonal acne and that literally left me scarred (with acne scars and discoloration) overtime, well into my early 20s. At a young age, I developed an interest for skincare with a desire to find a solution to my skin.
I found myself in a toxic cycle of using harsh products (like Proactive) to “help” my face, only to end up using drugstore makeup to cover up my oily, stressed out skin. Add in a few years of college: not fueling my body with healthy choices or getting enough sleep. Between the ages of 13-22 years old, my skin was all over the place!
Fast forward to my 23rd birthday…when I got the most wonderful hydra-facial. I am completely relaxed in the most peaceful room: my pores are squeaky clean and the room smells like eucalyptus while my esthetician and I chat about skincare. Because I have oily skin, I think I have to keep stripping away the oils and keep everything matte, which I find out is not true at all. In fact, it’s the opposite! She completely changed my outlook on skin.
By stripping the oils, my skin overcompensated by continuously producing the oils that I kept trying to remove. By hydrating my skin with a few richer products, my skin would not constantly be in a state of stress. What I should have been doing was giving my skin what it wanted: hydration! Mind blowing realization for me. By the way, I’d highly recommend getting professional treatments for yourself! Not putting that on my top 10 but it is a game changer.
Read on for my top 10 tips for glowing skin!
1. HYDRATE. I swear that drinking water fixes about 90% of my problems but skin is a major one! But there is truth to the phrase “glowing from the inside out” and that starts with hydrating your body. I aim to have about a gallon a day. This bottle is great if you’re a visual person like me. It’s BPA Free and has time markers to help you achieve your goal!
2. HYDRATE. This time, on the outside. Invest in a good night cream. I have a few favorite night creams that I love but my current favorite is this one. I love that it’s oil free, brightens discoloration, and has two forms of hyaluronic acid to help pull water into the skin to keep it hydrated.
3. SWEAT. A hot workout followed by a sauna is even better! But simply sweating out toxins on your daily power walk will do too!
4. SHOWER COLD. Make sure to follow up that sweaty workout with a warm shower and during the last few minutes, make sure to blast the water on cold to help tighten pores and reduce puffiness! Bonus, it will make your hair super shiny as well!
5. WASH YOUR FACE. When you’re in the shower or at the sink, wash your face with a clean, simple face wash that doesn’t strip away your oils. I’d recommend this one. It’s budget friendly, organic, and removes impurities.
6. TONE. After cleansing your face, it’s important to use a quality toner to help close up the pores. Some astringents can be quite harsh, so be picky. I would avoid anything with fragrance! I really like using this Witch Hazel because it doesn’t dry out my skin!
7. SERUM. Vitamin C serum totally cleared my acne scars from those teen years. Not all vitamin C serums are alike. This one has Vitamin C Ester, which is more potent and less irritating, to brighten and smooth skin.
8. MOISTURIZE. AM and PM should be different moisturizers. Something light like a gel for the daytime is great if you live somewhere warm and humid like I do! I buy a separate SPF moisturize to layer over my AM moisturizer. These two are my favorite and the SPF works as a great glow base for makeup as well.
9. SLEEP. Ideally at least 8 hours a night. Hard time sleeping? I love powdered magnesium to help me wind down. I drank this pretty much every night when I had pregnancy insomnia!
10. EAT. Eating lots of vitamin rich, colorful veggies, lean meats, bone broths, high fiber and healthy fat foods like avocado oil are all going to help give you a glow! However, collagen peptides have helped my skin tremendously. I’ve been using Vital Proteins for years and with consistent use, it improves skin hydration and elasticity.
Great skin takes time, consistency, and patience. You want to baby your skin. Feed and treat it well! I’ve been slowly investing in better, clean products and choices over the years and I’d say it’s been worth it. There’s no time to start like the present and you’ll be glad you did!
XOXO
