Are Exercise and Skin Care Related?

Living in Colorado can pose enough environmental challenges for skin care regimens. The dry air creates an absolute need for hydration. Hydration both by drinking enough fluids, as well as, using hydrating skin care products. There are many things that you can do to treat your skin well, in addition to using great skin care products and drinking enough fluids. You can treat your skin to a facial regularly. But another thing that you can do for your skin is exercise. Did you know the two are related?

How does exercising help keep my skin healthy?

Exercise increases blood flow, which in turn, helps keep your skin healthy and vivacious. Blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body's cells, and that includes skin. Exercise is so great for the skin because it cleanses it through flushing the system by disposing of cellular waste. Further, exercise has been proven to decrease stress. There’s reason to believe that by exercising to reduce stress, that can also translate to skin problems. "And by decreasing stress, some conditions that can be exacerbated by stress can show some improvement," says Brian B. Adams, MD, associate professor and director of the Sports Dermatology Clinic at the University of Cincinnati. Such conditions include acne and eczema.

Skin Conditions

If you’re a person who struggles with skin conditions such as acne, eczema, or rosacea, exercising could potentially make those conditions worse if you don’t take proper precautions. For sufferers of rosacea, flare ups tend to occur when temperatures increase and skin becomes flush. Thus, an obvious solution is to exercise in cooler temperatures, however, in the summer, that may prove to be more difficult. Swimming is a nice option because you’re able to increase your body temperature while still remaining in a cooler temperature. That being said, chlorine can really dry out skin, so be sure to wash off afterward and use a good moisturizer. Folks that suffer from eczema and psoriasis should use a moisturizer prior to working out as this will help with dryness and help protect skin from sweating as much. The salt from the sweat is what causes the biggest issue. If you can try working out in cooler temperatures, that would also benefit you.

Other Treatment Options

The overall consensus is that the benefits of exercise far outweigh the drawbacks. That being said, if exercise is causing you problems with your skin conditions, consider speaking to one of our aestheticians for possible treatment options. One of our own Fuel team members has been receiving CBD treatments to help with her acne and has seen some pretty amazing results! It’s not necessarily the right option for everyone, but certainly doesn’t hurt to check in to!