Exfoliation can work wonders on your skin, or it can damage the barrier of your skin.
Frequent exfoliation can give your skin that radiant glow the goddesses would be envious of. If having soft, smooth skin for all four seasons is top of your list of priorities then you may want to consider exfoliation and learn how to exfoliate your skin at home properly – legs, arms, face and the rest of your body.
Exfoliating your skin is a simple yet tricky process, it involves removing the topmost layer of dead skin cells, oils and dirt that may clog your pores causing ingrown hairs, blackheads or whiteheads. Not a good sight. “When you use the right product, exfoliation can smooth rough patches, fade dark spots and acne scars — but also reduce redness and brighten your overall complexion” said Cosmopolitan.
Learning how to exfoliate your skin properly before epilating is crucial as a skincare routine for lovely skin. Of course, if you’ve never exfoliated before, you won’t want to dive right in but figuring out how to exfoliate your skin properly is a little complicated – scrub too hard or too often, and you could end up causing irritation, not hard or frequent enough, you get ingrown hairs. Using the wrong method of exfoliation for your skin type could make matters worse.
Now, it is time to read up on how to properly exfoliate your skin at home. Learn what you should look out for and what to avoid in your exfoliator and how to use it properly on your skin. Your skin will thank you for this kind favor.
What to do when you exfoliate your skin?
When you were you your skin changes every 28 days, creating a new you, making your skin glow all the time. However, when you get much older, some of those dead skin cells hang on your regenerated skin for as long as possible – from 40 to 80 days extra.
Cell turnover in healthy skin occurs, on average, like this:
- In your 20s: 14-30 days
- In your 30s: 30-40 days
- In your 40s: 40-80 days
And so on, slowing down by a few days for every decade.
These tiny dead skin cells are too miniscule to be seen individually with the naked eye but you will notice them as they make your skin look dull and lacking that natural glow.
To make matters worse, those dead skin cells create a barrier between your youthful skin and your skincare products. You know what happened here, your skincare product cannot find a way to pass this layer of dead cells to be properly absorbed into your skin.
Not to mention those expensive makeup, money straight down the drain because you could not even get a smooth foundation for your makeup to rest on.
This is where your super hero comes in, exfoliation to save the day (and your skin) and get rid of those microscopic dead cells and leave you glowing.
How to properly exfoliate your skin at home?
With exfoliation, there are two pivotal methods: physical and chemical. Both are basically two different paths to the same goal – getting rid of dead skin cells.
You can’t just choose a method and jump right in head first, you have to figure out what each method is and how the different methods work and which is best for you? Let’s get to it!
Physical aka mechanical exfoliator
This method is probably what you saw your mother and grandmother do when you were much younger. As you become of age, you copy their technique.
You use a physical exfoliant (a grainy scrub or granules), an exfoliating brush and gently apply physical force to slough away the dead skin cells. The exfoliant can be large or small, depending on how abrasive you’d like your scrub to be. Most prefer the gentle dead sea salt body scrub, it is highly recommended on amazon.
Even though this method is popular, physical facial exfoliators can cause micro-tears on your face and skin that slowly destroy your skin barrier. Manual exfoliators may cause more damage to the skin than they are worth.
Are manual exfoliators evil? No, definitely not. They can be used relatively safely on thicker skin, like on your back or your body to smooth rough patches, but surely not on the delicate skin on your face.
Furthermore, physical exfoliators are never a good idea if you suffer from sensitive skin or rosacea.
Tips on how to physically exfoliate?
Exfoliating Tip #1: Get the tools out
A brush, sponge, cloth or mildly abrasive loofah can be used in exfoliating the skin.
Exfoliating Tip #2: Be gentle on your skin
Be gentle on your skin to avoid micro tears unless it is purposeful because you want to get rid of acne scarring.
The skin on your legs is tougher than on your face therefore you have to know the real balance of pressure, being too abrasive on your skin can cause irritation and redness. Exfoliate your skin in a circular motion in short, light strokes.
Exfoliating Tip #3: Moisturize after exfoliating
Exfoliation can dry your skin therefore it is important to apply moisturiser to your skin to rehydrate it. The best time to moisturize is immediately after exfoliating while your skin is still slightly damp from the shower.
Chemical exfoliator
Chemical exfoliation is a milder form of exfoliation, unlike physical exfoliation, because it doesn’t involve any scrubbing to achieve a desirable outcome. If you suffer from sensitive skin, a mild chemical exfoliator could be your best friend to reveal your skin’s natural glow.
However, if you have oily skin a much stronger chemical treatment may be useful. Depending on how oily your skin is, a scrub may be required in conjunction with the chemical.
The secret to chemical exfoliators is that they use gentle acids to dissolve the “glue” that bonds the dead skin cells to the newer regenerated skin leaving you with an angelic glow on your skin.
Chemical exfoliators come in two different forms. Which is best? They are more effective than physical formulas and It depends on what your skin needs. So What is the best way to exfoliate your skin at home?
What is the best way to exfoliate your skin?
Now that we know the pitfalls of the manual method and that the chemical method, even though it sounds horrible, is a much better method, which is better for your skin type?
Let’s take a closer look at the different kinds of chemical exfoliators that exist and their suitability. I just want to provide you with the right information so that you can make the best possible decision.
Lets go straight to the point, there are essentially two types of chemical exfoliants: alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) and beta hydroxy acid (BHA), both of which do different things depending on your skin type.
What if I have normal, dry or sensitive skin? Which is better, AHA or BHA?
AHA: If you have normal, dry or sensitive skin then the AHA is best for you. Alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) are water soluble, meaning they exfoliate the surface of your skin, drawing in moisture while they work to keep your face hydrated making your skin appear brighter and smoother with consistent use.
AHAs come in a few forms, like lactic, glycolic, mandelic, and tartaric acid. If you are new to chemical exfoliants or have sensitive skin, start with lactic acid, which is the gentlest of the AHAs.
How to use AHA properly?
Clean and dry your skin, apply the chemical exfoliant and wait for 10 minutes before you apply, on your skin, the rest of your skincare. Do this every three nights. If you have no real sensitivity issues and your skin is pretty “normal”, try glycolic acid, since they’re a bit stronger and faster-acting.
What if I have oily or acne prone skin? Which is better, AHA or BHA?
BHA: If you have oily or acne prone skin the BHA are better for your skin. Beta hydroxy acids (BHAs) are oil soluble, meaning they break down oil-clogged pores to treat blackheads, whiteheads, and zits. Salicylic acid is the most common of the BHA and is used in most acne spot treatments.
How to use BHA properly?
Use your BHA every 3 nights on clean, dry skin, waiting at least 10 minutes before applying the rest of your skincare.
What’s the best skin exfoliator?
Since you can now recognize what type of chemical exfoliator your skin demands (an AHA or BHA), you can ultimately determine the very best one for you. The active ingredients are crucial when selecting an exfoliator, not only that, but, so is the formula that the chemical is made use of. Different active ingredients react differently on your skin. So you need to find the right one for you.
There are lots of face cleans on the market with chemical exfoliants. The acids work when they’re left on the skin for longer periods of time. While face cleansing products can be reliable at eliminating make-up as well as dirt particles, they do not have adequate skin contact time to effectively exfoliate the skin.
Rather, adhere to peels, pads, serums, toners, and moisturizers—generally, anything that remains on your skin longer than a couple of mins to enable the active components to actually penetrate the skin.
And also as constantly, maintain your skin key in mind: For oily skin, you intend to make use of a really thin fluid or solution. For completely dry skin, you desire a cream, as well as for mixed skin, you desire something in between, like a serum.
How often should I exfoliate my skin?
Your dead cells re-accumulate every day, so you have to exfoliate regularly. If you have sensitive skin, start with a mild exfoliant (lactic acid), as well as utilize it once a week for a couple of weeks, gradually increase usage to approximately 3 to 4 times weekly. You’ll still see amazing results from lower usage.
If your skin does not appear to be transforming after 2 months of lactic-acid usage, attempt switching over to glycolic acid or salicylic acid, using it every 3 evenings prior to functioning your method approximately every various other evenings, seeing to it to constantly use a cream or moisturizer after that.
What if you over exfoliate your skin?
Regardless of exactly how thrilled you most likely are to change your skin, you are required to be mindful of utilizing too intense an exfoliant or switching from one type to another. The active ingredients in different products are different and may cause inflammation.
If you do this you are placing yourself at high risk of damaging your skin barrier, drying it out, and causing itchiness, flakes, breakouts, excess oil production, redness, and premature fine lines.
And also as a last note, it’s essential to recognize that using chemical exfoliants increase your skin’s sensitivity to sunlight. Because you’re currently attentive concerning using sun block and also reapplying throughout the day, this is a non-issue, appropriate?! Good.
Natural exfoliant that can be used on your skin
Papaya can be used to naturally exfoliate the skin. There is an enzyme called papain that is present inside the papaya. This enzyme dissolves dead skin cells, heals skin and lightens age spots. Crush the papaya fruit into a smooth paste, green papayas are best, and apply to the face. Leave on face or skin for at least 15 minutes for the enzyme to work before rinsing off.
Lemon juice is another awesome natural exfoliant. Lemon juice is a natural alpha hydroxy acid that helps to remove dead skin cells. Mix apple, grape, and lemon juice (a quarter cup of each type of juice) together with cane sugar until the sugar is fully dissolved. Apply the formula (mixture) to your face with a cotton pad. Wait for a minimum of at least 10 minutes before washing off.
Sugar cane is another alpha hydroxy acid and is a natural source of glycolic acid that can boost new skin cell regeneration. It can also play a role in smoothing and softening the skin.
Mix a half cup of brown sugar with olive oil to form a paste. Apply the mixture to your face in a circular motion until evenly applied. Let the mixture penetrate your face for no less than 10 minutes. Then, after the minimum time has passed, slough away the dead skin using warm water.
It is not time to shine and give off that lovely skin glow.
