We know that exercise is good for us, but working up the motivation to lace up your trainers and get moving isn’t always easy to muster. However, what if we told you that exercise won’t just benefit your general health, but it can also have positive knock-on effects for your skin, too. Surely that makes the thought of starting a sweaty workout just a little more attractive?

Exercise boosts the oxygen circulation in the body, as well as accelerating the metabolism and the body’s removal of toxins, all processes that aid healthy (read: glowing) skin. Better still, it’s a brilliant destressor (and we’ve already spoken at length about the all-important mind-skin connection. But – and it’s a rather hefty but – exercise can also have adverse effects on the skin, exposing us to more free radicals than normal (if you workout outside), aggravating certain skin conditions and (the big one) subjecting our skin to lots and lots of sweat that can later down the line cause problems.

That’s exactly nailing your pre- and post-workout skincare routine is so important.

Your pre-workout routine is all about protection. If you’re wearing make-up, it’s usually a good idea to cleanse this off before you start, so it doesn’t clog the pores but even if you work out first thing, try a light cleanser formula, depending on your skin type and needs.

Heading outside? Then you need a sturdy sweat-proof SPF to protect yourself from harmful UV rays and as exercise opens up the pores, allowing more harmful pollutants into the skin, you might want an antioxidant product to mitigate the free radical damage.  Apart from that, you can save your regular serums and moisturisers from after!

With exercise, comes sweat. And while it’s the body’s rather clever (and totally natural) way of cooling itself down and can help purge impurities from the skin, if sweat sits on the skin for too long, it can become a breeding ground for bacteria, thus resulting in breakouts or irritation. That’s why it’s a good idea to wash your face as soon as possible after sweating.

Certain workouts might require certain products. For instance, the chlorine in swimming pools will dry your skin out, so you might need to follow up with an extra hydrating step. And if you have skin that's prone to redness, you might want to include a step that handles that.

Need help building the best skincare routine for you? We’ve got you. Book in for a Holistic Skin Session and one of our Skin Mentors will help you build the right skincare regime for you – one that works around your workout schedule!