Skincare Resolutions for 2021 Ep-37

Episode Title: 

Skincare Resolutions for 2021 Ep-37

Episode Summary: 

Now I’m not a big one for New Years’ resolutions that involve diet, exercise and drinking more water. We’re all big enough and old enough to know that we probably should be doing all of these, and when it comes to the really extreme ones they’re just yet another way for us to beat ourselves up about something. 

So, I’m going to skip right past them and get onto the juicy stuff – some skincare resolutions that involve simple tweaks you can make to your routine. 

Resolution 1: No More Using Exfoliants Every Single Day 

Let’s face facts – the majority of us are over-exfoliating. You don’t need to exfoliate once a day EVEN IF that’s what the bottle says. Not only can it cause chronic skin irritation, it can even accelerate the aging process. 

Instead, stick to the golden rule of exfoliating once to twice (MAX THREE) times a week. 

Remember – not everyone needs to exfoliate on the regular, so make sure you get to know your skin and learn the signs of over-exfoliation. 

Resolution 2: Quit using a salicylic acid cleanser twice a day 

Linked to resolution 1, this is just too much for most normal people. 

Using this much salicylic acid twice a day is likely to dry your face out, which is a recipe for disaster. Unless your skin is chronically oily, once a day is more than enough for most skin types to cleanse with a salicylic acid cleanser. 

This goes DOUBLY if you use a lot of chemical or manual exfoliants on your skin. 

Resolution 3: Wear Your SPF Every Day 

You should be wearing sunscreen every day come rain, hail or shine. UV light can penetrate glass, so if you have windows in your home, school or office wear SPF just in case. When it comes to sun protection, it’s better to be safe than sorry. 

Resolution 4: Stop cleansing your face in the shower

There are a couple of reasons I can think of that this is not the best idea – first, most people shower with the water much higher than lukewarm, meaning you will be cleansing your face at a harsher, higher temperature than is good for your skin. Second, if you cleanse in the shower, chances are you keep your cleansers in the shower cubicle, where they stay wet until the shower dries. This is a recipe for mould, particularly if you are opening and closing the container (like most balm-type cleansers). 

Resolution 5: Skip the At-Home Micro Needling Devices

As amazing as micro needling can be for your skin, this is not one to DIY. Not only can you seriously harm your skin, you can cause all sorts of permanent damage.  

(NB. I’m not talking about the devices that are aimed at allowing your products to penetrate your skin better – I’m talking about the ones people are using trying to regenerate their own collagen or fix deep acne scarring. In my opinion, anything over about 0.5mm needs to be left to a professional). 

Many home devices are not of a surgical grade. If not made or disinfected properly, they can be quite dangerous; needles they are made with can cause tiny tears in skin rather than the finely controlled injury that triggers healthy healing. 

Resolution 6: Constantly Trying New Products

You know those influencers who try 8 new products a week and somehow have time to review them all and pass judgment on them? Yeah, this is not realistic. 

You need to give your products enough time to work and if you’re always switching it up not only will you not give yourself enough time to know if a product actually  works or not, you can actually damage your skin and waste money, all of which are counterproductive. 

If you find something that works for your skin, by all means stick with it. By the same token, try to resist the temptation to constantly be rotating new products through your routine. 

Remember – chances are that the people reviewing new skincare products constantly and at such high speeds are being paid to do it and haven’t tried any of them; at least not properly.  

Resolution 7: Don’t Neglect Your Neck and Chest

We’ve spoken about this before on the Show but it bears repeating – skincare stops at your chest. The skin on your neck is quite thin and is often exposed to a lot of sun so it requires taking care of. Make sure you apply your skincare, including your SPF all the way down to your neck and chest. You don’t want to be looking ten years’ younger on your face only to have your neck let you down! 

Resolution 8: Throw out old products 

I, for one, am not a stickler when it comes to expiration dates, especially because I know that many Korean beauty products are labelled “two years” no matter the true expiry date in order to comply with Korea’s rigorous labelling and cosmetic regulations. 

However, if your products really have been sitting around, particularly opened, for a while then it might be time to do a cleanout. If you can remember buying a product on sale back in 2017, it’s probably time to ditch it. Ditto if the product has changed colour, changed smell or has visible mould on it. 

Resolution 9: Ditch the makeup remover wipes

Not only are they terrible for the environment, makeup remover wipes are pretty bad for your skin too. They’re far too harsh and can cause all sorts of issues from premature aging to irritation. 

Double cleansing is a great alternative and once you get into the swing of it, it really takes no time at all. 

Resources for Today’s Episode – Skincare Resolutions for 2021 Ep-37

• The Double Cleanse Method I Ep-09
• Listener Q&A Ep-26
• How Long Does it Take to See Skincare Results
• How to Avoid Over-Exfoliation

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