I never expected to be dealing with acne – and other skin frustrations – in my 30s. Aside from preventing wrinkles, I had anticipated being done with teen-like skin when I hit my 2os. Nevertheless, it has been a journey discovering the uniqueness of my biochemistry – aka, how my body responds and functions differently than yours. Much like my digestion and fitness, skincare has been a system of trial and error; mostly with trends and products.
It took me 30 years to learn these 3 things…
There are a few things I’ve learned in the last 2-3 years that have dramatically changed my skin. First, great skin starts with your diet; specifically, a hydrating and hormone balancing diet. Second, overdoing it is bad for your skin whether it’s products, peels, pimple popping or sun exposure. Third, cruelty-free and plant-based products are just as effective as those that aren’t and don’t harm animals or the environment (just switch already).
Does this sound familiar?
Have you struggled with sensitive skin, dry skin, oily skin, redness, cystic acne, chronic blackheads or giant pores? Who knew one person could experience it all?! I certainly have. Thankfully, I didn’t have it all at once and I have little to no noticeable scarring. The main solution for me was fixing my diet. By understanding how my hormones were influencing my skin and how my diet was influencing my hormones, I started at the root issue (Ultimate skincare grocery list coming soon).
Four-Step Cruelty-Free Skincare
After cleaning up my diet and adding skin-friendly supplements, I took a good hard look at the skincare products I was using. I’ve tried almost everything you can find at the drugstore but never saw a difference in my skin. I also was not proud to learn that many of those products were tested on animals. So, I ditched it all and found MY Holy Grail of cruelty-free skincare products.
Step 1 – Facial Massage with Acure Simply Soothing
A few pumps into the palm of my hand and I start massaging this Acure Seriously Soothing Oil into my skin for at least 3 minutes. You can search how to do your own facial massage online, but avoid the eyes, don’t forget the neck, and make sure to massage in an upward motion.
Step 2 – Tea Tree Castile Soap Face Wash
With the Acure oil still on my face, I place a quarter-sized amount of Dr. Bronner’s Tea Tree Castile Soap in the palm of my hand with some water and get it good and sudsy. Once my face is lathered up, I move onto step 3.
Step 3 – Facial Brush Exfoliator
With the oil and castile soap mixture still on my face and neck, I use the EcoTools Facial Cleansing Brush to exfoliate. Working in gentle circles all over my t-zone, cheeks and jawline, this brush helps sluff off all the dead skin on my face and works the oil and soap into my pores for a deep clean. Rinse it all off with warm water.
If I’ve been extra sweaty or gotten super dusty at the motocross track, I’ll wash my face one more time with just the castile soap, no oil or brush.
Step 4 – Anti-Aging Moisturizer
I’m not sure how I found the IT Cosmetics Confidence In A Cream moisturizer, but HOT DANG is it good! I massage this into my skin like I did with the Acure oil and I’m done. I would also suggest adding a reef-friendly sunscreen to this routine; Supergoop! is both cruelty-free and reef safe!
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