I think at this point we can all agree that summers are just going to keep on getting hotter and hotter. It’s really becoming a lot harder to leave the house when it’s scorching heat outside and the asphalt is beginning to melt. Or just go to Arizona, where even your car’s headlights can’t stand the heat.
But all these odd events aside, the heat can actually be pretty dangerous if you don’t take care of yourself properly. Sure, in the winter, no matter how cold it gets, a thick coat, a pair of boots, mittens and a nice warm hat will keep you warm enough outside. The summer’s not that easy; what do you do if it’s too hot? Probably not walking around naked.
And while unfortunately, I can’t really give any advice on cooling off or protecting yourself in the summer heat, I can tell you the things you can do to keep your skin protected as you wait until the world gets just a little cooler, so you can go outside again. With these couple of tips, you’ll make it through the summer’s worst and maybe even get a little ahead in your skincare routine.
Stay Hydrated
I’ve probably said this for pretty much every other season out there, but it goes to show you how important it is to stay hydrated. Water is literally the building block of life and having more of it is only good for you. Don’t go for any sodas, coffee, herbal tea you got from Asia, some weird mineral water from a country you can’t pronounce or an energy drink that has some edgy brand name.
Just water. That’s all you need. Drink as much of it as you can throughout the day. The benefits of drinking water are so long, that I’d have to write like 3 more posts talking about it. And the funny thing is, you probably already knew that. But the fact of the matter is, a lot of people either forget or neglect to drink water properly for some reason. Maybe it’s because water doesn’t taste like their favorite fruit, isn’t filled with gallons of caffeine and doesn’t have an edgy brand name.
But you know what? It’ll keep your body stronger than pretty much anything else you drink. So chug that stuff down as much as you can to keep your body strong enough. It tastes like nothing, so you have no reason not to like it.
Think about it: how does your body cool off? With sweat. And if you don’t have enough water, where’s that sweat going to come from? It’s just not going to come at all. And this is literally just one of the hundreds of other things water does.
Get That Moisture
But staying hydrated isn’t just about drinking the water. Sure, when you drink it, the water impacts basically your entire body, but there are other ways of consuming water too. Your skin needs water.
Much like the rest of your body, it needs to stay hydrated, so it needs to come into contact with enough moisture. Hence why frequent showering and washing are so good for your skin. Ever had that dry skin feeling, where it’s all flaky and peeling off? That’s not a good sensation, is it?
That’s why you have to make sure that skin is moist enough, that it can stay sturdy and protect your body from whatever gunk wants to get into it. Dry skin is not going to protect you properly, that’s for sure. So just make sure it’s getting enough moisture and keep it healthy and strong.
Alternatively, try out some skincare products, like moisturizers. Depending on the kind of skin you have (and believe it or not, they’re all very different), you’ll buy the proper skincare products that will keep it as soft and moist as possible. Soft doesn’t mean weak. Soft means the skin cells are fresh and healthy, ready to take on anything the world throws at them.
So keep that moisture coming to make sure that your skin is hydrated enough that it doesn’t dry out and weaken.
Air It Out
Remember how I said that the skin is very similar to the rest of the body as in it needs water to stay strong? Well, the same goes for air.
I don’t know if you’ve ever had the chance to look at the skin through a microscope, but if you haven’t, it’s not some smooth surface. It’s very bumpy, has a lot of ridges and pretty large areas in between the cells. Now, these empty spaces may be microscopic, but they’re just big enough to store any kind of gunk or dirt that happens to be flying through the air and finds enough space in between the cells.
When this happens, your skin gets a lot less air, since it’s clogged up with a whole bunch of gunk, preventing it from breathing properly. Lack of air leads to the skin getting weaker and not being able to fight off the outside threats coming its way. So, what can you do?
Clean it, of course. This is where the frequent washing comes back into action. Now, you’re probably already used to washing yourself every 10 to 15 minutes because of the whole pandemic in the past 6 months, but this is actually good for your skin.
By cleaning your skin often and scrubbing real hard, you can take out all that gunk that stores itself in between your skin cells, giving them enough air to breathe and strengthening them even further. And all it takes is just a little wash, that’s all.
Now keep in mind: these are tips for just the absolute fundamentals of skincare. They are not designed to help you take care of a special condition you may think you’re suffering from, but they do form the base of what it means to have healthy skin. So, if you think you haven’t been doing enough in any of these areas, you really need to start.
With the summer almost over, but the heat still very much around, it’s important that we do everything in our power to keep our skin healthy and strong.