How to get perfect skin?
Achieving perfect skin may seem like an impossible goal. It is essentially about maintaining the health of your skin, which is the largest organ of your body. That’s why it is not just about seeking for the best skin care routine. So, what is needed to achieve the perfect skin? Skin where the pores are at bay, breakouts are under control, getting rid of unpleasant, dry skin and having dewy, glowing skin instead?
First, you need the knowledge. That’s why you are researching and reading this blog. And it is also our objective here to provide you the ultimate guide of achieving perfect skin. Then, it is all about discipline. Getting perfect skin is not an easy task and it definitely cannot be achieved overnight. You need to build up the lifestyles and habits that will lead you to have perfect skin and then continue to maintain these lifestyles and habits.
You will also need to have a willingness to develop your own way. This means that just because you read about the best skincare routine online or the luxury skin care line, it doesn’t mean that you should follow them all. Research and find out what suits your skin type and lifestyle the most, and then stick with what works or what sustainable for you. Try them out and experiment them yourself!
We are going to illustrate the best ways to get perfect skin. It could be a little crazy trying to mimic all these in the beginning, but perhaps you can come up with ideas that can improve your routine, lifestyle or habit that can get you closer to the skin of your dreams.
Follow these steps to get perfect skin:
2. Hydrate your skin
3. Eat healthy and nutritious foods
4. Have sufficient sleep and rest
5. Invest in skincare products
6. De-stress
7. Stay hydrated
8. Protect your skin from the sun
9. Exercise every day
10. Keep it simple
1. Cleanse your skin
Dirt, grime and grease accumulate on your skin throughout the day, so it is important to cleanse your face properly to get rid of dirt and grime. It starts with removing makeup if you are wearing makeup. Even if you don’t, the sunscreen that you have on your skin also need a thorough and proper cleansing. Remember, sleeping with makeup is a big "no" if you want to have flawless skin. This is because your skin needs to breathe all night, and makeup products can prevent this, as it can clog pores, leading to blemishes and blackheads.
Once makeup and sunscreen residues are removed with makeup remover or oil cleanser, double cleanse your skin with standard cleanser such as cleansing foam or cleansing milk to thoroughly remove any impurities. This can remove impurities such as dirt and sweat that makeup remover doesn’t pick up.
Once or twice a week, it is also very important to exfoliate your skin to clean debris from pores, remove dead skin cells and prevent blackheads. Grease, dirt and dead skin accumulate on the surface of your face are hardly noticeable with your bare eyes, but they make your skin rough and dull over time. In addition, they make your pores look bigger. The removal of these impurities is essential for brighter and smoother skin. Use exfoliators such as face scrub or clay mask to remove deposits on the skin. People with sensitive or dry skin, which skin tend to be irritated with exfoliator should apply a gentle, non-abrasive, creamy exfoliator.
2. Hydrate your skin
Dry and dehydrated skin is the cause of many skin issues. Think about flaky and itchy skin, skin dullness, redness, fine lines and wrinkles. So constantly keeping your skin hydrated is the key to healthy glowing skin. Depending on the dryness of your skin, there’s different skin care products that can keep your skin hydrated and long lasting.
First, moisturiser. If you don’t have exceptionally dry and dehydrated skin, moisturiser is sufficient to seal in moisture to plump and smooth skin. You could look for moisturiser with hydrating ingredients such as hyaluronic acid, shea butter or snail mucin.
If dehydration is troubling you, it could be the case where your skin natural easily get dry due to lacks oils, or lipids (i.e. you are having dry skin type) or during the winter season where the air is drier, you could enhance skin’s hydration by adding hydrating essence in your skin care routine. Essence is lightweight and packed with concentrated ingredients so the active ingredients will penetrate deeper into your skin so it can hydrate and aid in cell turnover.
If this is not enough to nourish your skin or if you need an extra boost to hydrate your skin occasionally, hydrating face mask is something you can add into your skin care routine to infuse your skin with concentrated essence. A face mask with long contact with your face allows the skin to fully absorb nutrients and moisture. Not only that face mask can provide extra hydration to your skin, but it also promotes meditative ritual, helping you to relax in the evening.
Alternatively, you could also consider having an air humidifier in your room if your room constantly having low humidity. Research found that 50% relative humidity keeps the skin happy.
3. Eat healthy and nutritious foods
Your skin is what you eat. As such, pay attention to what you eat. Consider having mostly whole foods such as fruits, vegetables, legumes that are rich in nutrients and vitamins in your diet to keep your skin healthy. Avoid eating refined carb, refined sugar and deep-fried foods as these foods increase skin inflammation, causing acnes or premature skin aging. Keep a healthy diet full of vitamins and minerals to keep your skin radiant and healthy.
You may want focus on the following nutrients that are especially beneficial for skin:
i. Antioxidants
Antioxidants are the holy grail for anti-aging. While certain unhealthy foods are the cause of skin inflammation, antioxidants fight against inflammation, thus protect cells from damage. Some of the best foods with high antioxidants are berries, spinach, dark chocolate and green tea.
ii. Vitamin C.
Consuming foods rich in vitamin C is one of the best tips for perfect skin. Vitamin C nourishes the skin by increasing collagen production in the body and preventing collagen damage. Vitamin C deficiency in your body can accelerate aging. Wrinkles and fine lines are often caused by a lack of vitamin C in the body. Including citrus fruits such as lemon and kiwi in your diet to rejuvenate your skin.
iii. Healthy fat
When consuming fat, consider the healthy fat, fat that contains healthy omega-3 fatty acids and without saturated or trans-fat. Healthy fats are good for your overall health. So, add healthy fats such as avocado, olive oil, nuts, fish and flaxseed to your diet.
iv. Fiber
Foods that are high in fiber such as brown rice, wholegrain bread, oat are considered as good carbs and are good alternatives to bad carbs like white rice and flour which only contain sugar without any nutrient. High fiber foods can equally reduce skin inflammation, helping with skin problem such as acne.
Find out more about healthy living here. If you want to know about specific foods that make skin glow, click here.
4. Have sufficient sleep and rest
Raise your hand if you are frequently watching Netflix or playing video games until late at night - I know most of you have to raise your hand. It's important to enjoy yourself after a busy day, but not to the detriment of your skin. Lack of adequate sleep is associated with dull skin. Your skin heals and regenerates during sleep. Make sure you have a good night's sleep to keep your skin healthy. If you want to have bright, glowing skin when you wake up, try sleeping with sleeping mask on.
5. Invest in high quality skin care products
Let’s face it, perfect skin needs high maintenance. Your skin is exposed to harmful external environment every day such as UV light, dirt, and bacteria. These put a lot of stress on your skin. That is why your skin need extra help from skin care products to be at its best condition apart from having a healthy lifestyle. When it comes to skin care, it is important to understand your skin’s need and choose products that are best for you. Choose the right product with high quality and advanced ingredients. There’s a reason why popular skincare brands spend billions in research and development and try to source the best high-quality ingredients to make their products. However, don’t equate a hefty price tag with the product’s effectiveness. Researching and reading reviews of skin care products could give you a good guideline of the quality of the products.
6. De-stress
It is difficult to avoid stressful situations in life, but excessive stress can cause damage to your health and skin. Various studies have shown that stress can exacerbate skin problems such as acne and hives. Stress causes your body to release a hormone called cortisol, which can increase sebum production, leading to more acne and pimples. This skin problem might cause low self-esteem and low confidence to certain individuals, leading to more stress in life, creating an unhealthy vicious cycle.
That's why it's important to stay positive and stress-free to keep your skin healthy. When you are in a stressful situation, do something that will change the state of your mind such as meditate, talk to a friend, or relax with a face mask. Coping with stress and being optimistic in life is one of the most important factors for flawless skin.
7. Stay hydrated
A large proportion of our body is made up of water. That’s why apart from hydrating your skin from externally such as using face cream, drinking sufficient water to keep your body hydrated is one of the necessary elements for perfect skin. Staying hydrated helps your body eliminate bacteria and toxins from the body that cause infection. Besides, body hydration is also a key element to maintain a healthy immune system. These are all important for a healthy skin. So, for soft and smooth skin, drink at least two liters of water every day.
8. Protect your skin from the sun
Sunlight can damage your skin. It is one of the main causes that lead to signs of pre-mature aging such as wrinkles, fine lines, thinning skin, freckles, and in severe cases can also contribute to skin cancer.
Protect your skin from harmful UV light by applying sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher. If you are living in a country with a lot of sunlight throughout the whole year, it is recommended to re-apply sunscreen every couple of hours. Otherwise, you will not be fully protected from the harmful effect of sunlight. Besides, try to avoid as much direct sunlight as possible when the UV rays are strong. This doesn’t mean that you have to avoid going out and enjoy the beautiful day but do so with sun protection such as sunglasses, hat or umbrella.
There’s also a misconception that sunscreen is not necessary during the winter or gloomy day when there’s not much sunlight. UV rays are everywhere even during those days. Therefore, apply sunscreen daily if you want to have perfect skin.
9. Exercise every day
Not only that staying active is optimal for our health, itt shall not be surprising to you that daily exercise contributes to healthy skin too. Exercise that exhausts your body and increase your heart rate improves your blood circulation. In addition, through perspiration, it also speeds up your body's cleansing process. This will work on skin tone, improves blood circulation and oxygenation of the skin, and thus giving you a healthy shine just like a highlighter. So, to obtain healthy skin, you should exercise for a minimum of 20 minutes each day. The key here is, EVERYDAY!
Also, try not to have any makes up on during exercise. This is because our pores opened when we sweat during exercise, and this can clog up your pores. On the other hand, make sure that your face is clean to avoid dirt or grime being seeped into our pores.
Besides, take the golden opportunity to apply your skincare products after working out as it is much more effective after the workout. After exercising, you have more blood supply to the skin, which can aid in absorption and maximizing your skincare products. The only exception is sunscreen. Especially if you are exercising outdoor, make sure that you apply sunblock about 30 minutes prior to sun exposure to allow the skin the absorb before you workout outside. Sunscreen ensure that your skin is protected from the harmful UV rays.
10. Keep it simple
You might be quite exhausted now having to read through all this to understand how to get perfect skin. The thing is we can actually keep it simple. Most of the tips that have been discussed here are routine and lifestyle that should be built into your daily habits. And only by keeping it simple, the habits and routines will stay with you, and it is more likely that you can maintain them for the long term.
On the health front, start with improving a little once at a time. For example, going to bed 30 minutes earlier everyday if your issue is not having sufficient rest. Carry a water bottle with you if you are not drinking sufficient water every day. And fit in 20 minutes exercise twice a week if it is still not possible for you to do it daily.
On the skincare front, it could be quite overwhelming given the amount of skin care products and treatments out there, not to mention the endless amount of information regarding skincare such as the popular 10 steps Korean skincare routine. In fact, skincare can also be kept simple. The fundamental principle of having great skin is keeping the skin cleaned, hydrated, and protected from harmful sunlight. Once these three core principles are achieved, your skin will be under controlled and looking great.
