Skip to content

Top Navigation

Shape Shape
  • Fitness
  • Healthy Eating
  • Beauty
  • Sex and Love
  • Celebrities
  • Mind & Body
  • Lifestyle
  • Video
  • Shop
  • Sweeps

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Your Profile
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Log Out
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Shape

Shape Shape
  • Explore

    Explore

    • The Keto Meal Plan for Beginners

      Everything you need to know to get started with this high-fat, low-carb diet. Read More Next
    • 10 Things I Learned During My Body Transformation

      Twenty months and 17 pounds later, I came away with 10 big lessons. Read More Next
    • The 30-Day Squat Challenge

      The ultimate 30-day squat challenge, featuring 12 squats that tighten and tone. Read More Next
  • Fitness

    Fitness

    See all Fitness
    • Workouts
    • Cardio
    • Strength Training
    • Bodyweight Training
    • Yoga
    • Exercise Recovery
    • Exercise Tips
    • Race Training
    • Workout Trends
    • Playlists
    • Workout Clothes
    • Workout Gear
  • Healthy Eating

    Healthy Eating

    See all Healthy Eating
    • Healthy Recipes
    • Diets
    • Food & Nutrition
    • Healthy Cooking
    • Healthy Drinks
    • Weight Loss
  • Beauty
  • Sex and Love
  • Celebrities

    Celebrities

    See all Celebrities
    • Interviews
    • Celebrity News
    • Celebrity Workouts
  • Mind & Body

    Mind & Body

    See all Mind & Body
    • Coronavirus
    • Transformations
  • Lifestyle

    Lifestyle

    See all Lifestyle
    • Travel
    • Fashion
    • Healthy IRL
  • Video

    Video

    See all Video
    • Workout Videos
    • Cooking Videos
    • Weight Loss Videos
    • Celebrity Videos
  • Shop
  • Sweeps

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Your Profile
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Log Out
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow us

  1. Shape.com Chevron Right
  2. Lifestyle Chevron Right
  3. Beauty Chevron Right
  4. Your Guide to Flawless Post-Workout Skin (Yes, It's Possible!)

Your Guide to Flawless Post-Workout Skin (Yes, It's Possible!)

By Amanda First
February 26, 2019
Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission.
Skip gallery slides
Save FB Tweet
A few extra minutes in the locker room can make all the difference in keeping your complexion healthy, hydrated and breakout-free. We asked New York City dermatologist Dr. Julie Russak for her best post-gym skincare tips.
Start Slideshow

1 of 8

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Hands Off

Credit: Shutterstock

Healthy skin post-workout starts before you step off the treadmill. Sweating can be a great way to detoxify your skin, says Russak, but touching the same machines and equipment as a day's worth of gym rats is a great way to spread bacteria to your skin. Do your best not to touch your face during your workout. And if you're a hair care junkie, pull your strands back. Otherwise, any hair products you used that day could drip down onto your face or neck, clogging pores and causing breakouts. (Already prone to breakouts? We have The Best Skin Care Routine for Acne-Prone Skin.)

1 of 8

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 8

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Be Gentle

Credit: Shutterstock

The number-one mistake people make after a workout? "Being too aggressive with their skin," says Russak. Resist the urge to over-scrub: even the most killer spin class doesn't call for major exfoliation. Too much exfoliation can dehydrate your skin, lead to eczema or exacerbate acne. Instead, Russak suggests, washing away sweat with a gentle cleanser like Cetaphil ($12; jet.com).

2 of 8

3 of 8

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Don't Forget Your Body

Credit: Shutterstock

Don't forget it's your whole body that just crushed those deadlifts, not just your face. Waiting until you get home to cleanse your body can lead to clogged pores. Instead, stash a deep-cleansing body wash in your gym bag. Russak likes Glytone Exfoliating Body Wash ($20; amazon.com): it contains lactic acid, a gentle exfoliant.

3 of 8

Advertisement

4 of 8

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Boost Your Post-Workout Smoothie

Credit: Geber86/Getty Images

The protein in your post-workout shake can boost more than just your muscles. Collagen, one type of protein in skin, is key among other factors for keeping firmness and plumpness. Production starts to drop off as we age, but research suggests taking collagen supplements might help boost collagen synthesis. When you’re making a post-workout drink, add a scoop of collagen peptides, like Neocell Collagen Protein Peptides, which also contains hyaluronic acid and vitamin C.

4 of 8

5 of 8

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Don't Skimp On Moisturizer

Credit: Shutterstock

As much as it might feel like it, the sweat session you just finished is not exactly quenching your skin with moisture. After you wash your face, you'll still need to slather on moisturizer to replenish water your skin lost during your workout. If you're breakout-prone, go for an oil-free moisturizer, like Mario Badescu Oil-Free Moisturizer ($28; nordstrom.com)—it replenishes moisture without clogging your pores. For dryer skin, try a rich cream that's light enough to absorb easily into your skin, like Cerave Facial Moisturizing Lotion AM with SPF 30 ($15; ulta.com). And while you're at it, give your limbs an extra dose of TLC with a rich body cream, like Vanicream ($12; jet.com). Speaking of moisturizer, we have The Best Skin Care Routine for Dry Skin.

5 of 8

6 of 8

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Drink Up

Credit: Shutterstock

If you've just finished an activity that gets your heart rate way up, like spin or hot yoga, don't stash your water bottle as soon as you step out of the studio. Because your body loses so much more moisture in heated environments, you'll need to keep hydrating post-workout for your skin to recover.

6 of 8

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 8

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Nail I-Just-Worked-Out Makeup

Credit: Shutterstock

In theory, we should all be stepping out of the gym looking like the workout goddesses we are, all dewy skin and rosy cheeks. In reality—if it was a really, really good workout, that is—we're a sweaty mess. Fake your fantasy post-gym look by covering redness with pressed concealer, like MAC Studio Finish SPF 35 Concealer ($19; maccosmetics.com), and a finishing powder, like Make Up For Ever HD Microfinish Powder ($20; Sephora.com) to reduce shine.

7 of 8

8 of 8

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Load Up On SPF

Credit: Shutterstock

Running home from yoga? You go, girl, but don't forget to apply sunscreen before you hit the pavement—and not just to your face. "Almost all the patients I see with melanomas on their legs are runners," Russak warns. "Remember: ALL exposed skin needs to be covered with sunscreen!" If you hate the feeling of sunscreen running into your eyes when you sweat (let's face it—even the sweat-proof ones aren't immune), Russak suggests Colorscience ($64; available at Sephora), a brand of pressed powder with SPF 50.

8 of 8

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 8 Hands Off
2 of 8 Be Gentle
3 of 8 Don't Forget Your Body
4 of 8 Boost Your Post-Workout Smoothie
5 of 8 Don't Skimp On Moisturizer
6 of 8 Drink Up
7 of 8 Nail I-Just-Worked-Out Makeup
8 of 8 Load Up On SPF

Share options

Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Login

Shop | Shape

  • Makeup
  • Serums & Treatments
  • Curling Irons
  • Mascara
  • Perfume
  • Skin Care
  • Face Makeup
  • Hair Dryers
  • Essential Oils
  • Makeup Bags
  • Shop More Next

Shape may receive compensation when you click through and purchase from links contained on this website.

Shape

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Customer Service this link opens in a new tab
  • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Affiliate Program this link opens in a new tab

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en EspaƱol this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Shape is part of the Instyle Beauty Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.shape.com

View image

Your Guide to Flawless Post-Workout Skin (Yes, It's Possible!)
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.