Post Workout Breakouts & How to Avoid Them

Whether you’re exercising once a week or six times a week, if you’re not prepping your skin correctly you could end up with an acne breakout on your hands.

There’s a couple of different factors that go into breakouts (face & body) caused by a workout. From lack of pre and post workout washing, to the clothes you wear, there are a few different opportunities bacteria has to breakout your skin. Here are a few tips to help you keep clear skin and not discourage you from your workouts.

First, whether you are male or female, washing your face before a workout is a good place to start (especially if you’re someone that wears makeup). Clearing your skin and making sure your pores are free of dirt, dust, oil and makeup will ensure that during your workout you won’t be mixing all that together with your sweat. (The best is to use a acne treatment that isn’t oil based).

If you’re someone who works out at the gym – and uses a sweat towel – it’s important that when you are removing sweat that you are dabbing with the towel rather than vigorously rubbing. This can cause your skin to be irritated leading to inflammation and breakouts.

The clothing you use while exercising is also important. Are you wearing a clean shirt? Has that sweat towel been cleaned since last time you used it? Wearing clothes or using a sweat towel that hasn’t been washed since the last time you used it is a seriously dangerous choice. Your clothes (especially sport bras for ladies) are hugging tight on your skin when you work out. Holding the heat, moisture and sweat on your pores and also rubbing into your skin while working out. It’s important to minimize the amount of dirt, dust and gunk in direct contact with your skin when you get the blood pumping and pores opening. So the best tip here is to make sure you’re using clean clothes and a clean sweat towel.

Lastly, after working out the faster you get out of those clothes and get yourself into a shower – the better! Washing off all the sweat and cleaning your pores before they had enough time to turn on you should be your goal after every workout!