Our skin can reflect any imbalances on the inside. It needs to be nourished with water, regular exercise and a healthy diet. However, your skin requires treatment on the outside to help prevent conditions such as acne, fine lines and wrinkles, dull and dry skin as well as dark circles.
In Ayurveda, there are many different regimes that you can follow and adopt into your daily routine to help maintain and balance your doshas and leave you with fresh, clear and glowing skin. One of these routines is known as skin cycling which is a great way to balance the skin and reveal a healthy, nourished and bright complexion.
At Mauli Rituals, we believe ayurvedic skin care is a way to show your inner goddess on the outside and is the perfect practice of self-care to help balance your mind, body and spirit.
What Is Skin Cycling?
Skin cycling in its simplest explanation is alternating between your skincare products on different days, this is rather than applying your skincare on one night.
Your skin needs time to recover from all the different products and steps within your skincare routine that is why it is instead cycling through your skincare products and having specific days for specific products.
You will split your skincare up into the active and inactive ingredients and spread this over multiple days, on some nights you will focus on your specific skin concerns and let it rest on the other days.
Your active ingredients such as retinol and products containing AHA/ BHA acids are the way to get glowing skin as they have many benefits and can treat an abundance of skin concerns. They help improve and reduce fine lines and wrinkles, dullness, hyperpigmentation and blemishes.
This way of treating your skin is vital for healthy skin as you can tailor it to your skin concerns and cycle to your skin type. It also helps to prioritise nourishing your skin and splitting the time up between treating skin issues and hydrating protecting your skin barrier.
Who Should Avoid Skin Cycling
When it comes to different types of skincare routines not all of them will work for everyone and their skin types. After all, everyone has different skin and skin cycling will not benefit some people and will be perfect for other people.
Some skin types may not be able to handle the different products and ingredients as their skin may be too sensitive but for others this will be the most beneficial routine, it is all about knowing your skin and what will work for it. You want to work with your skin to get the most out of it.
Acne-Prone Skin
Acne prone and blemished skin needs consistent treatment and products every night to help soothe and reduce breakouts. That is why people with this type of skin may not benefit from skin cycling.
Sensitive Skin
Skin cycling won't necessarily work for people with sensitive skin ingredients and products such as retinol and acids can cause negative reactions and inflammation. Sensitive skin should focus on repairing the skin barrier with hydrating and nourishing products.
Ayurvedic Skincare Routine
How to practise skin cycling is a simple formula for you to follow, it works in a four day cycle and then you repeat. For the days you are using active ingredients retinol and AHA/ BHAs are the main ingredients and on your recovery days this is where the inactive ingredients come in to help repair the skin barrier. You will use ceramides and hydrating ingredients such as hyaluronic acid.
Here is a simple way to incorporate skin cycling into your daily skincare routine:
Night 1
Start by cleansing your face and exfoliate with a chemical exfoliant. This could be with an AHA or BHA product. Then finish off by using a moisturiser.
Night 2
Cleanse your skin and apply retinol. Due to exfoliating the night before the retinol will absorb better into your skin because of removing any impurities and dead skin cells. Then follow by using a moisturiser.
Night 3
Cleanse and wash away the dirt from the day and focus on hydrating the skin and barrier repair.
Night 4
Use a cleanser and to round off the cycle, focus on hydrating your skin and repairing the skin barrier using