If you’ve ever looked in the mirror and thought, “Yikes, I didn’t think my skin looked like that,” you might be missing out on two critical skincare steps that contribute to radiant skin. Skin can look dull and tired over time due to shortening cell turnover – and it takes two important skincare steps to add glow back to your skin.
The two factors that come together that fix lifeless-looking skin are exfoliation and hydration. These two skincare steps lay the foundation for how your skin looks now and in the long term. Here’s how to bring blah, tired-looking skin back to life.
Why Does My Skin Look Bad?
The truth is, it’s easy to make your skin look good with the right skincare routine. However, there are some bad habits that you might be doing that are causing your skin to look dull and lifeless.
Cause #1 Not Enough Hydration
Hydration in skin is what adds to natural radiance and youthfulness. However, this step is actually easy to overlook – especially for oily skin types. If you’re skipping moisturizer because you think that your skin produces enough oil, it’s important to stop doing that right away.
When skin is dehydrated, it’s visibly less radiant – it looks dull and sallow. The reason boosting hydration adds glow to skin is because on a microscopic level, it literally helps to smooth the surface of your skin – both on the outside, and from within your skin.
Smoother skin literally glows because it’s able to reflect and diffuse light1 in a way that dehydrated skin cannot. Dehydrated skin isn’t as smooth and full of hydration; skin cells are bunched together roughly, leading to a dull, tired look.
Cause #2 Not Enough Exfoliating
Another critical step that studies have noticed is important to reviving dull skin is regular exfoliation. Using exfoliating peels benefits skin by dissolving away dead skin cells and unclogging pores. In the long term, exfoliating peels can also benefit skin by encouraging collagen production for a youthful glow.
Because exfoliating peels and pads remove dullness-causing dead skin cells, they can instantly revive dull skin and boost radiance2. However, they benefit skin in the long run too!
Glycolic Acids – and other exfoliating acids – stimulate cellular turnover. As we age, our cellular turnover slows down, which contributes to tired, dull-looking skin. Exfoliating acids stimulate cellular turnover within skin for skin that looks glowier for longer.
The Bottom Line for Skin Radiance
Reviving dull skin back to a radiant, youthful look is simple with the right amount of hydration and exfoliation in your skincare routine. The reason skin literally seems to glow is due to light bouncing off healthy skin – and the smoother it is due to exfoliation and hydration, the more alive and glowing your skin will be. No more blah, lifeless skin here!
