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While there has been a lot of change in the way men look after their appearance, there is still shock, surprise and sometimes judgment when a man takes the time to look after himself, doing things that perhaps are more ‘feminine’ in the activities.
Despite this, as a man, it’s still incredibly beneficial to take care of yourself, your appearance and your inner self. Not only does it help you be a better individual, but it also shows to everyone else, the importance of self-care and self-love.
Whether you’re a man looking to take more care of yourself, or you’re trying to encourage a man in your life to prioritise his wellbeing and appearance, here are some helpful tips to help.
Establish a skincare routine that’s not too complex
A skincare routine is something that everyone should have because your skin is a bodily organ, and the only organ on the outside. That means it needs care and attention, especially as you can’t repair skin so easily once it’s damaged.
Establishing a skincare routine doesn’t need to be complicated and when it comes to men’s skincare, there might only be a few products you need if you’re looking for products that offer combinational benefits.
For example, you could look for a moisturiser that can be used both in the morning and night. That same moisturiser could have other ingredients in it like a serum to help work deeper into the skin.
A skincare routine should be easily workable into your general routine and not take longer than a minute or two to do. However, if you’re wanting to get the most out of it, then you should certainly look at spending a bit more time using your hands to massage the product into your face and body, if you can afford the time to use a body moisturiser too.
Make sure to wear sunscreen every day
Sunscreen should be worn by everyone on a daily basis. While here in the UK, the sun is so rare that often you’ll blink and miss it. However, even though the sun isn’t out, it’s still behind the clouds and UV rays can penetrate through the clouds and directly onto any exposed skin you might have out.
By wearing sunscreen on those parts that are exposed, you’ll be protecting your skin from the dangers of skin cancer but also reducing the chances of sunburn on the odd occasion where the sun catches you out without realising.
Try to wear an SPF every day, again, this can be something that for your face, could be incorporated into your daily moisturiser. While you don’t need something to the extreme of an SPF 50, an SPF 20 or 30 is a good shout.
If you’re susceptible to burning, then you should try and ramp up the reapplication in order to stay on top of the protection. It’s worth carrying around an SPF so that you’re always protected no matter what weather appears.
Exfoliate and scrub in the shower
To help open up the pores, a good way of clearing out those clogged pores and dirt-filled spots, is to exfoliate and scrub your body in the shower.
Warm water is going to open up your pores and when you’re in the shower, you might as well kill two birds with one stone and exfoliate your body while you’re in there.
Exfoliants are something to be mindful of when it comes to your skin’s sensitivity. While some can deal with a fairly rough exfoliant all over their body, others may need something a little more gentle on the skin.
Sea salt scrubs are a common exfoliate and an example of quite an abrasive scrub on the skin. Coffee or jojoba beads can be on the lighter side of exfoliant and therefore a great option if you find your skin reacts quite angrily to sea salt and other rough scrubs.
Spend some money on grooming tools and products
Grooming tools and products are a great way to look after yourself, regardless of how much bodily hair you have to shave and maintain. Even those with a bit of beard or moustache hair should be looking after this part of their body because pores can get clogged and ingrown hairs can be painful when they appear on the face.
Thankfully, there are a lot of great grooming tools and products that you can get your hands on when it comes to taking care of the beard and facial hair in general. If you’re not that knowledgeable on how to look after your beard hair, then it’s worth going to a barber so that you can get a helping hand and guidance on how to look after yours.
There are plenty of how-to resources online that are worth looking at if you’re otherwise struggling to find the help in-person.
Get a haircut regularly
Talking of barbers, it’s good practice to get your haircut regularly in order to keep on top of breakage but to also give you a clean cut appearance.
Whenever you step out of the barbershop, there’s a feeling that both women and men get, that puts a spring in your step.
That’s a feeling of happiness, joy and confidence – something that you should reward yourself with feeling every day.
Everyone is different, so how often you get your hair done, will vary in comparison to how often someone else gets their hair done. You might find that your hair grows quite slowly, so you may only need to go into the barbers every few months or so.
Getting your hair cut regularly can help provide a bit of down time for yourself. It’s the self-care that your body needs to just sit back and allow someone to pamper you. There’s nothing quite like a nice shampoo and conditioner scrub by the barber and it often helps to unwind and destress from whatever is going on in your life.
Drink plenty of water
Water is good to hydrate your body and it’s something that you want to keep on top of when it comes to looking after yourself. Drinking water is a great way of looking after your body, but not enough of us will drink enough to stay hydrated.
Ideally, you want to have at least a litre of water a day to stay hydrated. It’s quite challenging to drink this amount of water, let alone any more than that, so you should just try to be more conscious about how much you’re drinking every day.
The more you drink, the more you’ll notice the difference not only in your skin but how you feel. Drinking water and staying hydrated can do wonders for your energy levels, which might be feeling somewhat depleted when the winter months hit.
Do something for yourself every day
In order to give yourself that self-care that everyone deserves, you should look to do something for yourself every day. It’s important to do things for yourself, rather than continually showing up for everyone else.
If you don’t give yourself a bit of love, how do you expect for anyone to give it to you? With that in mind, find activities that you enjoy that you could do throughout the week. Find those little opportunities of joy and love that you can give to yourself, whether that’s a longer shower in the morning, or treating yourself to a takeaway every once in a while.
Eat a well-balanced diet with moderation in mind
A well-balanced diet is certainly important and when it comes to balance, you should eat with moderation in mind rather than needing to cut anything you enjoy out of the diet.
Often the problem with diets is that they’re restrictive and mainly on the things that you enjoy eating. Therefore, you should consider what you eat in your day to day life and only cut down on things when it comes to portion sizes and calorie control.
Prioritise your sleep
Sleep is something that should be prioritised, but unfortunately it’s often pushed to the side. That’s why it’s a good idea to try and get a good night’s sleep more nights out of the week than not.
If you’re compromising on your sleep, then you’re only going to do damage to your health as a result. Try to be mindful of how much sleep you’re getting every night and improve on it when it’s needed.
Find clothes you love to wear
Finally, even if you’re not a fan of fashion in general, you should be wearing clothes that you love to wear, rather than picking out things that don’t really make you feel that good. Try to look for clothing you feel comfortable in and that compliment your body, rather than drown you in fabric or make you feel like you’re trying to squeeze into a certain size or fit.
Just because you’re a man, doesn’t make you deserving of care and attention, so indulge in yourself and your appearance this year.