Your Skin & Yoga

A lot of women want a healthy alternative to looking fabulous without spending an arm and a leg on magic potions or going under the knife. One of those healthy alternatives is Yoga. Yoga is an ancient art which has many advantages. Not only is it a good way to maintain one's health, for those women looking for a natural way to beautify their skin, it's a good way to  bring vitality to the skin because yoga helps to improve blood circulation and balance the flow of oxygen and hormones. The result of practicing yoga is firmer facial muscles.

Dr. Perricone writes about the benefits of yoga in his book The Clear Skin Prescription. He says, “So how can one attain a fit, toned, and flexible body as well as clear, radiant skin at any age? Yoga. In my opinion, the benefits of yoga are unparalleled. Yoga is unique in that it addresses the entire person.”

Yoga is all about breathing, and deep breathing brings lots of fresh oxygen to the skin and body. The action of breathing deeper and slower increases the health of your skin. And let's not forget that yoga helps to relax your mind and body. This alone will help keep breakouts at bay.

Here are a few poses you can try.

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Triangle Pose is great for eliminating toxins, opening, stretching, and strengthening the whole body. Many twisting poses also massage the internal organs to aid in digestion and detoxification.

Downward Facing Dog increases the blood flow to the head, giving the skin a rush of fresh blood and nutrients. When you rise back to your feet, the blood goes back down toward the heart  taking some unwanted toxins with it. This pose also engages your whole body by calming the nervous system, decompressing the spine, toning, sculpting and strengthening the arms, sculpting and lengthening the thighs.

Chair Pose gets the blood pumping. This intense pose promotes sweating which allows the skin to get rid of toxins that lurk just beneath the surface. It also increases blood circulation and carries vital nutrients to the skin, clearing breakouts, de-puffing puffy eyes and encouraging healthy, glowy skin.

Hope This Helps

How Stress Affects Your Skin

Sometimes, there's just no way around stress. You have bills to pay, deadlines to meet, people in your life that may count on you for everything or even relationship issues. Most women take stress for granted. They're so stressed out that it has become a normal part of their lives. But did you know that stress can really reek havoc on your skin? 

When you're stressed, your adrenal gland over produces cortisol. Chronic stress weakens the body's natural defenses and decreases the skin’s ability to regenerate. Stress can trigger acne, eczema, hives, rosacea, warts, cold sores, psoriasis, and affect the color of your skin. Stress is also one of the main factors in increased free radicals in the body. Free radicals are a major cause of premature aging. When cortisol is high, there is a drop in the production of the anti-aging hormone known as dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA).  

There is no way to eliminate stress from your life, but there are things that you can do to de-stress.

1. Exercise
Exercise is considered a great stress-buster. Yoga, thirty minutes on the treadmill or a nice stroll through the neighborhood several times a week are great forms of exercise that work at relaxing the mind as well as toning the body.

2. Massage
As a nice treat, book a massage every month. It's a nice way to balance the body, mind and emotions.

3. Meditate
Meditation has been proven to significantly reduce the effects of stress.

4. Aromatherapy
Chamomile, hazel nut oil and lavender soothe the mind and the body.  Try adding a few drops to a cotton ball and inhaling.

Hope This Helps.