10 perfect timings for a perfect beauty routine
“In my own defense, I timed it perfectly!” Sherlock Holmes said that to Watson, after he’d thrown the latter’s wife, Mary, off a moving train. But Watson immediately lunged at Holmes and started throttling him thinking his friend had just killed his newly wedded wife. But the truth was, and those who had watched A Game Of Shadows know, Mary was saved in the nick of time for she would have been undoubtedly dead had she remained onboard. And that’s how I want you to think about today’s topic—that knowing the perfect timing for your beauty routines can make a difference to keeping your beauty alive.
All right, drama aside, know without a shadow of a doubt that we have biological clocks embedded in our genes and they play a vitally important role in how we pace our lives through the days, the weeks, the months and the years. In fact, our bodies are guided by the 24-hour hormonal cycle referred to as the circadian clock and the major factor in their regulation is sunlight. In addition, according to this commentary from the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, the biological clock of our skin is under the influence of the central clock of our body. If this is true, then we might need to consider our skin care routines on a timely basis.
You may not realized it but perhaps you’re not washing your face at the best time. Or perhaps some of your products are used at the wrong hour. Has it crossed your mind that your beauty foods and supplements are not effective because you’re consuming them at the wrong time? Well, today, I’m going to talk about 10 perfect timing for a proper beauty routine from inside out. Some of these are supported by studies and some of them are based on what I’ve read from books.
Perfect time for beauty sleep
Before 11pm.
Reason: In the book “Good Skin†by Ingried Wood, different body cells are more active at different times of the day. Skin cells do their repair work most effectively at night. Research shows that skin cell regeneration almost doubles at night, peaking between 11pm and 4am. Production of collagen is boosted, harmful free radicals are destroyed and cell damage is rectified.†In addition, between 11pm and 3am is the time your liver and gallbladder are cleansing and detoxifying. As such, your body needs to be at rest while they do so that you can have healthy liver and gallbladder to maintain beauty from inside out.
Perfect time to consume supplements
Before bedtime at night.
Reason: Unless otherwise stated, it is ideal to consume your beauty supplement just before bedtime for optimal results. According to Alex Khadavi, M.D., associate professor of dermatology at the University of Southern California (source), skin cell regeneration is slightly faster at night than during the day.
Perfect time to apply active ingredients
At night before bedtime.
Reason: Besides our skin cell renewal being higher at night, products with active ingredients are best applied in the night as your skin is able to absorb the active ingredients in skincare products better since active ingredients are less effective when exposed to sunlight. In addition, your skin would not have to compete with the other products you apply like makeup or sunscreen to fight the UV rays, pollution and other harmful environmental elements in the day.
Perfect time to apply hydrating mask
At night before bedtime.
Reason: Your skin is drier in the night because trans-epidermal water loss (or TEWL) is significantly increased during the night—according to an article written by the Departments of Dermatology and Neurobiology & Anatomy, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
Perfect time for facial
Two weeks after your period.
Reason: Your female hormone estrogen increases two weeks after your menstruation. This is also the time when our skin looks the best because the increased estrogen helps maintain skin moisture by increasing acid mucopolysaccharides and hyaluronic acid in the skin and possibly maintaining stratum corneum barrier function (source). However, avoid facials and any harsh skin treatments the week before or during your menses as your skin is more vulnerable to breakouts during that period. I know some experts suggest having facials while your face is proned to breakouts but I beg to differ because I’ve heard horror stories of how skin becomes scarred when the treatments turned awry.
Perfect time to brush your teeth
Half an hour after you eat.
Reason: After you eat, the enamel coating of your teeth is in a weakened state due to the high acid content of food and the different enzymes your body releases in saliva to start the digestive process (source). So instead of brushing your teeth immediately, finish a meal with a glass of water and wait at least 30 minutes to allow the enamel to return to normal. Or if you know you’re going to eat or drink something acidic, brush your teeth beforehand.
Perfect time to eat your fruits
First thing in the morning on an empty stomach.
Reason: Fruit is a carbohydrate which means that it is converted to simple sugars for immediate energy. So eating fruits on an empty stomach ensures your body will be able to fully absorb all of the vitamins, fiber and healthy carbohydrates. Another fantastic time to eat fruit is either right before, right after, or both pre- and post- working out. Our bodies will use fruit sugars for immediate energy and for refilling depleted energy stores. While this does not mean you cannot consume your fruits at other times, it does imply that eating your fruits outside these time belts may contribute to weight gain.
Perfect time to drink water for detox
First thing when you wake up in the morning.
Reason: Drinking water first thing in the morning is good for our system with many saying that it helps to clear our system, flush out the toxins and bring up our metabolism rate. Some even claim that this method helps them reduce weight! I just like to think that drinking water first thing in the morning helps us to hydrate from inside out since our body has been at rest for a few hours without any fresh intake of water.
Perfect time to drink coffee
Between 9:30-11:30 and 1:30 and 5:00.
Reason: Cortisol, the hormone which makes us feel alert and awake, peaks between 8-9 am, 12-1 pm and 5:30-6:30 pm. Consuming caffeine at times of peak cortisol levels actually diminishes the effectiveness of the additional stimulation. Worse still, by consuming caffeine when it is not needed, your body will build a faster tolerance to it, and the buzz you get will greatly diminish. Therefore, timing your coffee breaks between 9:30-11:30 and 1:30 and 5:00 takes advantage of the dips in your cortisol levels when you need a boost the most (source).
Perfect time to bathe to help you relax
Half an hour before bedtime.
Reason: When you sleep, your body’s internal temperature actually drops to its lowest level, generally about four hours after you fall asleep. This is also why taking a warm bath half an hour before bedtime may also help you sleep. According to Dr Mercola, this increases your core body temperature, and when it abruptly drops when you get out of the bath, it signals your body that you are ready for sleep (source).
Share your perfect timings
Well, I don’t know if these timings are perfect for your lifestyle routines but they do make perfect sense to me. But I’ve not been adhering to the timings to eat fruits though and I wonder if that’s contributing to my weight gain. Anyway, if any of you know of the perfect timing to drink tea, or perfect timings for anything else, do share.
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Thank you for informing us! I really plan on incorporating these timings into my routine
That’s great. Hope it’ll be fuss free for you.
thanks for sharing, good to know these perfect timings!
awesome post, Sesame. few of the points like 1-4 or something is known but the rest were educative!
Oh gosh, I love this post! I am pretty disorganized and indifferent, so having schedule excites me. Hahaha. I’ve done everything well so far, but sleeping before midnight is a real problem for me. I don’t know why but my brain works nicely after midnight ?
Haha…well, perhaps you’re more of a night owl. ?
Glad you find them helpful. ?
You’re welcome!
this is so helpful! i’ve noticed when i nap briefly during the daytime my skin has more of a “glow.” too bad it’s not often possible! and if i nap later in the afternoon i just feel more tired and cranky.
I’m sure being better rested helps with our skin. I wish I have more time to nap too. ?
This is a perfect beauty routine. It is my first time to see this post and very informative about different things for everyday routine. Thanks!
Cristina last post is: Post Format: Gallery
Great post! Although I think there are some fruits that need to be avoided on an empty stomach/mornings for certain people, such as pineapple, water melon, bananas… etc (according to the Chinese Traditional Medicine).
You’re welcome.
Yes, you’re right. Probably some fruits can be taken but not all. I didn’t know bananas cannot be eating on an empty stomach or mornings. I eat it when I’m hungry…some times…it’s not one of my faves.
Thank you. Very useful read!!! One or two I already do like drinking water in the morning and now I’ve started putting on more serums before I sleep. Will try more!
The fruit thing on empty stomach is abit hard for me because I find them slightly acidic? So I kinda need to “line” my stomach with abit of other things before I consume food. But it makes sense that the nutrients will be absorbed better on an empty stomach ?
Yes true…some fruits are acidic and can cause discomfort when eaten on an empty stomach.
loved this article!!! thanks for sharing it ?
no way. Now my son got married and has 2 kids. I want to see my son, We tried to invited him, No way.Pl help me to getting my son to enjoy his family,he lives in Lebanon. He has no relatives there . .Regards