New To Skin Care - Male Athlete - Need help, kinda

[Anonymous]

Hello, I am a guy and I am completely new to skincare. My whole life I have always been a soap, wash, and lotion person.

However, as of recently I was told by a friend that I have, what she refers to as - sun damage -.

I played football in the Texas heat and I have some cuts and bruises from MMA training.

I had no idea that my pores were not suppose to be visible. I also have a dark patch underneath my neck after I shave.

She recommended some of these products:

Granactive Retinoid* 2% Emulsion

AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution

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But I’ve been looking online, and there are weird things like AM / PM.

And do I need a “cleanser” and “moisturizer”?

That is just a lot of stuff, and I don’t know the order in which I should take these products and how often. I just need some guidance lol

[makeitup305]

@gianbaker welcome! The products your friend recommended are really good but might be a little too intense for your skin if you're just starting out with skincare. First of all, would you say your skin is dry, oily, normal or combination (a mix of two or all)? What you would most likely want to incorporate is a 1) a Vitamin C serum, 2) an SPF, and 3) an exfoliant.

Vitamin C is known to help reduce dark spots and discoloration on your skin. Chemical exfoliants like glycolic acid help remove the top layer of your skin to bring out new (and undamaged ) skin. SPF is essential to help prevent new spots from showing up and protect that new skin, that's extra delicate, from getting damaged. Some products say PM because they can cause your skin to become photosensitive and become more easily damaged by the sun. Vitamin C actually helps your sunscreen perform better so you would use that before your sunscreen in the morning. Since exfoliants bring out new skin, you usually want to use them at night so that you're not immediately exposing that new skin to the sun. I would also suggest starting off easy with the exfoliants and Vitamin C, maybe once or twice a week to build tolerance and test for sensitivity.

The OLEHENRIKSEN 3 Little Wonders™ (they also have a mini set of the same products for $25, in case you want to sample it first) would be a good starter kit I think, you would just need to add a sunscreen for the daytime like the SUPERGOOP! - 100% Mineral Smooth & Poreless Matte Screen SPF 40 or the SUPERGOOP! - Unseen Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 40. I also really like the The INKEY List Tranexamic Acid Hyperpigmentation Treatment 1 oz/ 30 mL which you can use at night and helps fade discoloration. If the Ole Henriksen is a too expensive, brands like The Ordinary and The Inkey List have very similar products for a fraction of the cost.  

Hope this helps!

[nelebana]

Just time to add things into your routine already! Face wash-> toner(liquid to prep skin for moisturizer)-> moisturizer with spf (lotion for face not body)-> all done! Then once or twice a week add in a face scrub and face mask (in that order) after your facewash and continue your regime then you should be set! Clinique has a line that’s set up and even numbered so you remember which to do first and so on. Hope that helps (:

[ZakiyaBT]

Hi @Anonymous,

I commend you for reaching out for help with finding a skincare routine. If you are in the sun a lot I definitely recommend using sunscreen and yes you do need a cleanser and moisturizer. I would recommend starting off with some of the skincare sets that we have for men to help you find the products that you like and that work the best with your skin. KIEHL'S SINCE 1851 Men's Skincare Starter Kit is a good one to start with. I hope that this helps. 🙂

Best,

Zakiya