Hot Yoga, Acne and Healthy Skin

Acne is tough and so is practicing hot yoga. But despite what you may think, hot yoga and acne do NOT have to go hand in hand. In fact, my yoga practice helped dramatically clear up my skin, my diet and my life.

I have struggled with acne dating back to high school. In fact it was so bad, that I gleefully went on the super scary drug—Acutane… It worked for about four years, and then my acne came back, but this time it was when I was young in my professional career and had to spend large amounts of time on local television. Gulp.

I remember watching myself on the nightly news and all I saw were bright red blemishes. I wasn’t concerned about how I sounded or if they took the best clips from my interview; I was laser focused on the fact that I looked like a silly, pimply teenager. And for anyone else who has been a type A young adult, I just wanted to be taken seriously in my nascent career.

A few years later I slowly fell in love with Bikram yoga. Many people think that hot yoga will make your acne worse, but I found the opposite to be true. Here are a few simple steps I found to ensure my hot yoga practice helped, rather than hindered my acne treatment.

Practice, practice, practice

A consistent yoga practice led me to lead a cleaner lifestyle, plain and simple. The more you practice, the healthier you’ll be, inside and out. Sweating is very good for your whole body and the more you sweat and properly hydrate, the better you can flush out your system. You can read more about how sweating has shown (in some cases) to reduce the amount of toxic chemicals one has in their body HERE.

Some will say that when you’re first starting your hot yoga practice that your skin is “detoxing”. While there is some scientific evidence to support that claim when it comes to sweating out certain chemicals, I cannot speak to if the same holds true for one’s acne. I know that over time, and with a consistent practice, my skin started to clear up naturally. It was also in the locker room of my yoga studio that I met my friend and homeopath Michele Brookhaus, who set me on the right path.

Clean mats and towels

You may be surprised to hear that spraying down your yoga mat after class (or using a wipe) is not sufficient to keep a clean surface. Most yoga mats can be placed in the washing machine on a gentle cycle (with one or two towels) for a deep clean. Thick rubber mats can even be placed in the dryer to ensure all bacteria is killed. I spray my mat after every class and place it in the washing machine every two weeks and let it air dry.

If you have a particularly rough washing machine, you can simply fill the bathtub with a few inches of water and environmentally friendly laundry detergent and give the mat a good scrub. Vinegar and water also makes a great cleaning solution.

Exfoliation

I’m a big fan of exfoliating my face and body. You can read more about safer exfoliators (and what to avoid) HERE. I personally love a good body scrub and exfoliating gloves.

Safer beauty routine

Finding personal care products that work and are also safe for your health is not easy in today’s marketplace. There are a lot of brands making bold claims about safety, product performance and environmental stewardship. As someone who has worked in the field of eliminating toxic chemicals from everyday products for years, I hope you trust me to do the homework for you! My personal skin care recommendations are listed below.

Safer skin care products for acne prone skin:

• Charcoal Cleansing Bar – Morning
• Balancing Face Oil – Morning
• (Then I apply makeup, including Dew Skin Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20 #3, Concealer Pen in Light & Tint Skin Foundation in Sand/Honey)
• Nourishing Rose Water Mist – Afternoon (toner + midday pick-me-up)
• Nourishing Cream Cleanser – Evening (makeup removal + toning properties)
• Purifying Charcoal Mask – Once a week or as a spot treatment
• Cleansing Balm – Spot treatment (+ face wash and night cream)

Face oils

You will notice that I recommended two oil-based products: Balancing Face Oil and the Cleansing Balm. When you have acne you are taught to avoid oily products, but as I learned the hard way, this could not be further from the truth! Oily skin is often a symptom of overly dry skin, and using face oils can actually help reduce oiliness over time. Wow!

Using a daily face oil has been one of the singular best things for my skin. If coupled with the Charcoal Cleansing Bar listed above, which is naturally drying, your skin will balance out over time and learn to produce the right amount of oil. The Cleansing Balm is an oil-based cleanser that can also be used as a leave-on skin cream for people with very dry skin.

Healthy food

Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you to stop eating chocolate. For me, someone who loves to indulge in cheese, chocolate and a drink with friends, I enjoy all things in moderation. The more you practice yoga, the more you’re naturally crave healthier foods. Focus on increasing your water intake, a consistent yoga practice and the healthy food will naturally follow.

Water

Drinking ample water is good for your body on multiple levels and an essential part to a being a hot yogi. Get after that filtered water (and avoid plastic water bottles whenever possible) and guzzle. But never during class, right? (wink)

Time

Give yourself time. When you start on a healthier path your body and mind will change over the weeks, months and years. Let this process take place and be patient with yourself because slow change is sustainable change. When you look in the mirror and see those red spots glaring back at you, just remember that you are more than a pimple.

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