Your Guide to Skin Cycling
Skin cycling is a structured four-day skincare routine that alternates active ingredient nights with recovery nights to minimise irritation and enhance skin benefits. The routine involves allocating specific nights for different products: exfoliants, retinols, and hydrating ingredients, allowing the skin to recover from stronger active ingredients while still reaping the benefits. The viral skin cycling trend is known to improve skin texture, tone and strengthen the skin’s protective moisture barrier, but it’s important for all skin types to tailor their routine to suit their skin needs. Read on to learn more about this popular routine.
WHAT IS SKIN CYCLING?
Skin cycling is a four-day, rotational skincare routine first popularised by dermatologist Whitney Bowe at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The regimen works by alternating between different active ingredients to improve efficacy while minimising irritation. Skin cycling is a strategic approach to skincare; allocating a day for exfoliation, a day for retinol, and (usually) two days for restoring and hydrating. This allows your skin to benefit from potent active ingredients without overwhelming it. The major focus on giving your skin time to rest makes it especially helpful for particularly sensitive or reactive skin.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF SKIN CYCLING?
The skin cycling routine offers numerous benefits; rotating between active ingredients supports the skin restorative function while improving the complexion, and simplifying the routine makes it more manageable for sensitive skin. Here’s a list of the key benefits of a skin cycling routine.
1. Improved skin texture and tone
Alternating between a retinol and an exfoliant promotes the skin cell renewal cycle, revealing smoother, fresher skin with an even tone. Retinol speeds up the skin cell renewal cycle for more supple skin, while exfoliation clears dead skin cells to decongest the skin.
2. Reduced irritation
With the emphasis on recovery, skin cycling is a great option for sensitive skin types that are averse to using potentially irritating ingredients like retinol. Most people aren’t able to tolerate a retinoid every night; skin cycling reduces the skin drying effects of these ingredients.
3. Brighter complexion
Regular exfoliation helps to remove dead skin cells and promote smoother skin texture. Retinoids, including retinol, help in minimising the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and other ageing skin concerns. The skin cycling routine not only improves skin texture but also evens out skin tone, leading to a more radiant, youthful-looking complexion.
4. Simplified routine
Skin cycling keeps your routine simple and easy-to-follow. Instead of layering on multiple products at once, this rotational skin cycling method keeps product-layering to a minimum, focusing on one skin focus per day.
5. Customisable
Skin cycling is a very versatile skincare approach. It’s easy to adjust and customise to suit individual skin concerns and your skin’s tolerance. Depending on your skin type, you can add extra recovery nights, add extra exfoliating or retinol nights, or even choose more potent ingredients.
YOUR FOUR-NIGHT SKIN CYCLE ROUTINE
The four-night cycle starts with an exfoliation night, then a retinol night and then, lastly two hydration and recovery nights. Here's what a classic skin cycling routine looks like. four-day skin cycling routine looks like.
Night 1: Exfoliation night
On the first night of your skin cycling routine, focus on exfoliation. Exfoliating’s function is to remove dead skin cells and unclog pores for a more even, smoother complexion. Chemical exfoliants, like salicylic acid, break down the bonds between dead skin cells to gently exfoliate. Salicylic acid can be found in both cleansers, serums and moisturisers, depending on your skin needs. We recommend swapping your cleanser for a stronger exfoliating cleanser, like the Effaclar Micro-Peeling Purifying Gel Cleanser, and incorporating an exfoliating serum, like the Effaclar Anti-Acne Salicylic Acid Serum, depending on your skin’s tolerance.
Effaclar Anti-Acne Salicylic Acid Serum
Anti-Wrinkle & Anti-Acne Daily Face Serum
Night 2: Retinol night
The second night is dedicated to retinol, which stimulate collagen production and enhance skin texture. Choose a gentle retinol serum, like the Retinol B3 Anti-Ageing Serum, to support the skin cell renewal cycle without being too harsh on the skin. Before applying, cleanse the skin and pat dry. Follow with a rich moisturiser to restore hydration.
Nights 3 and 4: Recovery nights
Nights three and four are your recovery nights: with a focus on restoring hydration and letting the skin rest. Retinols and exfoliants can affect the skin moisture barrier, so the final two nights are intended to deeply nourish the skin. A rich, non-comedogenic moisturiser containing hyaluronic acid and ceramides keeps your skin hydrated while strengthening the skin moisture barrier. You might want to also add the Hyalu B5 Hyaluronic Acid Serum for optimal hydration. Particularly sensitive skin might also want to add an extra recovery night to their routine.
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT SKIN CYCLING
While skin cycling offers numerous benefits, it’s not without potential drawbacks. While the routine is intended to reduce irritation, some skin types might still find their skin easily irritated by strong active ingredients. Skin cycling might also not be suitable for skin types that need an exfoliant daily to minimise excess oil.
HOW TO CUSTOMISE YOUR SKIN CYCLING ROUTINE
Skin cycling is a great tool for helping you understand your skin needs and reactions, and it’s easy to customise and adjust to your skin type. A few ways you can modify your routine to suit your needs are:
- If your skin needs a deeper exfoliation, you might opt for a physical exfoliant that can remove excess oil.
- If your skin is more sensitive, gentler exfoliating acids, like glycolic acid, lactic acid, or a gentle LHA might suit you better.
- Dry skin can also add an emollient-rich cream with squalane or glycerin during nights three and four.
- Sensitive skin types prone to irritation can add more recovery nights to their cycle, giving more focus on nourishing and hydrating the skin.
- Blemish-prone skin might drop one recovery night and add another exfoliation day or retinol day to better manage clogged pores.
CONSISTENCY IS KEY
The most important part of the skin cycle routine is consistency. The typical skin cycling routine takes around six weeks, giving the skin time to fully adapt. With consistent use, you may even find visible improvements after just one cycle.
PATCH TESTING
If you're introducing new products to your routine, particularly retinol and stronger chemical exfoliants, always start with a patch test. Apply your product to a small area of the skin, leave on for 24 hours and monitor for reactions before adding it to your routine.
LISTEN TO YOUR SKIN
Pay attention to how your skin responds to the skin cycling regimen and adjust accordingly. If excessive dryness, irritation, or redness occurs, reduce the frequency of active ingredient application or extend the recovery period.
CONSULT A DERMATOLOGIST
Lastly, for personalised advice and guidance on incorporating skin cycling into your routine, consult with a board certified dermatologist. They can help determine the best products and frequency based on your specific skin type and concerns.
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