Skin Gym

Alternating between gym workouts to improve energy levels and tone? Your skincare routine deserves the same consideration for a silky, youthful afterglow

- FIONA EMBLETON

As religious gym goers will already be aware, there's a startlingly strong connection between working out and your skin. As well as an insurance policy for your health, exercise increases blood flow-which, in turn, sends fresh oxygen and nutrients to your skin cells-not to mention accelerating the removal of waste products and free radicals. Its boost of serotonin, sometimes known as the happy chemical, also lowers levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which is responsible for breakouts and red, irritated patches that bloom across the skin.

But today it's about taking a more literal approach to fitness for your face: serums laced with a key ingredient that is like an energy source for your skin cells and routines that embrace hits of high-intensity actives but, crucially, also incorporate time for recovery. Welcome to the new world of cardio-inspired beauty.

ENERGY UPGRADE

In the same way that we need energy to work out at the gym, our skin needs energy to stay moisture-saturated, turn over fresh skin cells, and produce skin-plumping collagen and elastin. Specifically, it needs ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate), an organic compound that the body naturally produces. "When applied topically to the skin, this powerhouse ingredient encourages more oxygen for optimised cell function, which helps boost collagen and strengthen the skin," says plastic surgeon and founder of 111Skin, Dr Yannis Alexandrides.

"Much like our body relies on calories for energy," he continues, "ATP mimics this effect when used topically in skincare, providing energy to fuel living cells." Hence, just a few drops of his 111Skin Cryo ATP Sports Booster will reignite lacklustre skin.