Wake up with me~

#2

Ahhh another day of cold in Japan… And the sad news is we still have to wake up and kiss our cozy bed goodbye. Hah..

But for me, I always like the feeling of starting a new day (bad liar). Its just funny how I enjoy waking up early to take care of my beauty more than for school (ehem, lets just assume that I have a beauty to take care of…)

Whoever living with me (probably my sharemates) knows too well that I wake up early, whether I have class or not. The reason is that I actually have a specific time to hydrate my body, both from outside and from inside. I have an oily, blemish-prone and combination (meaning pores and oil in T-zone) skin type, which is easily leading to breakouts (as I am having now). Actually I do understand that my skin is oily because it lacks hydration, therefore it overproduces oil to keep my skin hydrated (sounds funny but it happens to me…). Whatever I might have in a day, lets say I need to go to work at 9am, then I’ll wake up at 8am just to FIRST have a glass of warm water (400-500ml), its simply because water helps with blood circulation, which is nice for my statue-like body after a long sleep.

Plus, water - best friend of human digestion system, creator of saliva (admit it, we breathe like fire dragon in the morning), transporter of nutrients, and maintainer of body temperature. Then 5 minutes later I will go to the toilet. The reason why I dont go for toilet right away is because I feel really dizzy if I suddenly lose a certain amount of water right after I wake up, so Id rather treat myself with some water so that my brain can tell my kidney how much water to excrete as urine or hold onto for reserves, and my bladder wont have hard time suffering sudden emptiness (haha everyone needs a friend..)

And for the next 30-45 minutes, I simply dont eat or drink anything else (except water if i need to). Why? This is the perfect time for my body to detox. My body cannot take any kind of food or drink right after I just wake up, it gives me this lingering heavy feeling in the stomach for the whole day long if I do so. Also, living in Japan and hanging around with many Japanese friends have taught me to learn from the best when it comes to natural body detoxification. Japanese people are damn serious about their health, and it is reflected through their daily routine and meal. I noticed that most of my friends dont eat right after they wake up, they'd finish their skincare routine or do something else like reading news rather than thinking about food.

So yes, you have to wake up early, and there is no food waiting for you, at least for the next 45 minutes. SAD…

The next big thing I do in this hell of time without food is facial spray. Spray spray spray!!!

I spray like 5-8 times a day, no kidding. Oily skin? Spray. Dry skin? More spray. Sensitive skin? More more spray. Normal skin? Just spray!! No kidding, I dont wash my face right away in the morning. Imagine after a long sleep and your skin is dehydrated and half-dead, especially in this cold weather in Japan, my tropical skin will feel like a drought if I wash all the natural oil off with any chemical face wash… Correct me if I am wrong, but in the morning, the oil on your face is the normal natural oil that your skin has, and if you already clean your face well the night before, there is no need to clean it again. But at the same time, I do believe that there would be no problem washing your face with a face wash, just dont overstrip your face with some harsh, drying cleansers and take away your natural oil needed for your skin. For me, I do wash and dont wash sometimes, it really depends on how my skin texture is like in the morning tho. If I dont wash my face, I’ll go for a splash of water, basically just rinse it well and let it dry naturally.

BUT there is a rule to this. If I am about to put on moisturizer, I will definitely wash my face gently with cleansers. I have a lot of facial cleansers, and each has its own function. For morning cleanser, I choose the one with oil controlling effect, and balancing my skin pH. I dont go for harsh makeup face wash or scrub face wash in the morning, especially in this weather. And when I wash my face, WARM water. Just simply bear in your mind that your skin is really soft and vulnerable in the morning, treat it with all the care you have.

There is one thing I do keep in mind too: Brush your teeth before washing your face. Because 3 seconds after you wash your face, no matter what the weather is like or what time it is, your skin gets dehydrated, and you need to do skin care right away, so no time for teeth brushing...

After washing your face, apply 3-second rule, spray spray spray before you can think of anything. As I said, cleansing will take away the skin’s good bacteria and natural oil (of course it does take away bad bacteria and dead skins), so the next thing you could imagine is another threat of drought if you dont provide your skin with a quick treatment from facial mist. Gently touch your skin and let the face absorb those wonderful mist and apply lotion/serum/etc (remember it takes time to absorb each and every skin treatment, so the thicker the layer, the longer the wait). Or just go with moisturizer if you are lazy like me. As for moisturizer, it helps with locking dampness in your skin, so I do need to have a damp and clean skin for it, thats why I need to wash my face and provide it with mist right away.

If I want to go out, I will apply a layer of sun cream :p Or else I will come back to sleep haha... or prepare my meal and do my homework (another lie spotted), etc.

So I just woke up, have my 400ml glass of water, and using my 45 minutes break before my lovely meal to write this down for you. This is just my simple routine, or Id better say my busy student routine. It is not about my facial skin-care but all about my health and time management (haha which are both missing in my university life).

Here is my natural photo in the morning, havent brushed my teeth and washed my face hehe.

I have been practicing this for 2 months so far, and I can see changes in my skin texture. I am not talking about my face, I mean my body skin. Before I have quite a dull skin on my knees and elbows, and I got some pimples on my body too *cry*. After practicing this, winter is not a problem for me anymore (guess I am the Else now huh) . I used to have really dry skin and it even bled for 2 years during winter in Japan. But now, I have no problem with skin dehydration, I dont need to re-apply body cream during the day, and just go for one layer all day long! I feel really relaxed in the morning, no longer have the heavy feeling in my stomach like before.

Note: In this post I did not mention any kinds of products I am using, because I think everyone has their own favorite products and different skin type, you can just go with your product and try out my routine, since it does not require any specific treatment or product adjustment.

I will share with you more about my skincare routine and the products I use correspondingly! I will also suggest some other products that might fit your skin type, because I might have a different skin type from yours! Leave me a comment or message if you want to know more about any specific product!

Thank you for subscribing! I am really happy that you guys are enjoying this little diary! Lets stay healthy and beautiful! Love.

#daily #routine #health #skincare #beauty #tips #morningroutine #lifestyle