How Often Should You Groom? Part 1 - Daily Grooming Routines for Men

There are some grooming processes that should be done daily without question like teeth brushing and showering. There are other grooming processes that you might not do every day, but should definitely be done. This is a list of simple grooming processes that the men should be doing daily.

For the Bearded Man

Wash Your Beard

You should wash your body daily and your beard is no exception. At certain lengths, a lot of particles get caught in the beard like food, dust, sweat and other debris creating a filthy beard. A filthy beard is like dead animal fur – it smells, it’s tough, ratty and lifeless. It needs to be cleaned daily.

However, you should not use any old hair shampoo in your beard. These products use harsh soaps like sodium lauryl sulfate. These will strip away all the natural oils in your beard, leaving your skin dry, irritated and increase hair brittleness. Specially designed beard washes do not contain harsh soap like a head shampoo. A beard shampoo and conditioner will wash away the filth while being gentle on the skin at the same time. It will also condition the hair, leaving it silky, smooth and healthy.

Use Beard Oil

Beard oil is vital for a healthy beard. Beard oil is essentially like a moisturizer for beard hair. Beard oil can be used on all beards regardless of length. Daily use on short beards or stubble will reduce irritation, hydrate the skin and soften hair. In a longer beard, the oil will not only soften hair but reduce flakiness, tame unruly hairs, and give it a healthy natural shine.

A beard oil should contain naturally occurring plant based oils like grapeseed, argan, jojoba, avocado and hemp seed oils. These oils are what is known as ‘dry’ oils. Dry oils absorb into the skin very quickly and don’t leave a greasy finish. More importantly, a beard oil should contain coconut oil. Coconut oil contains lauric acid, a medium-chain fatty acid that has a natural affinity for hair. This is pretty much the only oil that gets absorbed deep into the hair shaft and binds to the protein, giving the hair strength and durability. The combination of all these oils will protect the beard throughout the day. Refer to our previous blog ‘What is beard oil and how to use it?’ for more information.

Brush Your Beard

Your beard should be brushed daily for a number of reasons. Brushing will detangle, straighten, and also exfoliates the skin removing dead skin cells, dirt and grime.

Brushing your beard every day will train the hair to grow in the direction you want so in the long term it is much more manageable.

If you have a short beard, you’ll probably want to look for a soft bristle brush to ensure your don't scratch your skin. If you’re a man with a long beard, a firmer bristle brush is more ideal. 

Skin Care

Wash Your Face

A lot of people underestimate the importance of washing their face every day. During the day, your skin and the oils it produces traps bacteria, pollutants and other debris that can harm the skin and slowly be absorbed overnight. These contaminants lead to break outs, enlarged pores, fatigued skin, and discolouration. By washing your face, you are removing these contaminants and giving your skin the best chance of stay healthy and clear. Clearing your skin will also help you absorb protective products such and moisturiser or aftershave because the pores are now unblocked.

Be sure to choose the right face wash for your skin. If you suffer from dry skin, use a gentle cleanser which contains few chemicals that won’t dry out the skin even more.

For oily skin, use a foaming cleanser that deeply cleans the skin and remove excess oils.

Moisturise

Moisturising every day is like drinking water. It will hydrate the skin, replace nutrients lost in the cleaning process and provide a protective layer. This will help reduce water loss. In the long term, daily moisturising will ensure that your skin is performing at its peak, turning over dead skin cells regularly, which has many anti-aging benefits. These include like less wrinkles and a youthful appearance.

You should moisturise even if you have oily skin. After washing your face, a moisturiser will ensure that your skin produces minimal oil because it will recognise that the skin is already hydrated and protected.  This will reduce that greasy looking skin that you dread.

Shaving

Not all men shave daily, so this part is for those who dust off the razor every morning.

Shave Gel

There has been a huge trend in men realising they have sensitive skin. Men have become dissatisfied with traditional shaving soaps and creams because they dry out their skin. Using a shave soap every day, can accelerate the aging process through water and oil loss.

A suitable daily replacement for a shave soap is a soap free shave gel. Shave gels are revolutionary because they do not dry out the skin, instead, they hydrate while also providing a slick shave. Simply apply, shave and wipe off dry with a towel.

Shave gels also go on clear. This means if you have a beard or any kind of facial hair, you can clean up those hair lines with ease. A clear formula allows you to see what you're shaving and get sharp lines every time around the neck and cheeks.

After Shave

The physical shaving process can irritate and inflame the skin. The blades can microscopically cut the skin causing ‘razor burn.’ These little cuts not only burn but can lead to break outs caused by bacteria. An after shave lotion will sooth the skin as many contain glycerine, allantoin and aloe vera which all provide a cooling sensation. It will also help fight bacteria with the presence of witch hazel in the formula.

These effects mean you should use an after shave lotion every day. It will provide smoothness, firmness and keep the skin looking fresh.

By forming these simple habits daily you will be feeling and looking your best without blowing the budget. Stay tuned for part 2.