*Contributed Post
We all want to look our best, and we’re often willing to go to some pretty extreme lengths in order to achieve that goal. Some people will turn to various drugs, injections and suspicious pills in order to lose weight, get a tan, or resolve a skin condition. Others will turn to some bizarre health trends straight out of Hollywood.
But while some of the more “off-the-wall” beauty trends may have a reasonable effect, and while cosmetic surgery can be a great option for people who have had disfiguring injuries, in particular, there are all kinds of softer, more straightforward lifestyle tweaks you can make in order to improve your looks without any major work or effort being involved.
Here are some simple lifestyle hacks that can improve your looks:
Fast for one day a week
Fasting has become a major trend in the health and fitness community in recent times, with some people arguing that you should do a certain degree of fasting every day, and others arguing for longer, but less frequent fasts.
In any case, there is a wealth of scientific evidence suggesting that periodic fasting can promote weight loss, improve blood sugar control, reduce chronic inflammation in the body, and just be healthy, in general, for a wide range of different reasons.
Brad Pilon, author of the book “Eat, Stop, Eat” suggests doing one 24-hour fast per week, meaning that you could eat your last meal at 5:00 pm on a Monday, and then not eat again until 5:00 pm on a Tuesday.
Following a routine like this, he argues, can help to reduce your weight, improve your hormone balance, and make you healthier. All of that is likely to help you look your best.
Take cooler showers
Hot baths and showers can be extremely relaxing, but they’re also not that great for your hair and skin, as the heat dehydrates you and purges many of the natural oils which help to moisturise your hair and skin and keep them healthy and supple.
Ice cold showers and baths aren’t the ideal solution for most people in most cases, as these can be hard on the body and may result in illness, elevated stress hormone levels, and general low mood. Turning the temperature down a bit, though, so that most of your baths aren’t scolding hot, may help to improve your looks by improving the health of your skin and hair.
Quit the coffee
Marina Kushner, author of the book, “The Truth About Caffeine,” cites research about the various ways in which caffeine — especially taken in excess — may be harmful to the body.
Among other things, caffeine is known to disrupt sleep (sometimes even if you’ve only had one cup of coffee in the morning) which has a devastating effect on your health, and your looks.
The author also, however, cites various anecdotal examples of women who have had skin issues clear up as a result of quitting caffeine and coffee — sometimes including cysts. If you want to look your best, maybe you should try to cut out the coffee and caffeine for a while.