Long-lasting tan. How to sunbathe to tan and maintain stunning effects?

So many women would love to have it yet only a few know how to get it. Long-lasting tan is the effect of two factors – wise methods of tanning and further skin care. How to maintain beautiful tan? Let’s check it out! 

Without a doubt, sunkissed skin looks stunning. That is why women’s plans for summer vacation often include long hours spent on sunbathing. It might seem that there is nothing difficult about it, all you need to do is to go out and get some sun. Unfortunately, a shortcut, in this case, is not the best nor the healthiest option for your skin. It is worth remembering the principles of sunbathing, how to do it, to make it long-lasting and look beautiful without irritations.

Skin care is the key 

Healthy skin is skin that tans easier and quicker. Therefore, it is extremely necessary to take care of it not just after sunbathing but before and during tanning as well. Summertime is the period of more intense care that we need to prep ourselves for. Purchasing a suntan cream is not enough, it is crucial that you also take care of proper body hydration, providing essential nutrients and proper sunscreen. Only by delivering all the good stuff to your skin prior to holidays, you can be sure that your natural tan will last long afterwards.

What’s more, you should not forget that tan is, in fact, a natural protective system of our body. It allows melanin to ‘catch’ harmful UV radiation. Thus, you must remember the limits and not overdo with sunbaths. It might lead to deliberate harm to your body.

Principles of proper sunbathing 

1. It is not allowed to sunbathe between 10-16, because the sun is the strongest.
2. Sunscreens do not weaken the tan – you need to use them!
3. Being in the shade doesn’t mean you don’t need skin protection, because we sunbathe not only in the sun.
4. A single application of the SPF cream is not enough (it is washed with water and sand).
5. The amount of water you drink daily has also a significant effect on the health and appearance of the skin.

How to prep the skin before sunbathing?

1. Moisturising – the proper level of skin hydration is the simplest way to tan permanently. If the skin is properly moisturized, it is less irritated, it peels more slowly, and all regenerative processes in cells take place properly. A good preparation for sunbathing includes simply drinking a lot of water, applying moisturizing cosmetics and making sure that our skin does not dry out. A seemingly simple task, and at the same time extremely important.

2. Exfoliation – to know how important it is to exfoliate the skin before the summer season, you need to look at the whole tanning process from a wider perspective. In contact with the sun, the upper layer of our epidermis produces more melanin than usual. It is a dye with a protective function that absorbs harmful UV radiation while changing the colour of the top layer of the skin. If we tan ourselves, and only then we reach for an exfoliating exfoliation, it may turn out that we exfoliate not only the dead epidermis but also a tan. That is why it is so important to apply a scrub before the tanning session: either mechanical or chemical.

3. Protection – skin protection is also crucial. Skin that’s too often in contact with the sun can be irritated and dried. Tanning without a sunscreen is a very bad idea because your tan will disappear as soon as it appeared. It is worth covering your skin with a good sunscreen before sunbathing to avoid irritation and further skin flakiness. The UV filter does not block the access to the sun rays at all, so despite its use, the tan will appear. It will only be more natural, gradual and even.

How to prolong the tan?

1. Vitamin A and beta-carotene – the tan will last for a long time if we take care of our body from within. The diet rich in both vitamin A and beta-carotene has a very positive effect on skin colour. They can be found in oranges, apricots and red fruit, as well as many vegetables such as carrots. If we want to maintain the tan for longer, we should eat carrots regularly.

2. Cool baths – a summer shower is a salvation not only because it refreshes and brings relief on hot days. Apparently, a cool bath also affects the durability of the tan. A hot bath accelerates the loss of water from the body and drying of the skin. As a result, dry skin peels faster and loses the tan. That’s why a cool shower is a great way to keep your tan for longer.

3. Nicotine detox – if you smoke cigarettes regularly, you can forget about a long-lasting and beautiful tan. Smoking affects the condition of the skin very badly and makes the tan dull and grey very quickly. In general, addictions are not conducive to maintaining a beautiful appearance.

4. After sun cosmetics – the first thing we reach for when we want to take care of our tan, are cosmetics designed for this purpose. This is not a bad step, although it is worth remembering that there is no need to overpay for special products. first of all, it is important, to moisturise and nourish the skin thoroughly so that it does not lose valuable ingredients and water. We can reach for vegetable oils that will not only support tanning and protect against moisture loss, but also provide natural UV filters. If, on the other hand, we want to strengthen the tan, gently and gradual bronzing lotions will be useful.