Slow Beauty: Dry Body Brushing & Bath Salts

I want to talk about the concept of slow beauty.

With work, school, children, running around all day and night, it’s no secret that the average person spends little time on their beauty regime.

Our lives today are fast-paced and we’re constantly dealing with environmental stresses and strains. Just like our eating habits gave way to “fast-foods”, so has our beauty habits. We’ve become lazy when it comes to the ritual of beauty and nourishing ourselves, which goes against the fundamentals of healthy living.

This is where the concept of slow beauty comes in. We require (and deserve) more than just a topical treatment if we’re going to be serious about taking care of ourselves. And if we’re serious about taking pleasure in taking care of ourselves.

When was the last time you set aside 20 minutes for yourself? Or the last time you ran a nice bath for yourself?

In this post, I want to talk about two slow beauty rituals which I believe are very beneficial: dry body brushing and bathing.

Dry body brush

The skin is our largest organ, and just like our kidneys, liver and colon, it is an organ of elimination. Dry body brushing it every day or evening has a multitude of benefits:

• It helps shed dead skin cells and encourages cell renewal.
• It improves vascular blood circulation and lymphatic drainage.
• It energizes and stimulates the body, helping to invigorate it.
• It leaves skin clear of excess debris so it’s free to absorb oxygen and other nutrients into the body.

Look for a brush with bristles made from natural materials. They should feel stiff but not harsh. The body brush shown was brought at The Body Shop, and you can find similar ones in most stores.

Brush your entire body, starting from your feet, always stroking toward your heart. I like to dry body brush before showering, and then apply organic coconut oil to my body after I come out of the shower. My skin feels incredibly smooth and supple afterwards.

Another ritual of slow beauty is bathing.

I recommend salt baths, which are great for detoxification. I especially rate Epsom salts, which are a cheap and effective way to detoxify.

Epsom salts

Epsom salts are rich in magnesium and sulfate and soaking in these salts is a great way to absorb these minerals through the skin, while flushing toxins and heavy metals from the cells.

The salts are also great way for easing muscle pain and reducing inflammation.

Add in 1 cup of Epsom salts to your bath and soak for 20 minutes. An important step in this ritual happens post-soak when instead of getting dressed right away, you should wrap yourself in a towel and relax while the minerals continue to detoxify though your skin and body for another 15-20 minutes. And drink plenty of water during and post-soak, since this helps with the detoxification process.

You can buy Epsom salts from any health food store or order them from Amazon.

I also recently bought a Cleansing Blend dead sea salt mix from The Detox Market and have been loving them.

These are just two ways you can practice slow beauty and put aside some well-deserved time for yourself, your health, and your well-being. Enjoy.

With love

Sahar