Steal These Totally *Extra* Bath & Shower Tips For Post-Workout or a De-stress Sesh

When you’re powerlifting hundreds of pounds almost every day, you need a serious gym recovery routine to help your body recover. But even if you're not an athlete-in-training, anyone can use an occasional de-stress or rejuvenation sesh. Here, steal contributing editor Sheryll’s self-care tips for soothing her aching muscles after pumping iron — because everyone can use a relaxing bubble bath, athlete or not.

If you follow me on Instagram (@sheryllrenata), you may have noticed that I’ve started lifting … like a lot. I’ve done two powerlifting meets, I have a coach now, I’m on a diet plan to maximize my performance + help me move down to a lower weight class. So yeah it’s the real deal now. I guess at this point I could call myself an athlete. I never thought I would be an athlete, as I am definitely one of the most uncoordinated people I know, but hey, life is definitely not a straight path. Lifting has changed my life, my body, my mind, and I wouldn’t give it up for the world.

 

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On Halloween, we hit PRs! Previous max at 225 was 1x3, today I hit 2x5! Me thinks my max isn’t 242 anymore AYEEEEE 💪🏾#girlswhopowerlift #sistersofpowerlifting #skwats #baby72kger #strongwomen #72kg

A post shared by Sheryll Donerson (@sheryllrenata) on Oct 31, 2018 at 11:50am PDT

But lifting six days a week has required me to approach my idea of self-care a little differently. Beauty isn’t just about the cool sheet masks and the chemical exfoliants (that lord knows I love), but it’s also about your mental and physical well-being. Lifting takes care of both the mental and physical for me, but I’ve also adopted some other beauty routines to make sure I can train and perform at my best.

So as a result, I’ve updated my bath and shower gym recovery routine to allow me to relax, soothe my muscles, and gain a bit of mental clarity.

The treatment shower

My face is oily, but my body is ridiculously dry and eczema-prone. I shower twice a day and noticed that my skin was getting quite dry and super itchy, so I switched over to the Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Body Wash. It’s extremely hydrating and leaves my skin feeling soft without that film that a lot of ultra-hydrating washes leave. Don’t you hate that? And if it’s been a particularly long day and I want to unwind a bit, I use an aromatherapy shower melt (usually lavender scented), and the Lush Ro’s Argan Body Conditioner for an extra touch of luxury.

 

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A post shared by Sheryll Donerson (@sheryllrenata) on Oct 30, 2017 at 2:37pm PDT

If it’s a day that I need to wash my hair, I saturate it in coconut oil for about an hour before I wash it, which helps my very dry hair retain some moisture (I learned this tip from my Vietnamese facialist!).

After I get out of the shower, I use the Cerave Itch Relief Lotion and the CeraVe SA Cream for Rough & Bumpy Skin. Then I spray on my favorite perfume — currently a rotation of SJP Beauty Stash, Twilly d'Hermès, and Couture Couture by Juicy Couture (don’t judge … Juicy makes amazing fragrances!)

Let’s take a quick break for me to rave about that Cerave SA Cream. It’s a super hydrating body cream formulated with both AHAs and BHAs to help smooth, soothe, and soften dry and bumpy skin. Put some on your feet and wear your coziest socks to bed and you’ll wake up with the SOFTEST feet ever. It’s a game-changer, and you should totally get it.

The indulgent bath

OK, now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s talk baths. I’ve always enjoyed taking baths, but it was definitely more of a “hmm, I’m in the mood for luxury so let’s do this” type thing. Now baths are a part of my weekly beauty routine to help my sore muscles recover and to help me sleep better. I sometimes have trouble falling asleep (hi, anxiety!), so taking a bath at night for about 20 to 30 minutes really puts me to bed.

My recipe for an awesome, muscle-relaxing, grand ol’ bath time is to run the bath as hot as you can stand it and dump in two cups of Epsom salt into the water. I am obsessed with the Dr. Teal’s Epsom Salt Soothe and Sleep with Lavender. The smell is absolutely divine and really helps to calm and relax you. Epsom salt is really great for helping sore, achy muscles, so I use it during every bath I take. If I’m feeling especially fancy, I’ll also add in the matching Dr. Teal’s Soothe and Sleep Epsom Salt Foaming Bath. Then I turn off the lights, light a few candles, put on my bluetooth headphones, and listen to some relaxing music or a funny podcast like The Read.

I also try to do the first half of my nighttime routine and wear my sheet mask while I’m relaxing in the bath so I get two things done in one. I’m all about efficiency, yo!

Do you have any special self-care beauty routines or a gym recovery routine? Share your tips with me in the comments!