pull down to refresh

Most of us wash every day, and we have our preferred methods, but how and when you do should really depend on whether you’re revving up or winding down.
For a morning wake-up call, a cold shower is usually best—a splash of chilly water over the body makes levels of cortisol and adrenaline surge briefly, giving as much punch as a caffeine hit. If stepping into an icy-cold shower first thing is just unbearable, try ending a warm shower with a 30-second blast of cold water. This will deliver an invigorating boost and—according to one large study—it will even make it less likely that you’ll take time off sick from work.
If a good night’s sleep is your goal, then a warm shower or bath about 90 minutes before bed is highly effective in helping the body and brain wind down—this lowers blood pressure; stimulates the release of the positive, happiness hormone serotonin; lowers anxiety levels; and can make cortisol levels plunge by a third. A cold shower has the opposite effect so is best avoided late in the evenings.
Of course, you might think that you can cash in on all the benefits with a morning shower and an evening bath. Rinse that thought—dermatologists say that twice-a-day bathing is probably too much. Your skin and hair are coated in a barely visible sheen of an oily substance called sebum. This is your body’s natural waterproof gloss, and it’s constantly replenished via microscopic pores in your skin. Washing twice a day scrubs away the skin’s sebum, and without it your skin will dry out and become sore, chapped, or infected. Bath lovers, beware—long, hot soaks in a tub of bubbles feels luxurious, but it’s best to shower or bathe for only about 5–10 minutes in lukewarm water every two or three days to give time for sebum to replenish itself.
In our overly washed and manicured world, skin and hair can become so depleted of their natural oils that we think we need moisturizing creams and lotions to restore their luster. Much of what you might slather over yourself is, however, nothing more than nice-smelling grease. Moisturizers don’t actually “moisturize”—they simply replace the oily protective coat that you wash down the plughole with your soap or shampoo. Added “skin nourishing” ingredients emblazoned on the packaging are mostly marketing froth that have little added effect. Similarly, hair conditioners are merely a replacement for the natural oils that the body freely makes. If you shower or bathe every two or three days, you likely won’t need skin moisturizers or hair conditioners.
stay clean and fresh
  1. Take a cold shower in the morning to give both body and mind a wake-up boost.
  2. Take a hot shower or bath in the evening to calm your mind so that you prepare for sleep.
  3. BATHE OR SHOWER no more than once a day so that you don’t wash away your skin and hair’s natural oils.
The End! Now go take a shower! By the way, singing in the shower is good for you! Do you sing?
But remember:
There's always several correct answers to every question, but the most correct answer to this is always, right before date night. - @Aardvark
We traditionally are big worshippers so everyone just takes bath daily early in the morning, most of the times before 7 AM. In Summer because it's very humid here, I also take shower in the evening time. You're right about losing natural oils because of more bathing but it's only true for cold regions mostly. Where it's hot and humid people don't generally lose natural skin oils because of water.
reply
I don't give much thought to it. If I have a some place to be I will shower in the morning before I go, otherwise I will just shower when I feel like it or feel due for a shower. I may skip a day but never two.
reply
Must be nice, semi-retired guy.
reply
Yes it is nice to schedule your life based on what you want to do rather than what others expect you to do. I am trying to work more this year though. It's getting pretty tough to stack sats without a significant income. My Trudeau cuck bucks aren't going as far as they used to.
In the bear market I was trying to stack 50M in a year. I will be lucky to hit 5M this year.
reply
Interesting. I prefer a cold shower in the morning, and yeah, I only skip a shower if I’m feeling super lazy.
reply
24 sats \ 1 reply \ @Riberet 24 Jan
Personally I love the cold shower in the morning, it wakes me up suddenly, yes, at this time of year it is a little more difficult to maintain the habit, but after doing it for 2 years my body has adapted.
reply
I also prefer a cold shower in the morning.
reply
There's always several correct answers to wvery question, but the most correct answer to this is always, right before date night.
reply
I had to add this important line of yours, thanks.
reply
In Mary Roach's Packing for Mars, she writes about NASA doing research and performing tests on how long someone can go without a shower. The test subjects described the first couple days without showering to be the most uncomfortable, but after getting past the initial discomfort, they were able to adjust and didn't feel strong inclinations to shower anymore. When our body is replenishing the natural oils on recently cleaned skin, that's when we feel most icky, but once it achieves a balanced state, we feel less gross if that makes sense.
reply
At night. I’m too busy in morning. Get up and GO
But really after a daily workout
reply
10 sats \ 2 replies \ @ama 24 Jan
I take a shower the 1st of every month, whether I need it or not.
reply
😂 By mistake, I read something like 'I take a shower once every month' through a push notification. This is interesting, by the way—do you prefer cold or warm showers?
reply
10 sats \ 0 replies \ @ama 24 Jan
That's exactly what I said, once a month, on the very first day of each and everyone of them. Never miss one, even when I don't need to take it. 😂
Now, a bit more seriously, I like them hot in winter (they're kind of comforting) and mild, almost cold, in summer, usually in the morning. Almost always with a final invigorating cold rinse. Some very cold days in winter it gets a little harder, mainly because I don't heat the bathroom at all.
reply