Beauty Bath: Pamper Yourself from Head to Toe

Have you ever thought that baths serve more purpose other than just to clean yourself?

Well, aside from preventing you from having a massively unpleasant body odour, taking a good bath is a great way to restore moisture to your skin and exfoliate the dead skin cells which can potentially clog pores, according to Jeanne Rose, a San Francisco-based herbalist, aromatherapist and author of The Herbal Body Book.

Also, a bath can help to reduce the appearance of your wrinkles if you throw some rose petals into your bath water. A bath is fun because you may use whatever ingredients you like for your bath. If you prefer everything homemade, there are plenty of recipes to make your own bath blends. If you find that making it yourself is too much of an effort, you could also just buy them off at any major pharmacy or supermarket.

Soaking in the bath gives you a wonderful feel-good feeling in the morning to kick-start your long day. It is also a great pick-me-up during the day or night if you have been feeling a little down in the dumps. To simply sum it all up, having a good bath will provide you with softer and smoother skin, soothes your sore muscles, helps you sleep better, improves your well-being both physically and psychologically and stabilises your mental state. It is also a great way for you to pamper yourself when you’re stressed out. Taking a bath is a simple and inexpensive way to unwind as it doesn’t take as much effort and is perfect especially when you are in a hurry.

For well-being and pampering, a daily 30-minute session of soaking in the bath tub would suffice. If you have more time on hand and would love more time in the bath, you could even spend two or three times in the bath each day but never spend more than 30 minutes each time. Make sure that the water is not too hot as it could dry your skin and also if you are female and pregnant, do not take hot baths as it could be harmful to both the mother and baby. The blood pressure could drop, the mother could suffer from dizziness and there could be birth defects in the baby.

To enjoy your bath to the fullest, it is highly recommended that you reorganize the bathroom, clean the bath tub (scrub it until it is totally spotless) and gather a few essential things to your liking such as aromatherapy incense and candles, Moroccan or Arabic-style decoration items (to make you feel as if you are in paradise or a secret oasis), hair mask/oil, face mask, a pumice stone, cucumber eye pads, a body loofah to scrub your skin and soothing music. Trust the experts on this when they say that you’ll feel a thousand times much better while taking a bath with the suggested items. Once you are ready and done with all the necessary things, follow these simple tips on how to fully experience your bath.

1. Run a warm bath

Warm water gives you tremendous tranquillity when you soak in it. Make sure it’s not too cold nor not too hot but just right. Some say that warm water gives the same calming effect that you’d usually get when someone you love hugs you tenderly. The heat of a warm bath also increases circulation by boosting the blood flow to tight muscles, hence loosening them.

2. Dim the lights

Dim the lights in your bathroom or just light up the candles. The darkness makes you feel calmer but take care not to fall asleep as it is dangerous to fall asleep in a bath tub.

3. Add bath blends

Add some homemade or store-bought bath blends while running a warm bath. Bath blends could range from anything from rose petals, salt to lavender oil.

4. Make a nice cup of tea

Tea or any of your favourite drinks should accompany you to the bath tub for you to enjoy. For the best feel-good sensation, chamomile tea or green tea is recommended. Both teas are tasty and have a relaxing effect. If you opt for green tea, add lemon and honey to it for added benefits. Your body will absorb the calcium and energy in the form of sugar and carbohydrates, making you a lot healthier and more energetic after your bath.

5. Turn the music on

As recommended earlier, put on soothing music. You could go for Instrumental pieces, classical ones or new age music, whichever you fancy as long as they eases your worries and leaves your mind less distracted.

6. Dab on some skin lotion

Dab on some skin lotion, moisturiser or even shower gels that have lovely fragrances. The pleasant smell of the lotions or gels will lift your spirits up in an instant. The beloved late Princess Diana used to apply almond oil on her skin.

7. Scrub yourself

To give your skin the TLC (tender loving care) it deserves and to boost its suppleness, try scrubbing your skin with a good quality body loofah. Dead cells will be removed, leaving your skin feeling smooth and more radiant.

8. Do something fun

While you’re soaked in the bath tub, do something fun to avoid from being bored or staring into space. Do something that you enjoy but haven’t had much chance to do, such as reading a book or magazine or painting your nails and toenails. If you prefer not to do anything instead, you could also use your cucumber eye pads and just lie back and rest your weary limbs and eyes as you lie in the tub.

9. A little massage will help

You could massage your scalp and neck by touching the acupressure points to calm down. It would be great if you had someone to give you a massage but if there isn’t, apply slight pressure on where it aches the most to reenergise your tired body.

10. Bath at the right time

To have the best bathing experience, do it at a time when no one will barge in and disturb you such as a clingy spouse or children running around. Take a bath religiously if you can, and taking it in the morning or at night before you go to bed will make you feel a lot better.

Now that you know what to do before and during the moment you take a bath, you might be wondering what the added benefits are that come with taking such bath. As mentioned briefly earlier, bathing could heal and will benefit you physically and mentally in the long run too. Here are some of the top benefits that you could get out of taking a good warm bath at the comfort of your own home:

Money saved

Sure, you may not be pampered like a royalty like when you go to a spa but at least you don’t have to fork out a ridiculous amount of money just to feel better about yourself. Not only that, it’s a lot more comfortable taking a good long bath at your own home as you can do so pretty much any way and anytime you like.

Muscle aches gone

No matter how old you are, muscle aches are bound to occur every now and then. According to Diane Trieste, corporate spa treatment director for Canyon Ranch health resorts in Tucson, Arizona, the heat of a warm bath increases circulation, loosening tight muscles by boosting blood flow to those muscles. To increase circulation and further stimulate blood flow, it is highly recommended that you use essential oils like peppermint (Mentha piperita), which contain menthol, an alcohol that penetrates your skin and thus works even faster in delivering blood to the organs.

Sleep like a baby

After soaking in a warm bath, it is guaranteed that you will feel drowsy. This is due to the fact that when you emerge from the tub, your core body temperature, which had been elevated in the warm water, suddenly drops, causing your heart rate and breathing to slow. Reducing your heart rate and slowing your breathing induces fatigue. Also, Trieste adds that to increase the calming effect, use essential oils and herbs with sedative properties. Furthermore, take your bath an hour before bedtime and soak for 30 minutes for even better results.

Silky smooth skin

Jeanne Rose, the San Francisco-based herbalist, aromatherapist and author of The Herbal Body Book, says that the bathtub is the perfect place to restore moisture to your skin and exfoliate the dead skin cells that can clog pores. Among the skin-nourishing bath ingredients that are perfect for the benefit of your skin include oatmeal, which softens and exfoliates skin; milk and oil, which contain fat and lock in moisture; and salt which sloughs off dead skin. Meanwhile, the rose petals smooth skin and can reduce the appearance of wrinkles.