Real women don’t sweat, they glow! Potayto Potato.  Sweat, glow, call it whatever you like but it’s something that feels great! Ok just a little clarification before I go on: involuntary sweating due to exorbitant temperatures or claustrophobia is kinda nasty especially when a shower isn’t in your near future. Sweating after a workout? Now that’s another story. On so many different levels, sweat is basically awesome.

To me, a drip down the forehead or a drenched t-shirt marks a job well done.  Even though sweat is dependent on various factors like temperature, genetics, fitness levels etc, it still feels like a challenge has been accomplished. Here’s a fun fact for you: the fitter you are, the more you’ll sweat.  Sweat is like an internal air conditioner: as your fitness improves, your body sweats more to keep you cool.  By keeping you cool, the sweat allows you to train harder and longer, enabling more fat to be burnt :shock:. More than just that, while your body is trying to cool down, your heart actually starts to pump faster and work harder to increase circulation and improve your overall heart health. Sa-weet!

My other favourite outcome of sweat is the ‘post-workout glow’. Some people may argue that sweating profusely is a recipe for acne. Fortunately I’ve had the opposite experience (touching wood as I type ;)). Sweating seems to cleanse my skin and at the risk of sounding like a make-up ad, it really does add a healthy glow and colour to my face. This is probably to do with the fact that sweat facilitates the removal of accumulated toxic materials through the pores such as sodium, heavy metals, alcohol and nicotine. It also rids the body of old/used water and in turn makes room for fresh water to replenish the cells within the body. Put it this way, sweat creates an effect beyond the capability of Mac or any other cosmetic brand.

So next time you’ve worked up a good sweat, relish the salty drip and then for the sake of others around you, get in the shower! 😆