Some people feel that they look their best when they are tan.
While there are warnings from doctors and dermatologists that tanning excessively can lead to skin cancer and premature aging, there are ways to tan while staying safe.
Once you achieve your desired tan, you should work to keep it from fading.
The way you shower, and the timing of your shower after tanning can affect how long your tan lasts.
Should You Shower Before Or After Tanning?
It’s best to shower before you go tanning.
When you shower before tanning, you have a chance to exfoliate and remove any dead skin cells from the surface of your skin and also unclog your pores so your skin can absorb the UV rays or any bronzer and tanning oil you use.
This gives you a darker tan and helps ensure your tan lasts longer.
Many people feel a need to shower after tanning.
After all, you will likely be hot and sweaty and may have lotion or even sunscreen that makes your skin feel greasy.
If you are going to shower after you tan, there are certain things you can do to avoid ruining your tan or not getting the full effects of tanning.
Why Should You Shower Before Tanning?
Your skin is a barrier that helps protect your body from toxins in the environment.
These toxins, sweat, general dirt and grime, skin cells, and various skincare products all create a thin veil on the skin.
You may not be able to see it, but you might be able to feel it.
When your skin feels sticky, greasy, or even stiff, you may have some type of buildup on it.
This buildup prevents UV rays and self-tanners from being absorbed by the skin and prevents you from tanning as deeply or correctly.
The best way to remove all of these things from your skin is by showering.
When you shower, you rinse your skin of all these things.
Soap and cleansing products can help unclog the pores to give an even deeper clean.
When you shower, you also exfoliate your skin, which means you remove the top layer of dead skin cells.
This leaves your skin fresh and more likely to absorb UV rays and hold a tan.
Showering a couple of hours or even a few minutes before you go tanning will give you a clean base that will not only tan better but also hold a tan longer.
Why Should You Shower After Tanning?
You may decide that you want to shower after you tan.
This is a good idea, especially if you are using sunscreen, lotions, tanning oils, or bronzers.
While these products can help you achieve a better tan, they can also clog your pores and harm your skin if they are left on your body too long.
Your skin may feel stiff, sticky, or greasy from all these products.
You should wash them off before you go to bed to avoid skin problems.
If you want to avoid taking your bronzer or self-tanner off too quickly, you should wait a few hours after you tan.
This allows everything you set on your skin, allows the bronzer to keep working, and will prevent your self-tanner from streaking or looking blotchy.
Many tanning products also have strong scents that some people find unpleasant.
When these scents mix with your deodorant, body spray, or cologne, they can become even more unpleasant.
Removing the products will help reduce the scent so you and those closest to you won’t have to smell it all day or night.
How Long Should You Wait To Shower After Tanning?
The amount of time you wait to shower after tanning depends on the type of tanning you do.
If you have a spray tan or use any type of self-tanner, you should follow the directions on the packaging.
In general, most self-tanning products have recommendations that state users should wait up to five hours to shower after applying the product.
This ensures the tanning solution has had enough time to be absorbed into the skin and will provide you with the darkest tan possible.
If you want a lighter tan, you may decide to shower earlier to remove the product before you get the full effect.
If you are tanning in a tanning bed and are using bronzers or other products, you may want to wait up to three hours after you finish tanning to shower off the products.
Many bronzers continue to brown the skin even after you get out of the tanning bed and need some time to absorb into the skin.
They can also help moisturize the skin to help lock in the tan and prevent the skin from peeling or drying out.
If you are tanning in the sun naturally, there is no risk of washing away any products or bronzers, so you can shower whenever you choose.
You do, however, have to be careful about how you shower.
You don’t want to rub the skin or use a brush or exfoliating sponge, as this could irritate the skin, especially if it is burnt.
If the skin is damaged, it will start to peel, and you will lose your tan as it falls off.
It’s best to wait as long as possible to shower after tanning so your body can lock in moisture and your skin will be healthy and less likely to shed.
Should You Shower After Tanning If You Use Bronzer?
Bronzers don’t stop working once you get out of the tanning bed.
While the UV rays of the tanning bed are what activate the bronzer and help it to tan the skin quickly, the bronzer is also absorbed into the skin while it is working to tan it.
Once you get out of the tanning bed, the bronzer will continue to work for up to three hours.
The same is true if you use a tanning lotion or oil that is made for natural tanning but also contains bronzer.
You want to get the full effect of the bronzer and allow it to continue to work as long as possible.
You can do that by allowing the bronzer to stay on your skin as long as possible or as long as the package instructions recommend.
Is It Better To Shower Or Bathe After Tanning?
When you shower after tanning, you are washing off the top layer of lotion or product.
You don’t want to spend too much time in the shower because you don’t want to wash away everything.
You need to keep your body’s natural oils on the body to help keep the skin moisturized so it won’t peel.
When you take a bath, your body sits in the water for a long time, and that means the oils deep in the skin will be pulled out.
It’s more likely to dry out your skin and cause problems.
Showers are much faster and allow you to rinse any sweat and tanning products away without penetrating deep into the skin and causing problems.
Can You Use Soap After Tanning?
If you are tanning naturally and are not using a bronzer that needs to stay on your body, you can use soap without any issues.
If you are tanning naturally but also use a bronzer or any type of product that helps your tan develop over time, you should not use soap.
Soap will remove the product from your body, so you won’t get the full effects of the product, and your tan won’t be as dark as it could be.
If you are using a self-tanner, you should refrain from using soap in the shower or bath for at least three days.
Your self-tanner can take some time to set into the skin, and the longer you leave it on your body, the darker the tan will become.
Soap will pull the tanner out of your skin faster than water alone, and it could leave your tan looking streaky and uneven.
When you are ready to wash off the tanner, you can use soap to get all the tanner off your body quickly.
If you were tanning in a tanning bed and want to remove any of the products from your skin thoroughly, you can use soap to wash it off.
Keep in mind that many tanning bed lotions do include bronzer, which helps to darken the skin long after you are out of the tanning bed.
If you choose to wash off the product with soap, you may not get the deepest tan possible.
Should You Exfoliate Before Or After Tanning?
Exfoliation helps to open up your pores, and it removes any dead skin cells that may be on the surface of the skin.
It’s always best to exfoliate before you tan, no matter what type of tanning your plan to do.
When you exfoliate before you tan, it makes it easier for your skin to absorb the UV rays of the sun and allows your skin to become darker.
If you are planning to use any type of tanning lotion or bronzer, your skin will also absorb it more easily when you have exfoliated.
When you don’t exfoliate, there may be dead skin cells, dry skin, soap buildup, lotions, and other skincare products on the skin that blocks out the sun and stops it from penetrating the skin or stops the tanning products from being absorbed completely.
You don’t want to exfoliate after tanning.
In fact, it’s best to wait up to five days after tanning to exfoliate.
When you exfoliate, it removes the top layer of skin, which can also remove any oils or bronzer on your body.
It can also simply wear down the skin to remove the tan you recently achieved.
It’s best to allow your skin time to recover after tanning.
Once you have achieved the tan you want, you can exfoliate when you bathe or shower.
Always be gentle on your skin to ensure it does not become red and inflamed or too dry.
Should You Dry Off With A Towel After Showering?
You can use a towel to dry off after you take a shower or bath after tanning, but you should be careful about how you use it.
Many people rub their skin with a towel rather harshly after showering to dry off quickly so they can get dressed and move on to other things.
You shouldn’t rub your skin with a towel if you have just finished tanning.
Instead, you should dab the towel on your body gently to absorb the water but not rub off your skin or your tanning oils.
You can also just wrap up in a towel and wait to drip dry so you don’t take a chance of drying out your skin, which can cause it to flake or peel and take your tan away with it.
Should You Moisturize After Tanning and Showering?
Yes, you should always moisturize your skin after tanning and showering.
While the sun and tanning beds can help your body tan, they can also dry out your skin.
This can lead to dry skin, flaking skin, peeling skin, and even premature aging.
You can prevent your skin from becoming too dry and flaky.
When you are done tanning, you can apply moisturizing immediately.
It will help lock in your bronzer and may even help you spread the tanning lotions around your skin more evenly.
If you are showering right after you tan, you should apply moisturizer after you get out of the shower and dry off.
It’s best to apply moisturizer while your body is still a little damp.
This locks in your body’s natural moisture so your skin will stay smooth, and your tan will be locked in place for much longer.
What Are The Must-Dos After Tanning?
If you are going to tan and want to lock in your tan and make sure it lasts as long as possible, there are some things you should do that can improve your chances of getting a darker tan and make your tan last longer.
Try bronzer and other products that can help the skin get darker, even after you get out of the tanning bed or out of the sun.
Some people find that they tan the best with bronzer or even specific brands and types of tanning lotions.
Others find that while it takes longer for the tan to develop, tanning without any lotions at all allows them to get a deeper tan that lasts longer.
Shower and exfoliate before you go tanning.
This will allow your body to absorb the lotion and the UV rays more easily, so you get a darker tan.
If you shower after tanning, make sure you wait at least a few hours.
If using any type of tanning products or self-tanner, follow the directions on the packaging to see how long you should wait before you can shower.
When you dry off, add moisturizer to lock in your skin’s natural moisture as well as any remaining bronzer or product.
This will also help prevent your skin from drying out so your tan is less likely to fade away, and your skin won’t become flaky and peel off.