The Truth About Exercise and Injectables: What Really Happens to Your Skin

You probably know that a good exercise regimen can help you look and feel your best. From toned muscles to enhanced mood, the benefits are genuinely transformative. If you enjoy the advantages of exercise, you may be considering an aesthetic treatment like injectables to complement those benefits and revive your skin.

An injectable treatment combined with your active lifestyle sounds like a perfect pairing, but you may wonder how one might affect the other. Could exercise impact the effectiveness or longevity of Botox, Dysport or dermal fillers? Will getting injectables interrupt your routine and prevent you from being able to work out for a while? These questions and more have crossed the minds of many, from fitness gurus to those just starting an exercise routine.

With a sea of conflicting information out there, it’s time to set the record straight and separate fact from fiction about how exercise affects your skin and interacts with injectables.

A Quick Overview: What Are Injectables?

Before getting into the details of exercise and injectables, let’s clarify what injectables are.

Injectable Neuromodulators

Neuromodulators like Botox® and Dysport® relax the muscles underneath wrinkles. For cosmetic purposes, they’re used to smooth out facial lines in the upper face and around the eyes, and they are usually effective for three to five months.

Injectable Fillers

Dermal fillers, such as Juvéderm® and Restylane® work differently. These fillers add volume to the areas where they are injected, effectively filling lines and hollow spaces. Depending on the type of filler, they can last anywhere from six months up to several years.

Fact #1: Exercise Might Indirectly Contribute to Wrinkles

While scientific research hasn’t definitively looked at the skin of people who work out compared to those who don’t, we do understand how exercise might indirectly result in wrinkles. Exercise can lead to weight loss, which can mean fat loss in the face. When you lose that facial plumpness, you could become more susceptible to lines or wrinkles, especially if you are middle-aged or older. In addition, consistently creating intense facial expressions while straining during workouts could break down collagen in the affected areas and contribute to wrinkle formation. What’s more, if your workout routine includes outdoor activities, increased exposure to the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays can compromise your skin’s health, leading to collagen loss and accelerated wrinkle formation.

However, this doesn’t mean you should give up your active lifestyle in an attempt to avoid wrinkles. Losing weight offers numerous health benefits, and if it does lead to some wrinkles, they can be combatted with various cosmetic treatments, including injectables. In addition, following a healthy skincare regimen and applying sunscreen daily can further mitigate any potential negative effects of exercise on your skin.

Fiction #1: Exercise Is Inherently Bad for Your Skin

Sure, exercise might contribute to wrinkles over time. But that doesn’t mean it damages or is generally bad for your skin. Let’s not overlook the myriad ways in which regular physical activity can actually be beneficial for your skin.

From increasing blood flow to aiding in the natural detoxification process, exercise acts as a multifaceted treatment for a variety of skin concerns, including fine lines and wrinkles. This means that while you’re toning those muscles and burning calories, you’re also promoting healthier, more youthful skin.

Boosts Blood Circulation

When you exercise, your heart pumps faster, improving blood circulation throughout your body. This increased blood flow carries oxygen and nutrients to your skin, which can help repair it and boost collagen production. Collagen is a protein that keeps your skin firm, supple and elastic.

Sweating Helps Clear Pores

Breaking a sweat isn’t just a sign of a good workout; it can also benefit your skin. When you sweat, your pores open and release trapped dirt and oil. Just remember to wash your face post-workout to get rid of any impurities that come to the surface.

Reduces Stress-Related Skin Issues

Exercise is known for its ability to lower stress levels. Since stress can exacerbate skin conditions like acne and eczema, a regular exercise routine may help you maintain clearer, healthier skin by reducing stress.

Promotes Anti-Aging

Though the evidence is still inconclusive, some studies suggest that regular, moderate exercise can help combat skin aging, even on a cellular level. Physical activity boosts the production of substances that contribute to skin health, potentially slowing down the aging process.

Now that we have a general understanding of how exercise affects our skin, let’s look at how injectables work and could be affected by physical activity.

Fact #2: After Your Injections, You Should Give Exercise a Pause

If you’ve just had an injectable treatment, we recommend avoiding high-intensity workouts for at least four hours for neuromodulators and 24 hours for fillers. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not because injectables will move within your face. Once a neuromodulator is injected into the muscle, it stays put. Fillers can move slightly, but this isn’t a major issue that would affect your results. The primary concern here is the potential side effects. Exercise increases your heart rate and blood vessel pressure, which can exacerbate any swelling or bruising you might experience post-injection.

Fiction #2: Injectable Treatment Will Derail Your Fitness Goals

Getting an injectable treatment doesn’t mean you have to say goodbye to your fitness goals. True, you’ll need to pause intense workouts for about a day, but this pause can easily align with your planned recovery days. And you can still do low-impact exercises like walking immediately after treatment. Giving your muscles a break is already a vital component of any well-rounded fitness regimen. So, simply schedule your injectable treatments for those days when you’d be taking it easy anyway.

Once the brief hiatus is over, you can dive right back into your regular workout routine without worrying about hampering your fitness progress. Remember, a short-term break does not equate to long-term derailment; it’s just a minor pitstop on your journey to achieving both your fitness and aesthetic aspirations.

Fact #3: The Duration of Injectable Results Varies From Person to Person

If you’re contemplating injectables, you might be under the impression that the longevity of the results is uniform for all. However, the reality is that the staying power of neuromodulators and fillers can fluctuate from person to person due to a variety of factors. One major factor? Your metabolism.

Metabolism refers to the chemical processes that occur within a living organism to maintain life. These processes are crucial for various functions, such as converting food into energy, eliminating waste and rebuilding tissue. Your metabolic rate is the speed at which these chemical processes occur. A higher metabolic rate means your body uses energy more quickly, which often translates to faster cellular processes overall.

Exercise Can Increase Your Metabolism

Engaging in physical activity stimulates the metabolic rate. Exercise increases your heart rate and causes your muscles to work harder, requiring more energy. As a result, more chemical processes are triggered to support this increased demand for energy, thereby accelerating your metabolism. This elevated metabolic rate can persist for hours even after you’ve finished exercising, commonly referred to as the “afterburn” effect.

When your metabolism is running at an accelerated pace, you might find that injectable formulas get metabolized more quickly, leading to a shorter duration of their effects. So, while exercise can provide numerous benefits for your well-being and skin health, it might also mean that your injectable treatments may not last as long as you’d like them to. However, this doesn’t hold true for everyone, and individual experiences can vary widely.

Fiction #3: Frequent Exercise Necessitates More Frequent Injectable Treatments

You might think that because you exercise often and have a high metabolism rate, you’ll need to schedule injectable treatments more frequently. However, the quantity of injectables might be the answer rather than the frequency. Studies show neuromodulators may last longer when applied in higher doses. However, it’s a delicate balance to maintain, as a skilled healthcare provider aims to achieve natural-looking results that align with your comfort level.

The Takeaway: Exercise and Injectables Can Work Together to Enhance Your Health, Wellness and Beauty

Exercise could make you more susceptible to wrinkles and accelerate the metabolism of your injectables, but this isn’t the case for everyone. The dramatic benefits to your skin and overall health mean that a fitness regimen is worth these potential drawbacks. And with the right plan developed with the help of our expert team at Senza Aesthetic Medicine, you can achieve the perfect balance between maintaining an active lifestyle and enjoying the youthful appearance injectables offer.

Elevate Your Beauty Routine With Expert Advice at Senza

Ready to take the next step toward smooth, wrinkle-free skin with injectables? Schedule your personalized consultation by reaching out online or calling us at (909) 793-3563 today!