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If your goal is smooth and soft heels, like a baby, you will have to devote more time and attention to this area. But you will definitely like the result.
Causes of rough skin on the heels
Athletes and dancers definitely need to pay special attention to foot skin care.
So, what stimulates the formation of rough skin on the heels?
body weight pressure.
Shock loading when walking and any other activity. By the way, while jumping, the weight of a person upon landing increases by 8 (!) Times. That is, it is with such a load that the feet have to cope.
Insufficient fluid intake – the skin becomes dehydrated.
Hormonal changes lead to excessive dryness: lactation or menopause, for example.
Walking barefoot on the sand and salty sea water can also contribute to dehydration. Heels will feel the same effect if the apartment is being renovated – suspensions from building mixtures and powders draw moisture not only from the air.
Tight shoes and prolonged wearing of synthetic socks, stockings and pantyhose all interfere with normal blood circulation and skin function.
Too zealous pedicure, which affected not only the stratum corneum, but also the deeper layers of the epidermis. This is possible, for example, when using an abrasive file or blade that is too hard. In order to protect itself, the skin thickens the stratum corneum.
Take our test and find out how well you care for your skin.
What are the methods of struggle
You can try to remove the rough skin of the feet yourself. This will require a certain set of funds.
File for feet: ordinary “grater” or roller.
Foot scrub. A scrub will give a significantly greater effect if you rub it not with your hands, but with the help of a grinding file for your feet.
Moisturizing and nourishing foot cream.
Foot bath. Of course, you can perfectly steam them out just in the bath, but the bath, as a rule, is also equipped with the necessary brushes, pumice stone and, the best part, a massage mode.
Mask-compress for legs.
To summarize, the standard care for rough areas of the feet includes the following steps:
rasparivanie;
scrub;
polishing with a file;
cream.
Foot care easily turns into a real spa ritual.
Many people prefer to entrust this important work to professionals – pedicure masters. In a critical situation, you may need to consult a podiatrist – a doctor who treats various foot diseases. After all, discomfort, dryness and soreness can be associated with flat feet (there are many types of it), and with diabetes, and with other hormonal and skin diseases.
But usually a good pedicure master is quite capable of removing rough skin and getting rid of discomfort. And also offer a lot of options for cosmetic procedures for the feet. To remove rough skin in the cabin, various tools and tools are used, such as:
files of varying degrees of roughness (blades should be used in exceptional cases);
devices on which you can change nozzles to adjust the strength and depth of exposure;
special solutions for foot baths, which loosen and exfoliate rough skin;
various combinations of all these influences.
A thorough pedicure, whether at home or professional, is an absolute must to make a habit. For a professional, as a rule, once a month is enough.
How to clean rough skin with a foot bath
First you need to steam your legs. To do this, a special agent is dissolved in a bath in warm (closer to hot) water. You can use a few drops of oil to soften the skin.
The hydromassage mode is not only a pleasant, but also a very useful idea. It helps to improve blood circulation in the legs, which is very important for maintaining skin functions. In addition, after the hydromassage of the feet, you will sleep like a baby.
10 minutes is enough to steam the skin. In any case, do not soak your feet in the bath for too long, because the cold water will ruin all efforts. And let’s not forget: water dries out the skin.
Many hot tubs are equipped with files and a brush. Following the manufacturer’s instructions, you can take advantage of the possibility of a lightweight home hardware pedicure. If this is not the case, after getting your feet wet, carefully wipe them off with a pumice stone or a special file – not too rough! – keratinized skin from the heels. Don’t worry, it can be quite a lot.
After the procedure, spread the cream on your feet and let it soak in. If the cream is absorbed very quickly, spread again to saturate the skin with nutrients and moisturizers.
Such home spa treatments should be done before going to bed. First, you can apply more cream, because the legs will rest. And secondly, regeneration processes are most active at night and the cream will have the best effect.
Cosmetical tools
Body Scrub “Precious Beauty Scrub”, Garnier – the seeds of the argan tree, rich in oils, act as both exfoliating and nourishing components. The softness and nourishment of the skin is also provided by almond, macadamia and rose oils.
Regenerating foot cream “Intensive care”, Garnier smoothes the skin and heals cracks. Sugar maple extract, allantoin and glycerin are responsible for restoring, moisturizing and softening.
Revitalizing cream for dry skin of the feet, CeraVe along with skin-restoring ceramides and hyaluronic acid, it contains exfoliating salicylic acid, which helps to clear the skin of dead cells of the stratum corneum.
Cosmetic procedures
Manual
The specialist works with a file-grater and manually exfoliates and polishes the pre-steamed skin. It is good if the master also gives a foot massage, which stimulates blood circulation, which is not only pleasant, but also useful for maintaining normal skin functions, and also helps to resist excessive dryness and prevents the formation of cracks.
Hardware
The skin is exfoliated using an electrical device with rotating nozzles made of metal, ceramics. They have different grain sizes and are therefore rougher or softer on the skin. The master also adjusts the rotation speed depending on the thickness and roughness of the stratum corneum. It is believed that hardware pedicure cleans the skin more evenly. But even here everything is decided by the professionalism of the master.
Brazilian
While the master takes care of the nails and covers them with varnish, the foot remains in a warming polyethylene sock soaked in a special cream. It provides comprehensive skin care.
Paraffin therapy
The feet, cleared of hardened growths, are lowered into a special bath with melted paraffin. It warms and nourishes, stimulates blood circulation and improves skin condition for a long time.
Procedures alone are not enough – you need daily self-care, which will allow you to maintain and prolong the effect achieved in the salon.
Home recipes
There is a rich collection of homemade recipes designed to restore softness to the skin on the heels. Let’s talk about the most common.
Walking barefoot on fresh grass is a good activity for the skin of the feet. Special moisturizing qualities are attributed to the grass woodlice.
Baking soda
What you need:
1 tablespoon of baking soda for every liter of water.
What to do:
dissolve soda in hot (tolerant) water;
lower your feet into a soda bath, you can add a little hot water as it cools in the bath;
after 10–15 minutes, take out your legs, blot with a towel;
remove softened rough skin with a file-grater;
apply foot cream.
Camomile
What you need:
1 tablespoon of dried chamomile (or calendula) per 1 liter of water.
What to do:
pour chamomile with a glass of boiling water;
when it boils, remove from heat and leave to infuse for 20 minutes;
strain the broth and pour into a foot bath filled with warm water;
keep your feet in the bath for 15 minutes;
blot with a towel and grease with cream.
Onion compress
Onion foot compress works on the principle of acid or rather enzyme peeling.
What you need:
1 is an average onion.
What to do:
Before going to bed, cut the onion in half. Or cut two circles about 1 cm thick;
attach to the heels and put on socks to fix (the socks will have to be washed later);
in the morning, throw away the onion, wash and file your legs;
cream your feet.
lemon compress
What you need:
2 thick circles of lemon.
What to do:
steam your feet in a bathtub (or just a bath);
attach mugs of lemon to steamed heels and put on socks;
in the morning, throw away the lemon, wash your feet and smear with cream.
Honey pack
What you need:
2 cabbage leaves;
1 tablespoon honey.
What to do:
lightly beat off the cabbage leaves to soften them;
grease the sheets with honey;
attach sheets smeared with honey to the heels and wrap them around the feet, put on socks, leave overnight;
in the morning, throw away the sheets, wash your feet and process with a file;
smear with cream.
Recommendations for care and prevention
Every day in the shower or after a steaming bath, treat the driest and roughest areas of the feet with a special file. Be careful when using electric rotary files: in the wrong hands, they can exacerbate the problem, as there is a risk of removing more skin than necessary.
Once a month (on your own or in the salon), do a full pedicure procedure, cleaning off the excess stratum corneum of the skin.
Apply cream to your feet twice a day. In the morning, this will prepare the skin for the upcoming daily stresses, and in the evening it will help it relax and recover.
There are no restrictions on the use of body creams or milks in this area. But if there is a tendency to increased dryness and coarsening of the skin, then give preference to a special cream.
Drink enough liquids, do not allow dehydration of the skin.
If you wear high heels, use silicone heel pads (and toes). This helps redistribute the load on the foot.
In the summer, if possible, walk barefoot on the grass.
Watch your weight! Excess affects the health of the feet and joints is not the best way.