Growing up isn’t easy. Along with the responsibilities of being an adult, you might notice it’s not so easy to maintain a youthful and fresh look. And as your birthdays come and go, you might notice that your body is starting to show signs of wear and tear. Whether you’re in your early twenties or late thirties, there’s never been a better time to realize your body could use some serious TLC to help you maintain a healthy look longer.
Receding hairlines, first grey hairs, and wild straggly hairs appearing out of nowhere are usually the first signs something is going wrong when it comes to your grooming technique. Even though your facial hair might look perfect and you have it under the control for that perfect manly look, there are a few places on our body that could use a serious touch up.
Here are some helpful hints to clean up your grooming routine, in no particular order of importance.
The Pits
It is commonplace for men to have a hairy body. We grow it on our face, under our arms, across our backs; it even comes out of our ears. Quite literally. While women on the other hand tend to shave most hair off, men get off without doing anything. The time to change that is now.
Men aren’t expected to shave their pits, but it doesn’t hurt to trim it down so that we aren’t looking like we have Swamp Thing in a constant headlock. We want to keep the hair under the arms, not exploding from the sides. Simply cutting them off with scissors to keep them in line works. Unless you’re a swimmer, then you’re probably shaving them completely off anyway, right?
The Chest
The manly torso carpet, or the central rug is something that rarely or ever gets touched. It’s not like men shave their chest hair, or comb it, or brush it, or even attempt to keep it in line. This is a mistake that should be corrected as soon as possible.
No, we aren’t advocating for chest waxing, or even shaving it. But it doesn’t look right when you have it coming out of the neck in your shirt. Simply trimming it down to stay inside your shirt when worn is enough. If it’s thick and burly like all manly men are, brushing it downward helps a lot to keep it under control.
Your Hands
Even though you may scoff at the idea of using a hand lotion, remember that the collagen in your body decreases after the age of 30 and you’ll notice the skin on your hands succumbing to that. Before the damage gets permanent, consider adding a daily hand moisturizer to your grooming routine.
Do take of your nails too and keep your nails clean and well-trimmed as possible. Consider investing in a manicure set or at least a pair of nail clippers to prevent growing claws on your hands.
The Neck
It’s not something we generally are concerned with as men. That usually gets taken care of when we go to the barbers to get our hair cut. However, if you are allowing your hair to grow long, or your visits are infrequent, this becomes an issue.
We all know and understand that it’s a pain to see behind us. It’s even harder to clean yourself up using a mirror where everything is reversed. But it’s not that hard to run an electric razor across the back of your neck every couple of days to help keep the mess tidied up.
Ears and Nose
Some men just refuse to clean out their ears or remove the hair that is growing there. Unless you’re old enough to have great grandchildren, the likelihood of being able to get away with this is nil. Can you honestly say that you can look yourself in the mirror and admire those hairs? Would you be able to braid them if asked? It’s just easier to remove them altogether.
There are products that will aid in the safe and painless removal of these ever growing rogue hairs. It will give your appearance an overall cleaner look. It tells the world that you have pride in yourself and how you look. It will even help boost your own self confidence in the long run. So, it’s a simple trade off in the long run. Get rid of them. Now.
The Back
Men shouldn’t be sporting a shag carpet on both sides of the body. Sometimes it can’t be helped because you have been cursed by hairy genes. But in most cases, it can be maintained because there are back shavers out there so men can take care of it themselves.
This is the cheap alternative to paying for professional hair removal. While it does require upkeep, the alternative to that is unsightly hair cropping out the backs of your shirt. Another good reason to shave your back is to feel cooler during the summer months as it removes an extra layer of heat from your body.
Down Under
This one may come off as surprising, as it is predominantly an area that gets zero attention. But it is an area that should get some attention as well.
While making yourself look pubescent is a personal choice, trimming down the forest will make something else appear more appealing. If you do opt for a cleaner look, do aim to blend rather than have clean cut off lines. Use a fading in and fading out look to achieve the best results.
Your Legs and Feet
Another forgotten area on the male body, this one deserves some coverage. No man should shave their legs, because it changes the entire perception of that man by everyone else. Unless you are a professional swimmer or cyclist, don’t use a razor, regular or an electric, on the legs.
But do consider the density of hair on your legs. If you can stay warm in below zero weather wearing summer trunks because the locks on your legs keep you warm, then perhaps a trim is in order. At the minimum, brushing them to look nicer can do wonders. Where perception of others is concerned, making it look like you have well behaved leg hairs does more than taking the razor to it.
When it comes to your feet, keeping your nails trimmed and clean can and will do wonders for your toes and if you go the extra mile to apply a lotion at least once a week, you’ll be able to sport the sandal look well into your golden years.
Cologne
This is something that is supposed to enhance our natural clean odor, not make us smell like we took an hour long hot bath in it. They shouldn’t be able to smell us coming. This goes for anything that we use that is scented. Our scent shouldn’t be reaching people before we do, and it shouldn’t be hanging around long after we left. Moderation is the key. Got it?
Any of the above added into our normal hygiene routines make us appear better groomed. And grooming our appearance to look our best is the end result. Take the extra time to take care of yourself. Stay away from the public bird baths and relax in the hot showers before shaving with the right razor. Trim your nails as needed to your desired lengths. Brush your teeth, hair, and beard daily, pay attention to your nether region, chest, ears, nose and legs as needed. At the end of the routine you want to be sure that you do indeed look and smell your absolute best.
Not everything in a man’s grooming routine is actually being done. Women notice. Not everything deserves having your trusty razor’s attention either. Making use of trimming razors creates a better effect in most cases. So does brushing or combing areas. But do take care of yourself to the best of your abilities, no matter what extras you take on.
