Tanning and sun protection
A healthy tan? Oxymoron. A few minutes of sun a day is necessary for vitamin D production but that doesn’t mean long exposure. If you want to show your physique, you dont need to burn, just wear a skintight longsleeve underarmor type lycra shirt as the protection does not wash off and you dont have to worry about all the chemicals and nano-particles in the goopy stuff.
Cumulative sun damage
I know all about sun damage. As I mentioned in a video this winter, I havent been in the sun in years but yet my skin is red all the time – its called “cumulative sun damage”. I grew up in a family that was very careful of sunburns. Even back in the 60’s and 70’s when most people thought that being red, blistered, and peeling was a badge of honor, we were slathering sunscreen on ourselves. In my life I have never, ever been sunburned. The problem is that I live a very active lifestyle and spend all summer long on the beach playing volleyball, running, or biking in hot weather. I always wore sunscreen, never got red, and was dark brown every summer. Thing is, when I got to be 52, it suddenly caught up with me and seemingly overnight my skin got blotchy and reddish. Went to the dermatologist thinking it was just some fungus that could be easily fixed with a creme – nope. I was informed that I had “cumulative sun damage” and the only thing I can do is stay out of the sun and prevent future damage.
So whats my point? Dont think of sunscreen makes you safe, it doesnt, and I am living proof. Even if you slather SPF50 on all summer long, you will still destroy your skin if you are out in the sun all the time. If you have an amazing physique and want to show it off, no problem, just get a skin tight long sleeve compression top from underarmor or equilevent. You can even see vascularity thru these tops so you dont need to burn to show off the results of your summer cut!!!
Want a tan? Spray tan!
If you want a tan for that reunion or dream vacation to the tropics, get a spray tan! Thats what I got for my men’s physique competition. The below photo is of me with a spray tan. The days of carrot or green off colors are long gone as the technology has improved. Spray tans can last a week if you prepare the skin properly. Just remember though that the spray tan does NOT protect you from the sun!!!!
Why always shirtless??
So why am I always shirtless? How can I preach sun protection and always be shirtless? Well first, please read about why I do all my videos shirtless. I used to always be shirtless in the middle of the day in the hot summer but no longer. If I am shirtless for more than a few minutes its before 10am or after 6pm. If its the middle of the day then I wear a compression shirt like the above one for sun protection. In some cases, I will slather on a SPF 50 waterproof sunscreen but my preference is to wear a shirt. So anyway, if you see me shirtless in the hot sun, its either because I am wearing SPF 50 or I am only in the sun for a very short time (less than 15 minutes).