grooming Archives - Malebasics blog

Beer belly? All you need to know…

I bet you used to laugh at your dad and uncles when you were younger, but now you are truly worried about the way you look. You know that you don’t eat the best quality food, but still don’t have a clue of what is causing you that huge belly.

If you are over 30 years, this is a reality that you need to face: As the years go by, more fat accumulates in your abdomen and we find it harder to eliminate it, but don’t panic, women suffer something similar, but in their hips. Youth, divine gift!

The fat accumulation is due to lots of factors such as hereditary, hormonal and medical, not just to nutritional issues, although, of course, your diet is something that you need to watch out and exercising plays a very important role here too.

For sure, a big belly is not aesthetic, but there is a big difference between something that you don’t like and something that you need to worry about. Get a measurement tap, if your waist circumference is bigger than 41 inches (102 centimetres), you need to make an appointment with a doctor as you have abdominal obesity.

On summer times our appearance seems to be our main focus as we want to go to pool parties and the beach with our friends, but this is something that we should pay more attention to. Can you believe that this is related to illnesses like asthma, prostate cancer and osteoporosis?!

Sometimes finding the time to do exercise can be tricky, but if you walk at least 20 mins every day is more than enough. Instead, you can consider starting with a clean and healthy diet. When it comes to a good shape, 70% is about your eating habits and 30% the exercise that you do. You actually burn more calories throughout the day than at the gym, so now that you know the secret, when are you planning to start?

Hair care and its secrets

Dandruff and alopecia are probably two of the biggest worries for men. Can they go away? The answer is “it depends on the cause. If it is caused by genetic causes, no”, but there is good news in this topic, you can still do lots of things to prevent many hair struggles and problems. You can always look at your best:

Avoid high temperatures and don’t think just of sun exposure. You need to start caring about how warm your showers are and in case you have to use a hairdryer, make sure that the air is cold.

Don’t wash your hair more than 3 times per week and use conditioner. Yes, men need to use conditioner too, especially if you are looking for brightness, volume and smoothness, but do it on the ends and not directly on the root.

Don’t scratch your hair with your nails very hard or with sharp objects.

Watch what you eat. The same as with our health, our hair needs some vitamins in order to keep nourished. The following are the main vitamins:

-Biotin: Some shampoo that you find at the supermarkets say that they include this vitamin, however, this is not enough. In this case, you will either get the vitamin at a store or include some of these foods in your diet: beef and pork liver, egg yolks, spinach, nuts and beer yeast. Biotin is good to help you in the prevention of thinning hair.

-Folic acid: its low levels are the main cause of hair loss. You can increase it with consumption of spinach, asparagus, oranges and sunflower seeds.

-Pantothenic acid: it has been shown to delay the appearance of grey hair and reduce dandruff. The foods that have high content of it are salmon, eggs, cauliflower, cabbage, integral rice, beer yeast. -Zinc, iron and copper: they are very important to protect and strengthen hair. In addition to helping to keep hair follicles in good condition and to help hair development. These minerals increase testosterone and strengthen the immune system. You can find them in: carrots, mango, pork liver, oysters, integral rice, aubergines, asparagus, celery

These are some useful advice, but if the problem continues, make an appointment with a dermatologist. Every case is different and you might need a stronger treatment.

Manicure and men?

Rough hands are part of the past. Yes! That’s a big statement all men should know and worry about. The same as bears -that used to be careless-, bitten and tousled nails are not trendy anymore. Please get a manicure!

Bitten and tousled nails are not trendy anymore

Specialized places for men are not necessarily expensive and luxurious nowadays. I am sure today is very normal to even go to a nail’s spa place full of girls where you are the only guy. Today there is almost nothing that can be considered as made for one gender only.

We are good at creating excuses, but did you know how much your nails and hands talk about your personality? Nails you can tell that has never been done before -because they are not trimmed or dirty- can communicate just one thing: you don’t care about your own grooming!

For sure, guys who work in customer service or dealing with people, in general, are more likely to get a manicure. I really understand the fact that we all have busy lives, but to be fair it doesn’t take long. It takes about 45 minutes and can be adjusted into your routine. This is just a matter of willing to do it.

As all the things that have been losing the feature of “one-gender only”, manicure for men is way different to the one that girls need. Both are expected to make you look great, but girls focused more on the nail polish color and style and you, should focus more on the hydration of your hands.

How often should you do it?

At least twice a month you should get your nails trimmed and even though is very common for men to pay to someone to do this for them, you can also do it yourself, for sure on YouTube you can find many tutorials for it.

Little details are always what counts the most. It doesn’t matter if you look after your hair, bear and the way you dress. Without trimmed nails, you will never make a good impression.

I may look gay, but please don’t think I am!

Metrosexuals, who are they? Men who love to go shopping, buy expensive face creams, visit the stylist very often, but are still straight. However, the real question is, do girls like them?

From guys perspective it is important to look after themselves, especially nowadays when meeting new people is easier. You can love someone, but if they don’t look as good as you, you might feel tempted to approach other people that love themselves enough to worry about grooming.

This is a very controversial topic because is difficult to find boundaries. Girls say that the problem starts when men care about little details more than they do, but it can also be polemic as there are girls than are not very feminine.

On the other hand, we have men that blame women for it. Apparently, especially when they are married, their wives are the ones who ask them to go and have their nails trimmed, to lose some weight and to eat better.

But we have come to the conclusion that this word is not well used. People commonly think that just because a man look after himself is metrosexual, when this is not true. And also, it’s very important to understand that this doesn’t make a guy less masculine.

Looking after yourself is more linked to self-esteem. In modern times the roles of women and men have changed a lot and very often we get to see both doing things that before were forbidden for the other gender. Dare to be different and surprise your partner! Girls love to see a man who always smells and looks good!

3 tips to take care of your beard during cold winter months

If you’ve had a beard for long enough, you would know that the winter months can be an absolute struggle. And if you don’t have one, you’ll find out soon enough. In cold, temperate locations, this feeling is multiplied. For most people, winter brings with it low humidity and freezing winds, both of which can have an adverse effect on the health of your beard. Continue reading “3 tips to take care of your beard during cold winter months”

5 tips to maintain a great moustache

They all say that the moustache is the new beard. Didn’t you know? Don’t be fooled, moustaches are timeless. Whether you’re sporting one for Movember or simply because you like rocking it, a moustache (like a beard) need a little lovin’ if it’s to look its best (like we know you already invest in your briefs so…) Continue reading “5 tips to maintain a great moustache”