6 Skincare Products to Calm Post-Workout Facial Redness

You made it to your workout; congratulations! While you’re riding that post-workout high, nothing can bring you down quicker than glancing in the mirror to find a beet-red face. Take heart: It's not a sign that you're out of shape. "Flushing is caused by vasodilation," explains dermatologist Dendy Engelmena. "When we exercise, our blood flow increases to deliver more oxygen and nutrients to our muscles. Blood vessels expand and push against the skin. This causes the skin to look redder."

But why do you seem to always exit the gym with a pink face? "People with lots of facial veins, especially those with light skin, tend to flush and blush after a workout," says Eric Bernstein, MD. "They don’t have as much pigment in their skin to hide the redness." If you have rosacea from long-term sun exposure, you're even more likely to redden as "those extra veins are more responsive to lots of stimuli, such as hot, cold, exercise, coffee, and wine, and fill up more robustly, causing flushing." If you find yourself fire-engine red after the gym, head to the sink. "Post-workout redness responds well to cool compresses that cause constriction of the blood vessels in the skin," she says. Certain products and treatments ("Lasers like the VBeam Prima offer a treatment that attacks the root cause of rosacea, the extra blood vessels we acquire from the sun," says Bernstein.) can also relieve flushed skin. Shop your options ahead.