Holistic beauty: a social phenomenon or an underlying trend?
What if beauty were a whole, encompassing not only a person’s appearance but also their personality, values and the energy they exude? In any case, this is what holistic beauty advocates, based more on personal development and self-acceptance than on contouring or cosmetic surgery.
Increasingly present on social networks and in wellbeing magazines, this phenomenon is the perfect reflection of the desire to encourage each person to accept and love themselves as they are, with a focus on naturalness.
What exactly is holistic beauty?
Beauty is something very abstract and specific to each individual, but our society, which is strongly based on consumerism and marketing, tends to make us believe that beauty is to be found in certain very precise standards, which correspond to what we see on the catwalks or on the covers of certain magazines. A format that creates complexes, particularly for women, from an early age.
The discomfort felt by so many women, and by some men too, has prompted some of us to completely rethink our approach to beauty: what if it were to be found within ourselves? What if it were perceptible through our aura, our behaviour, our emotions or even our approach to life? This observation gave rise to the phenomenon of holistic beauty.
More concretely, holistic beauty is a concept that describes beauty as a whole, which stems directly from feeling good about our bodies and our skin, thanks to a healthy routine and practices that respect our being, such as a balanced diet, meditation and physical activity designed to release tension.
The four main thrusts of this trend
As you will have gathered, holistic beauty is a trend that consists of looking at beauty as a whole, from both an internal and external perspective. It is based on four pillars: diet, stress management, activity and cosmetics.
A healthy, balanced diet
that contain few nutrients and many additives that can have serious consequences for our health, on a hormonal level for example. The consequences are also felt on our appearance: swelling, weight gain, acne, dull complexion, lack of vitality, etc. One of the principles of holistic beauty is therefore to rebalance your diet by choosing what you eat more carefully, and making sure you give your body everything it needs to function properly: fibre, fat, carbohydrates and protein. Please note that there is absolutely no question here of starting a diet, but rather of eating better by choosing fresh, unprocessed and healthier foods.
A better understanding of stress
Stress, anxiety or anguish are problems that many of us have to face these days, and this is due in particular to our particularly busy lifestyles, which require us to be on all fronts at the same time: family life, professional life, social life, couple life, and others.
Holistic beauty therefore also emphasises the need to rediscover inner serenity, in particular by taking an interest in personal development methods, taking time out to relax or learning to calm stress through meditation or breathing exercises, for example.
More movement and activity
Feeling good in mind and body also means doing physical activity on a more regular basis, and this is also one of the main principles of holistic beauty. This doesn’t mean you have to train for the next marathon or aim for the Olympics, just that you need to take the time to exercise and get moving to oxygenate your body.
For this to be really effective, we recommend 30 minutes of activity a day, and it can be any activity you choose: taking your pet for a walk, walking home from school with the children, going for a session on the exercise bike, taking part in a yoga class, going for a jog, etc. The important thing is to take time out to exercise your body. The important thing is to take the time to take a break and challenge your body.
Choosing the right cosmetics
Whilst holistic beauty is largely based on inner beauty, it doesn’t mean that we should neglect the outside either: taking care of ourselves is important, it helps us to relax but also to appreciate ourselves more, to know how to make the most of ourselves and to feel beautiful. But be careful, there’s no question of rushing to use a ton of chemical products that damage the skin and suffocate it.
Here, it’s a question of taking the time to choose your cosmetics according to your needs and, above all, their composition. Ideally, of course, you should opt for natural products that are gentle on your skin. To do this, opt for minimalist formulas made with ingredients whose names sound familiar and natural: aloe vera, shea butter, spirulina, coconut oil, hemp, and many others.
A short-lived trend or one that’s here to stay?
Beauty trends come and go depending on the latest fashions and new products from the big brands, but the return to naturalness and deep well-being is more of a need than a fashion, and it’s showing: more and more consumers are looking for organic more and more consumers are looking for organic, ethical and natural products.
Holistic beauty, based on more sensible and balanced principles of living and consuming, undoubtedly reflects a need to get back to basics, and is therefore an underlying trend that is likely to continue for years to come. Whatever the case, getting back to basics and choosing a healthier lifestyle can only be beneficial!