Skin deep: buff your body; Great ideas for how to banish bumps, soak your skin and get a faux glow

Muscle & Fitness/Hers, Dec, 2003 by Jody Buffalo

EXERCISING AND EATING RIGHT help achieve supple skin, but just as important is proper body care. A few things to keep in mind to get better results from your beauty:

* Combine relaxation and body-beautifying time by using products containing skin-softening ingredients and scents that help your mind drift away to pleasant places--emotional serenity results in a radiance that no makeup can duplicate.

* Look for products that do double duty (for example, a shampoo and body wash in one) to both streamline your routine and address all your body care needs.

* Get your bronze from a self-tanner since sun exposure is not only harmful, but also contributes to wrinkles. Read on for more advice on how to look and feel great.

4 SUPER MUSCLE SOAKS

Nothing beats a warm bath to soothe muscles after a strenuous workout. Here, the best--and newest--soaks to keep you (and your muscles) from knotting up:

AHAVA Muscle Melt

($12; www.ahava.com)

Loosens taut muscles with essential oils--clove, juniper and invigorating peppermint--all in a mix of therapeutic Dead Sea salts.

Lush Hot Toddy Bubble Bar

($6.25; www.lush.com)

Contains a seasonal blend of scents: orange oil, sugar and paprika warm the senses, cinnamon leaf stimulates and bittersweet lime oil cleanses.

Indigo Wild Zum Tub in Patchouli

($9.50; www.indigowild.com)

Combines all-natural sea salts with skin-hydrating shea butter and meadowfoam seed oil (a non-greasy moisturizer good for even the most sensitive skin types).

[H.sub.2]O Plus Lavender-Sage Soothing Bath Salts

($20; www.h2oplus.com)

Thaw yourself (and your hard-working joints) into tranquility with this formula enriched with vitamin E.

A DEODORANT THAT WORKS HARDER

Razor burn and prickly underarm hair make the list of most women's annoying beauty battles. That's why we were thrilled with the new Secret Skin Renewal Anti-perspirant/Deodorant ($3.79; at drugstores). It goes beyond superior wetness and odor control; it also calms irritation and conditions the skin with ingredients like provitamin [B.sub.5] and vitamin E, so you're able to get a closer shave. Manufacturer-sponsored clinical research showed a significant improvement in the look, smoothness and overall condition of underarms after just 14 days of daily use.

SPRAYED-ON MUSCLES?

Now you can get rid of that winter white while enhancing the look of your muscle tone--all in less than an hour. Spa technicians at Completely Bare in New York City spray you with self-tanner in what's known as an airbrushing technique called The Sculpted Tan ($68 for 50 minutes; 212-366-6060). Then, they carefully mist on extra color in those toned areas you want to accentuate like abs, calves or pecs, explains Completely Bare owner Cindy Barshop. Color gradually fades over the course of four to six days--just enough time to catch even more envious glances at the gym.