You’re a fitness freak. You spend hundreds, even thousands, of dollars every year on gym memberships, dietary supplements, fat-free high-fiber toothpaste. You jog every morning, take the stairs rather than the elevator, and regard smokers as a subspecies of the common cockroach.

You are the essence of healthy living. Everything you do is intended to keep you looking trim, sexy, and indefinitely young.

So, how‘s your skin care regime?

Uh-huh, I thought so. Skin care’s for girls, right?

Wrong! Neglect your skin, and it won’t matter how fantastic your immaculately sculpted butt looks in a thong bathing suit. Everyone will be staring at your prematurely aged face.

It’s a fact that active skin ages faster than passive skin. This is because you‘re constantly stretching it, not properly cleansing it, and definitely not moisturizing it. And don’t forget sun damage, especially if you exercise outdoors.

Skin that’s soft, supple, and renewed is skin that looks young longer. So, if you’re serious about your youthful appearance, follow these simple rules.

Cleanse your face before bed. So what if you did a thousand squats after dinner? Consider this your last daily exercise. Let bacteria do its dirty work on your face overnight, and it'll only contribute to premature wrinkling.

Go to a pro. If you have a serious skin problem, seek help from a professional, licenced aesthetician or dermatologist. I can sell you all the fancy skin care products you like, but I can't cure a skin disease — and neither can your fitness instructor!

Use a three-step facial care plan. Properly cleanse your face with warm water and a glycerin based soap. This will open your pores and prepare the skin for exfoliating. Next, restore your skin's pH balance with a dry-skin toner or oily-skin astringent. Finally, hydrate your face with a quality moisturizer.

Always cleanse before workouts. Go to the gym with squeaky clean skin, and you’ll "sweat clean" after exercising. This is particularly useful if you can’t get to a sink or shower for a few hours. The salty, post-workout residue will be less damaging to your face.

Protect yourself from the sun. Sure, this sounds like a natural, but you’d be surprised how few athletes include sunscreen in their pre-workout regimens. If you ski, surf, or enjoy any other outdoor activity, always use an SPF 15 sports stick applicator around your lip and eye areas to prevent wrinkling. You can even use it on the tips of your ears and bald spots to ward off sunburns.

Drink plenty of water. A minimum eight to ten glasses a day will keep your skin nicely hydrated.

No picking! Frequent breakouts are not uncommon in people who train regularly. Athletes often spend a lot of time with sweat and bacteria on their faces. And this, of course, causes pimples. The temptation is to pick them away, but that leads to scarring. So hands off the zits, tough guy. Instead, treat yourself to a series of deep-cleansing facials.