The Ultimate Body Peel Routine for Brighter, Smoother Skin

“Your face isn't the only place that needs a peel.”

Today, we're breaking down how to safely use chemical peels on your body, including which acids work best, the skin concerns they target, and how to achieve visible results without irritation.

There is a lot of activity on body peels in our peel quizzes.

Oh yeah, the peel finder tool.

The specific questions and topics are provided, and then it offers suggestions at the end. Many people are inquiring about body peels, so I believe it's an excellent opportunity for us to discuss our recommendations, proper skin preparation, and how to proceed with this process.

Well, you know, just like your face isn't the only place you can do a peel on, right? You have skin on your entire body, including intimate areas, underarms, and knees. It's a really good choice for people that have, it usually happens if you're like all over darker, let's say Fitzpatrick 4 through 6, tend to get like darkness on the joints like your knuckles and your knees, elbows, under arms, and actually that's into the intimate areas too. Down in between your thighs and the buttocks, there's definite darkness, so that's, I'm sure that's a common one why people are choosing this.

And then you've got things like keratosis pilaris, hyperpigmentation from years of sun damage, and all that kind of stuff. So, you know, at least it is easy, like our prep is easy, because there are only so many things that you can do. We recommend that you gently exfoliate your skin beforehand, and we suggest using an acid.

So, we have a couple of options. You can use both, or you can use one or the other. Body wash contains 15% acid, right? This is glycolic and lactic. This is something you can use every single day. You get a little free puff with it, just a gentle buffing, which helps remove a lot of dead skin.

Another one that you can use is our Triple Treat. This is a 25% body lotion that contains glycolic, mandelic, and lactic acids, as well as Shea and DMAE, hyaluronic acid, and other beneficial ingredients for tightening and moisturizing. This one, though, you can't just use; we don't even recommend using it every day. We generally recommend using this between three and five times per week, ideally every other day.

You could probably start with two or three times a week. You'll find that you put it on, it might be a little warm, you might feel a slight tingling, and you may not, but if you started using this every single day, it would be too much. You would be like irritated and excessively pink, and we don't want that.

Let's face it, it's a treatment lotion, not a super-moisturizing body lotion.

I may literally change the name. I may consider changing it to 'treatment' instead of 'body lotion,' because when people see 'body lotion,' they assume it's an everyday lotion, and I almost want to change it to say, 'This is a treatment.'

This is not necessarily your everyday body lotion. This is, if you think about it, like a quarter of this bottle is acid, sticky acid. It smells; it's not a luxurious lotion. You could apply your luxurious lotion on top of this, first as a treatment, then layer it with your own lotion. We've done everything possible to make this the most luxurious it can be, but still, it cannot be the most beautiful result.

Well, and I do get feedback where it's a little sticky, so less is more. That acid, acid is sticky. Always wash your hands thoroughly after application.

Yeah, it's not, doesn't feel good on the arms.

And, as you said, you can moisturize afterward and let it sink in for a few minutes. A thin layer is all you need. You don't need to apply globs of it; just a nice, thin, smooth layer. And, as you said, alternate with another lotion.

Every other day, like with shea butter, that'd be great. Alternate with shea butter, but any store lotion.

I also get clients to mix a pump of the Triple Treat with a pump of gentle body lotion and apply it that way.

Then you're diluting it in half, so if that 25% is too strong for you, yeah, a pump of this mixed with a pump of something else, now you've just cut that 25 in half, and that can make it a lot more tolerable for people if you have sensitive skin.

But you do need this prep. We want to remove some of that dead skin.

Right.

We want to get it even, and we don't want you to scrub your elbows and scrubbing your knees. We want to let the acid gently dissolve the excess skin, so you have a nice, even layer. Because like, just like when you clean your face, people are so aggressive to their cheeks.

That's why like prep is never physical exfoliation. It's always done with an acid, so it's even throughout the whole body, gentle, and you don't have areas that've been aggressively exfoliated. We want even. That's the entire point of this.

It makes sense.

So yeah. Additionally, Fade Bright is now available in larger sizes, which we use for the body. This helps to reduce melanin production. So, you'll find that this is helpful if you have hyperpigmentation that you're trying to treat, years of sun damage, and freckling, among other issues. Or this is mandatory if you are Fitzpatrick 4 or darker. Mandatory. Now we recommend this for everyone, but absolutely required if you're 4.

I want to emphasize that even if you have light skin due to your heritage, such as having lighter skin, you're not necessarily falling into Fitzpatrick 4, but you're still more prone to that classification. I find that if you have any kind of tan, or if you appear to have a tan at all, you should be using Fade Bright or another alternative. I don't want to just force everybody into this. Many people have prescriptions for hydroquinone and similar products.

Absolutely. Hydroquinone or alpha arbutin, both of those. You should prepare for at least four weeks. The darker your skin is, the longer you should prep.

Yes, absolutely.

That's as simple as the preparation is. Exfoliate, use a melanin inhibitor, and you're good to go.

Let's touch base on one tip.

Yeah.

They will want to stop using TripleTreat for how many days?

Four to six days prior to your peel.

Just like your face.

Prior to each peel treatment.

Yes, you definitely need to stop that.

You would not want to use this the day before you apply a peel.

And then you'll hold off on that until after you've exfoliated after your peel.

Yeah, that's okay. So, this is what I've found: the body takes longer to peel. I find that we're looking at 10 to 14 days before you notice, for example, if you do your arm. Now you're finally noticing some dryness, and you're thinking, ' Okay, this is starting. '

I wouldn't be applying this every single day up to that point. I mean, I wouldn't be using anything like this. I'd be using Shea butter, emu oil, or another lotion.

Hydration.

Just hydrate like normal. Now, once the skin is busy exfoliating and all that kind of stuff, let's say you're three weeks into this, because it's roughly 30 days, and you're not sensitive, you've got little bits on, you could start using this again towards the end. I think that's fine.

Same with the body wash?

I didn't even stop. Just like when I made the body wash, I didn't really stop it. I just don't find it irritating.

Yeah.

I was very gentle with it, and I don't find this irritating at all.

It leaves your skin feeling incredibly hydrated, despite being a moisturizing product. It has such amazing exfoliation properties.

Yes, it does. You can use this, but, like with anything, if it's irritating you, then don't use it.

Right. Yeah.

I mean, let's face it, it is a controlled chemical burn.

Yeah.

If you find that you're applying something and it stings or burns, rinse it off and wait a few more days.

Put something else on. Yeah. Right. So now we can, well, crepey skin. I have this crepey skin escape here to remind me.

That is another reason why people do peels.

It's another reason.

Yeah.

And that kind of leads me into, you know, which acid you should choose and how gentle it should be. Because technically, you know, the skin is thicker than it is on the face. So you can usually use a higher percentage. Someone with a skin tone like mine, probably a Fitzpatrick type one or two, could use TCA 30.

Right.

Here's TCA 30.

Right.

I could use this. I wouldn't have any trouble with this.

Right.

But somebody else who has, let's say, crepey skin that's like where it's kind of thin and papery, and you see that it's thinner, it's more delicate. I would not recommend a 30. I might recommend a 13.

Right.

Maybe a 20.

Sure.

You know, it really depends. So, when you're choosing, let's say, what percentage of TCA to use, you really have to go by A, your skin tone.

Right.

Because the darker your skin is, the milder the percentage you should use. And the thinner your skin is, I mean, you could use a 13.

Yeah.

I've seen people do a 13. I've seen people even use a 7 because, let's say, they've some for their face and put it on there.

Well, it still peels.

Yeah. You kind of forget you did it. And then two weeks later, you look down and you're like, oh, look at that.

Yes. You're likely to experience a more aggressive peel if you use the higher percentage, but it's not safe for everyone. This is only safe for somebody with, you know, skin like me, like a ghost that's not thin or crepey or anything like that. Always start with a lower percentage. If you're unsure, opt for the lower rate over the higher one.

Yeah.

Because you can always add more layers.

Yes.

And when you've used up that bottle, you have, then you can move to the next percentage if you think that's best. And I do want to state, too, that when you reach the 30, you can add lots of layers with the 7, 13, and 20. You can simply add layers on. With the 30, that kind of stops.

Yeah.

One layer is recommended. For some people, using two layers might be acceptable. I would never ever recommend more than that. And I would recommend that with extreme caution.

Yes.

And in the manual, I have updated to the latest version. I would rather see you do a 30 and then maybe do a second layer of a 20 or a 13 or a lower percentage. So, it's because 30 plus 30 is just so aggressive. In the manual, it says I'd rather see you put one layer of 30 and then the next layer of, say, 20.

Yes.

If you feel the need, it's safer. It's safer. 30 is so strong.

Let's discuss briefly how TCA is formulated so that it can be diluted to lower strengths with purified water.

Yeah. You can adjust this to any percentage you prefer. And that is in your manual. It will show you how to achieve anywhere from 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, or 30% growth. You can obviously play around with those numbers and create any percentage you like. And if you visit our website and go to our video page, at platinumskincare.com/videos, it's a great place to start. It's actually redone.

Now, there are various categories and search bars, and other similar features. You can search for dilution. We have a video on dilutions. When you visit the page for all the different acids we offer, you'll find a variety of dilutions available for your use. So you can take this one. You could take the 13 and turn it into lower percentages. We've provided you with the ratios to help you do that. The video will also show you how to do that physically. It's really easy. Don't be scared of it.

What can clients expect from a body peel? We know it takes longer to peel.

Yeah.

Obviously, consistency is key.

Yeah. I don't think that's the number one thing. Like, let's say Jessners. Let's say you chose Jessners because you have some pigmentation. Everybody thinks that I can just do one peel, and I haven't seen anything. I did, I did a peel, and I did two more peels, but I still have, you know, pigment, or I have more pigmentation.

Well, why would that be? Let's take a moment to unwrap that. If you did a series of peels or had skin removed, what's underneath?

Right.

Years and years of sun damage. The peel itself is not causing any new pigmentation. It's not, that's not how it works. It is just taking off layers.

Sure.

And now you've got, you might've had a, you know, you didn't have this freckle here, and after three peels, now you do.

It's exposed it.

It's exposing it. It's bringing it up, up and out, up and out, is what I constantly am telling people. It's coming up because they're panicked. It created a new one, no, it didn't. No, it didn't. It's just bringing up the damage, and you've to continue along with that cycle.

A series consists of six to eight peels in a row. Often, one series is not enough, not for a lifetime. You're 50 years old and you've been in the sun since you were, you know, 2.

Sure.

You have a lot of pigmentation in there. So it takes a long time. And you know, you can also apply it to your face. You can combine, for example, a layer of Jessner with a layer of TCA. I don't recommend that with the 30.

Let's just say no to that. However, I would recommend Jessner plus a 13% or Jessner plus a 20% solution, similar options. So, if you've advanced peels, you know, because we're saying, ' Here's Jessner, here's TCA. '

You don't have to choose one. You know, you can use both just like on the face; you can tackle more than one. Perhaps you have crepey skin and hyperpigmentation. I think many people have that same combination, you know, maybe doing the Jessner and the TCA 13, or the Jessner and the 20.

We always recommend using the acids independently first to ensure that you know which acid you're using before combining them, because if a reaction were to occur, you can't say which acid was responsible.

And it could be, let's say, Resorcinol and Jessner, and you put that on; you don't notice much irritation because it's just a mild irritation. Then you put the TCA on top of that and make it 10 times worse.

So yeah, always. And I don't, I don't particularly suggest doing just a tester either. I would like to see you do a full peel. If whatever body parts you're going to peel, if it's your legs, do that.

Yes.

And then next month, do the other acid. And you're sure everything works well together. Then you can layer them.

And that just brought up something else. That made me think about how much of your body you can cover at one time.

Good point.

So what I'm talking about, Oh, you're like, so what is okay? Like, how much of your body can you cover at one time?

Yes.

You know, you don't want to do a full body. You can't just dip yourself into a bathtub and be, you know, 90% of your body. That's too much. It's too much for your body to process.

So we'd like you to break things up. And I like to normally say, I think it's, I think it's like around 20% or something along those lines.

I was thinking 25%.

20 or 25%.

Yeah.

I could probably come up with an exact figure, but let's say you want to do your full legs. I would suggest, I think, the easiest way is to do one full leg one day and then do the next whole leg the next day.

Okay.

Now, I suppose you could say, 'Do the lower half today and then the upper tomorrow.' However, you may not know if you're revisiting areas that you've already treated with the peel. I think I'd like to do a whole leg today. That's good. However, you're doing many layers for the entire leg tomorrow.

Yes. If you're doing arms, like, yeah, you could do your arms. You could probably even do like a décolleté and arms. Try to aim for around 20 to 25%. And our new app will actually contain some information.

It will include the body parts and their corresponding percentages. You can gauge whether you need to break it up a little further, but we don't want you to put too much acid on your body in one day. You have to do things safely.

And then we always recommend drinking a lot of water, especially if you've done something like Jessners, because there's salicylic and resorcinol. We recommend drinking at least a large glass of water after your peel.

décolleté that made me think of something. So, our decolletage, or chest, is much thinner. Typically, we consider body peels to be treatments that target areas from the shoulders down. However, your face, neck, and chest décolleté should be treated with a milder acid. Although this is technically the body, it is more sensitive to changes.

It is. And it's kind of okay. Your face peels the fastest, right? You're talking 6 to 10 days, a hundred percent done. Your neck is a little smidge slower, and your decolletage is a little smidge slower. This one is probably around 10 to 14 days by the time your décolleté is done.

However, once you move to your arms, trunk, and legs, you're looking at a 30-day period.

Yes.

It's just a slower process, but yeah, that's right. I tend to say that whatever you're putting on your face, you can generally put at least one layer of that on your neck and décolleté. But if you're moved up to something more substantial, maybe you're doing a 20 on your face by now. I usually tell people to start with something like the seven on your neck, the neck, and the deck, 7.

Start with a milder formula because it is more sensitive, and it may feel okay while you're applying it. However, later you'll develop red blotches or a rash, and then what do you do? Usually, 1% hydroquinone is the first choice for helping to soothe irritation, rashes, and similar conditions.

But I had a customer send an email just this week. She did her décolletage with 50% glycolic acid. She was doing a face peel. Okay. She did face, neck, and chest, and ended up layering the glycolic, even though glycolic is technically not a layered peel. They get a little confused. She was confused. She layered that. Her face reacted perfectly fine to the 50% glycolic acid, but within days, she had developed numerous small bumps on her neck and chest area, simply due to a more aggressive layering.

And glycolic is just more irritating.

Yeah, it is more irritating.

It's a smaller molecule. It's significantly smaller than TCA, which throws a wrench into the whole thing. You would think that it penetrates deeper. No, glycolic is far smaller than TCA is.

So it's more irritating.

It's more irritating.

So yeah, her face was fine. She didn't have a single bump or any other issue on her face, but her neck and chest were extremely irritated. And it just reacts differently.

It does. It's completely different. It's so strange to think of because most people think, well, can I do a 30? I want to do a TCA.

No, no, you will be so, so, so sorry.

Absolutely. Yeah. That's a good point to ensure that they are treating the chest and face, or the chest, like your face.

Yes, for sure.

One comes to my mind immediately.

Okay.

So, there were a few ladies in the group who did hand peels, and some glorious before-and-after photos were posted. They looked terrific and were very well presented. People thought it wasn't the same hand.

Oh, I love that.

It was.

Yeah. There's a photo of that on one of the testimonials. And it's because she had already done the peel. It was a little aged-looking and dry. And the next one was done. They're like, that's not the same lady. And I'm like, yes, it is.

These testimonials come right from customers' emails.

Yeah. There's no faking these.

Absolutely not. When those emails come in, I review them when they're particularly amazing. I tag, tag you in them, and here we are. But I was so surprised to see some of the feedback and these amazing photos. And it's just not the one. I mean, there have been instances where it's been a drastic improvement. And I feel like that is so motivating to someone who looks down and sees some little age spots and things.

Think about it. The aging of your hands can be reversed. They're out there.

Even if you're applying sunblock to your face, are you also using it on your hands? Probably not.

Yeah.

Not unless you're on vacation or something.

Yeah. Really, really cool. Before and after on the guru page. Additionally, I'm sure it's on the TCA page.

Oh gosh. There are thousands of reviews on the TCA page, and it still maintains a five-star rating because even the negative reviews are outweighed by the overwhelmingly positive ones. Because if you're doing things right and following the proper procedures, you're prepping correctly, performing your peels properly, and taking care of your post-treatment correctly, you're understanding that it's not a one-time event.

Right. It's a process.

You have a process, and you need to be diligent about following it. If you do that and take your photos, I mean, I can't stress that enough. When you're getting ready to start something, take a photo.

Even if it's just a regimen or you're only going to use these, take a photo.

Yes.

Because then you take one every single month, and then start comparing those photos, and you will be amazed at how much transformation you can achieve with the right kind of product or the right kind of peels.

That also gives you a great deal of self-motivation when you see results. Like you said, when you look in the mirror every day, you may not be looking at this spot or that spot.

It's subtle. You don't notice.

And then when you do those side by sides, you're like, whoa.

It's night and day. It is night and day. Most people even start doing stuff like this. They're always like, I didn't even realize. I didn't even realize my skin looked that bad until now. My skin is so smooth and beautiful. And I'm like, oh, you know. 

There's a nice glow back to it.

Yeah.

When you have a lot of dead skin, it looks kind of dull and built up.

It does. It's dull. It's not glowy and shiny, and everybody wants that glow.

Yeah. Absolutely. If you require additional information, please don't hesitate to contact us at support@platinumskincare.com.

Yeah. Or you can give us a phone call.

Yes.

We're available Monday through Friday.

800-917-3155, or in the Facebook group.

And then, yes, join Platinum Skincare Gurus with all the tens of thousands of other people who share their stories, photos, and get help. I'm in there every single day. I read every single post, and I pretty much post and answer every single post.

There's a little search tool at the top of that page.

There is. You can search hand peels and see all those, you know, all the evidence that you were talking about.

Perfect.

All right.

All right. Have a good day.