Attention winter sports enthusiasts: Time to begin your conditioning. You might have started your cardio and thigh-strengthening exercises already, but what about your outdoor skin-saving routine? Have you given your hair a preventive dose of moisture and nourishment? Remember, your hair and skin are the front line against the elements when you’re out skiing, sledding or skating. That’s why sunscreen is still a must every day, says Dr. Kathy Fields, assistant clinical professor of dermatology at University of California-San Francisco. “The sun is up and shining even on a snowy day. If you see light there are UVA rays, they can cause cancer and will cause wrinkles,” she says. “Sunscreen should be a habit like brushing your teeth.” Ultraviolet B rays are not as strong in the winter, but they’re still a factor, too, she says. Fields, a cofounder of the cosmeceutical skin-care line Rodan and Fields, encourages use of sunscreen with a Sun Protection Factor of 30 or above, and one with a base of either zinc oxide, mexoryl or avobenzone, as opposed to titanium dioxide formulas, which she says are weaker but also are recommended for babies or those with very sensitive skin. No sunscreen, however, works to its fullest capacity if it’s not reapplied throughout the day. “Sunscreen is a two-hour event,” she says. Cold weather outside and dry heat inside is a recipe for dry, cracked skin as it looses moisture and, with it, its barrier layer, Fields says. It’s why people become susceptible to eczema and rough, itchy skin in the winter. Preventive measures include using only gentle cleaners, exfoliating less and using nourishing moisturizers. It also helps to have a humidifier running in the house. For the lips, go for heavier petroleum-jelly-based moisturizers, which are most effective after the lips have been polished gently with a pumice. On the skin, choose a moisturizing foundation, but don’t put it all over your face. Instead, treat it like concealer, dabbing a big under the eyes, around the nostrils and tip of the nose, and the tip of the chin. Hair presents other challenges. It gets dry in cold and wind, and dry hair breaks. However, if you tuck your hair into a hat, you’re stuck with hat hair. Either way, there’s static at the end. “Don’t let your hair hang out when you’re skiing,” says Andrew Bartfield, vice president of education at L’Oréal Professionnel. “People love the look of it hanging out the bottom of the hat, but wind and cold are ripping through it and that’s worse than sun and salt every day in the summer.”