Macros, a new Indian brand that describes its approach as “skin fitness”, takes the idea rather literally. It divides skin health into five “macros”: hydration, defence, detox, protein and repair. More importantly, it has built its basic routine around just two products: an Active Concentrate Multi-Action Face Gel for the morning and Recovery Concentrate Serum-Soaked Wipes for night. The brand says the two together are meant to address all five of those areas.  That sounded manageable enough for me.

I started with the Recovery Concentrate Serum-Soaked Wipes, because these are probably the more unusual of the two. Each pack contains 30 individual wipes, and the instruction is wonderfully uncomplicated: open one before bed, swipe it over the face and neck and leave the serum on. No rinsing afterwards. Macros positions it as a cleanser, moisturiser and serum in one, with ingredients including micellar water, aloe vera, glycerine, bakuchiol, calendula, gotu kola, panthenol and liquorice-root extract.

I used one as the last thing before going to bed. What I liked first was simply how wet the wipe was. This isn’t one of those barely damp facial wipes that drags itself across the skin and gives up halfway through. There is enough serum in it to properly cover the face and neck. And, yes, I could see a difference.

Not the kind of dramatic before-and-after transformation that skincare advertising likes to promise, but my skin looked noticeably fresher and more settled afterwards. By the following morning, it also felt cleaner and softer. There was that small but unmistakable sense that something had changed. For a product that takes less than a minute to use, that impressed me.

It is also the product I can see myself reaching for on nights when I am tired and have absolutely no interest in standing in front of a mirror going through five separate steps. That, really, is where the wipes make sense. Convenience normally comes with some compromise; these don't feel like an afterthought masquerading as skincare.

The Active Concentrate Face Gel comes in at the other end of the day. I used it after my morning shower, which is exactly how Macros recommends applying it: four or five pumps across the face and neck after showering or washing your face. The 50ml gel combines moisturising and serum ingredients with SPF 30, with hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, vitamin E, peptides, Aquaxyl, allantoin and glycerine among the listed actives. 

The first thing that works in its favour is texture. It is light, spreads easily and doesn't leave the skin feeling weighed down. I don't like products that announce themselves on the face for the next three hours. This one settles in quickly, which makes it particularly useful after a morning shower when you want to get dressed and get on with the day rather than wait for layers of skincare to disappear.

My skin felt well hydrated without becoming greasy, and there was none of that heavy sunscreen feel that can make an otherwise good morning product irritating to use regularly. The fact that moisturiser, serum and SPF are sitting in one tube is also the strongest argument for it. The best skincare routine, after all, is the one you will actually follow.

There is fragrance in both products — Macros describes the gel's scent as inspired by Davidoff Cool Water and the wipes as Old Spice-inspired — so anyone who strongly prefers completely fragrance-free skincare should keep that in mind. 

The packaging is clean and unfussy, and so is the proposition.  After using them, it is the Recovery Concentrate Wipes that surprised me most. They are quick, generously soaked and left my skin looking noticeably fresher by the time I went to bed and better the next morning. The Active Concentrate Face Gel, meanwhile, is the easier long-term habit: shower, apply, done. For once, a skincare brand telling me to do less doesn't sound like a bad idea.