I am frequently told that I do not look my age. I do wonder if this is partly because I don’t ACT my age, but to be fair I’ve never been 52 before.
But it is true that people usually guess my age around 10 years younger than I actually am. So today I’m going to share my secrets for looking young.
#1 Be born into a family with women who don’t look their age. I cannot stress the importance of this enough. Genetics trump anything the cosmetics industry can offer.
#2 Embrace being pale. Tanning beds are the second easiest way to give yourself cancer (after smoking). But even the real sun causes permanent damage to your skin. I’m SUPER indoorsy most of the time and my skin is the beneficiary of my decades of spending time inside my house. It’s also great for my allergies, but that’s not important right now.
#3 Start moisturizing young. I starting using Oil of Olay for oily skin in college after getting a sample in a “welcome kit” at the University of Minnesota in 1992. I use different products now, but that sample bottle got me to start moisturizing at age 20, well before most girls my age.
#4 Have a fuller face. They show fewer wrinkles.
I hope by now you’re getting the joke I’m trying to make. I look younger than I am almost entirely because of dumb luck. I can no more take credit for my youthful appearance than I can my eye color. I don’t eat particularly healthy. I don’t drink as much water as I should (but I AM getting better at that). I don’t work out like I should. I’ve preferred being indoors to outdoors since I was a kid.
And at the end of the day, who cares what age I look? Who cares what age anyone looks? It’s what’s inside that counts. We should all know that by now.