I'm early 20's and want to grow old gracefully - what do I need to know?

[Blackbird1234]

Very lighthearted thread - Just as the title says, really. I'm in my early 20s and take pride in my appearance (not meaning that I'm vain, but that I enjoy taking care of my skin, body, health, diet etc in order to stay healthy).

I'd like to grow old gracefully and am wondering if there is anything that I should be doing already? For example: I've read that you should use anti-ageing products from a young age - but is this the case?

Basically, any tips that anyone has would be very appreciated, thanks :)

Sunscreen. Don't forget the backs of your hands.

Plenty of sleep, limit the alcohol and above all else avoid fillers and Botox.

Yep sunscreen every day on neck and décolletage. And don’t stress

And face obviously...

It's mostly genetic, so please just enjoy your youth. Growing old gracefully is about your attitude and the extent to which you keep your brain active and do not let your perspectives become too inwards facing and myopic.

Take care of your teeth, read widely, practice kindness and cultivate a circle of friends. Forget skincare nonsense:)

Eye cream, and laugh lots.
Agree with sun screen

they say if you colour your hair it starts graying earlier.

Sunscreen, moisturiser, drink plenty of water, don’t drink too much alcohol, low impact exercise regularly, don’t smoke. Working from within will work much better than lotions and potions. Your genes will also play a big role.

sleep, drink water, spf daily and luck that you don’t have too many stresses and worries in your life.

The only “skincare nonsense” you shouldn’t forget is sunscreen.

IMO the best way to grow old gracefully is to learn to value yourself in ways that don't involve your looks. Then it won't bother you so much when you start to lose them

Sunscreen, do yoga and stop worrying about growing old in your early 20s.

Sunscreen on your hands
Have a happy life and make sure you don't end up scrimping
High or low light never dye
Stay modern but keep it simple and classic
Look after your feet and wear sensible but stylish shoes - the rest of you is irrelevant if on holiday you have bunions and gnarled toenails.
Look after your teeth
Keep make-up light and natural.

I didn't use sunscreen on my hands and now have little white patches due to sun damage. I didn't know.

Thank you!
Ok, so sunscreen - I never go out the house without it if it's sunny, but I assume I should wear it every day regardless of whether the sun is shining? If so, can anyone recommend a budget friendly one for my face/neck? I find the normal body ones to be quite heavy on my face and they make me very shiny/sticky.

Water - check.

Eye cream - I've heard so many things about whether eye cream is actually worth it or not/if it's the same as facial moisturiser, but willing to give it a go - any recommendations?

I love exercise, rarely drink alcohol unless it's a special occasion, don't smoke, wear minimal makeup and have a "classic" clothing style, so all of that check.

And for those that said not to worry about growing old in my 20s - trust me, I'm not haha, I'm just very interested in all of this stuff and am always looking for ways to improve my skincare/health routine but realise that the things I did as a teenager won't necessarily always apply :)

Couldn't second the "look after your feet" comment more vociferously.

More specifically: do not wear high heels to cover long distances, or if your work requires hours on your feet.

The damage you do will take some time to note the effects of, but it is permanent, painful and very real.

I wore nothing but heels in my 20s and early 30s. Can't wear them at all now. It's a shocker.

Apart from avoiding sun and smoking I'm not really interested in skincare so mine are:
Avoid big, heavy shoulder bags. They've wrecked my back and my posture.
If you have the space, put clothes away when they go out of fashion. In 10 or 15 years they'll probably be back and the ones in your cupboard will be much better quality than the ones in the shops.
Read the rules but don't think you have to follow them all.
Learn to sew - one of my most stupid mistakes was to refuse because it was a 'girls' subject.

Aldi do a nice day face cream with a SPF of 30. It costs less than a fiver and feels nice

www.superdrug.com/Skin/Sun-Care/Face-Sun-Cream/NIVEA-SUN-UV-Face-SPF-30-Q10-Anti-Age-%26-Anti-Pigments-50ml/p/752454

I've recently been using this daily and I love it. It doesn't leave a white cast on your face like some SPF products do and it's really moisturising.

Eat your veggies, wear SPF every day, don’t smoke, and remember that growing old is a privilege.

In terms of nice SPFs I love the Bioderma aquafluide or the La Roche Posay anti shine, but finding an SPF you get on with is very personal and a lot of it is trial and error.

You may not be worried about growing old, but you are already considering ways to mitigate the effects. You don't want to grow old gracefully, you are clearly asking for ways to delay ageing.

Growing old gracefully means acceptance. That you will grow old, if you are fortunate. That older women have value. It is the increasingly frantic attempts to hold back the tide which lack grace. You may not be worried now, but the best way to avoid worrying about it in the future is to practice acceptance now.

Looking after your skin, teeth and feet are all part of general health.

use a moisturiser with a high spf. my olay one is spf 30. every day. i started using moisturiser 24 ish. total effects from 30 ish with the spf in it. i look younger than my sister. (she does smoke though).

I'm 36 in 2 weeks. These are the things I wish I'd done from age 25

Stopped smoking (have stopped now though)
Used sunscreen every day
Proper make up removal every time I wear it (not often, but apparently 1 night in makeup ages your skin by 8 days??!)
Looked after my teeth properly

The best thing for my appearance and 'youthfulness' though has been a really healthy, low carb diet and running. It's literally taken years off me and I look healthier than I ever did at 25!

Growing old gracefully means acceptance. That you will grow old, if you are fortunate. That older women have value.
Yes. And tempting as it is, try not to equate looking good with looking youthful.

Oh also handle your skin gently. No pulling, hard scrubbing etc.

IMO the best way to grow old gracefully is to learn to value yourself in ways that don't involve your looks. Then it won't bother you so much when you start to lose them

^ This with knobs on.

If you want physical gracefulness here are the nhs guidelines for physical activity for adults. There is also good evidence to support incorporating activities which improve balance (dancing, tai chi, squash) even for adults who are not at risk of falls.
Ensure you are taking the recommend daily dose of Vit D + calcium to reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis.

Don’t smoke. Eat and drink sensibly.

Nurture your mental health.

For your face probably just using sunscreen is all that matters.