Women under 50 need not respond

[AnotheChinHair]

Sorry for such an ageist subject title, but I am often drawn to threads that ask for foundation, shampoo, etc. recommendations and then realise that the OP and respondents are in their 30s and feel like I need some discussion with women my age.

My hair has changed, my skin looks different, my body aches, my eyebrows are faint and full of greys... I was wondering if you're 50 or over, could you share your wisdom on how you've adapted your grooming?

I'd be particularly interested in hair products (my hair is fine, prone to frizz and def. thinning and receding), my skin is still combination I think, and I would like to find a long lasting oil free full/medium coverage foundation that doesn't look dry around my eyes (currently using ELDW), and also supplements that make you feel and look better.

I have a horrible carb face after the sugar excesses of Christmas, and I have stopped drinking alcohol as I clearly don't tolerate it anymore.

I should exercise more but my knee hurts.
Recently started hrt patches and that has helped with night sweats.

Hope others can share what's been helpful.

Eek 50 very soon and this has scared me!!

I've had my hair cut shorter and it feels and looks so such better. I use a bb cream with spf in. I don't use a lot of make up as I also think it can be aging. I used to be very fit and active, I'm now over weight and my body is starting to ache so I need to sort myself out. I find wearing comfortable, appropriate clothing makes people look better rather than trying to keep up with the latest fashion. Very blonde or very dark hair needs to be left to the younger generation. I've always looked after my skin. I often use the Aldi products. They do a miracle cream which is a replica of the Elizabeth Arden one, I've used both and can't tell them apart. It's quite greasy but I use it at night. If I don't use bb cream, I always use either a high factor sun cream or a face cream with an spf in. Again im using Aldi Caviar range at the moment. When I buy sun cream I always buy one with a 5 star rating on the bottle, I don't buy expensive but always make sure it's a high factor and 5 star ( maximum protection). Before lockdown I had my lashes done but haven't bothered since I just use mascara. The same with my nails. I do them myself now and keep them short.

Here you go

@DameCelia has nailed it.
Can we talk about how we all achieve this though - ideas to motivate each other - how to meal plan, how to prioritise exercise, which routines do we all do, how to stay motivated etc.

I suppose I know what I should be doing, but actually doing it is tough - any tips/hacks?

Don't know if it's possible these days but if you're in an area where you can get into a branch of Boots I would really recommend their No 7 HydraLuminous mosturising foundation.

The assistant matches your skin tone to the right shade and she got mine spot on. No need to put it on all over the face either..fine just on the nose and cheeks. Good coverage yet very light.
Not expensive either.

I'm over 60 and have had thinning hair for years. I didn't do HRT, but my sister did; it didn't help her thinning hair but ruined her teeth.

I've tried minoxidil and got heart palpitations as a result, so stopped. The only thing I find that helps is Batiste dry shampoo. It now comes in dark brown which darkens and thickens your roots. Brilliant stuff. My hairdresser cut my hair very short, which looked great.

The best thing regarding foundation is wearing a high SPF tinted moisturizer (Clinique) all the time. Sun kills your skin. This also helps with rosacea.

Can't help much with eyebrows. I'm lucky in that I've always been told mine are a nice shape and they are brown with no grey in them. I put this down to not messing about with them when I was younger. The first time I plucked them was for my wedding when I was 26 and my friend encouraged me to have them done. I second advise about being careful with them, don't go overboard. The heavy 'slug look' looks awful on most people especially if you are over 25.

Happy birthday @52today. Looking good. Nice dog - I think he's a bit older than 52 in dog years.

50 in Feb, but am told regularly I can pass for mid 30s. I think I’m on the cusp of meno and I’ve had medicated thyroid issues for 8 years.

Exercise x 5 weekly including lifting heavy weights and cardio.
Aldi midnight secret cream and eye gel every night
Dr Organic Manuka honey hand and foot cream plus The face cream every other day.
On the alternate day , the Aldi face oil mixed with skinny tan face drops.

I try and eat well though I’ve drank far too much over Xmas and bored rigid now the gyms have shut , this is going to be a real struggle for me.

I wear much less make up than I used to , I find heavy eye make up terribly ageing on me.

@52today happy birthday and great photo - you don’t look 52!

Aww thank you! Doggie is 102!

My brows have always been shit and sparse, I block them in with a Bobbi Brown wax kit - the assistant had to talk me into going a shade lighter than I wanted but she was right.

Foundation is not my friend. It just sits in the creases. I get on much better with a CC cream - used to be a BB cream but my skin tone appears to be much, much redder now so CC it is. The formulation is basically a moisturiser so it doesn't sit on the skin. Full foundation is ageing, to be honest I find it ageing on young women too!

Hair - so this is an odd one. I've bleached and coloured my hair all my life and have always been very adventurous with hair colour. I did a platinum bleach just before the first lockdown, which left me with a horrendous root issue, so I cut my hair really short and now have my natural hair colour for the first time in ever and it really suits me! It's gentler and more flattering. I don't feel like I stand out as much, but I feel like I look better if that makes sense. (I do have very few greys though not a stealth boast)

I'm 50 on Monday, lock down birthday for me. I also have fine, thinning hair which I wear in a bob. I take Alive multivitamin jelly's for 50+ which I think helps. I can't say I've found a miracle product for my hair, if I don't wash it it still gets greasy and I also work out most days so it needs to be washed. I do tend to use sulphate free products.
I prefer a tinted moisturiser to heavy foundation and use Lumene invisible illumination or Erborian CC cream.
Currently using Max Factor master piece max which doesn't irritate my eyes. Also love Nyx brow pencil.
Basic Skincare for my combination skin, cerave hydrating cleanser, a vitamin C daytime and cerave moisturiser and SPF. Nightime I use the ordinary niacinimide and Beautypie retinol serum.

I recommend Yoga for maintaining strength . Definitely going to try collagen powder, my skin is looking very dry. I recently invested in a nuface mini, it has sorted out my jowels and jaw line.

I second Nioxin.

Here is how it works.....

The cleanser (shampoo) ....shampoo to cleanse the scalp, what this does is remove any gunk, oil or build up of product that is currently blocking pores/ follicles . This gunk blockage prevents new hair from growing so by unblocking the pores is the first step to new hair growing.
Scalp therapy.... second step. The shampoo, as well as removing all of the gunk, it also removes some of the good natural oils. apply scalp therapy to the scalp and leave on for about 5 mins and this will replace some of the goodness that the shampoo has removed .
Nioxin treatment step 3. Has a nozzle so apply only a couple of squirts directly onto scalp. Let the liquid run down your scalp. This treatment encourages and stimulates your blood to come to the surface and in doing so, your blood feeds, enriches and stimulates the hair follicles thus encouraging new growth.

If you use this product, give it time to work. If you don’t notice a difference and stop using it......then this is when you will then notice how good your hair was when you were using it.

It’s £20 for a pack of all 3 products.

Several of you have mentioned the importance of lifting weights to stave off muscle loss. Please can you recommend an online routine and where to get weights.

As regards the rest, I don’t think it’s age so much as menopause. I think a multivitamin plus Calcichew D3 ( it’s almost impossible to get as much calcium as you need from food post menopause) helps a bit plus daily exercise. I’m not a gym person but the cross trainer in the spare room that we hung our washing on for years has come in to it’s own. 20-30 mins on it daily depending on my state of exhaustion will hopefully keep heart and lungs healthier.

64 here and watching with interest
My contributions....
My hair is shoulder length, blonde ( hilift whatever that is) and has started to become a bit brittle when I put it in a ponytail so stopped that and using a leave in hair conditioner. Seems to be helping
Started to use a bit of concealer on top of my max factor 24 hr foundation to blend in some age spots
Concerted effort to keep weight down to help with joints. Especially as I have knee arthritis and apparently for every pound you lose it makes a positive difference to the knee pain. That definitely seems to be working.
Alcohol,I don’t drink any due to migraine trigger so I think that has helped in some way.
Always use sun cream and a wide brimmed hat.
I always wear perfume and dress nicely as it makes me feel better about myself
So I need help with sleep! Since peri menopause day one aged 50 I stopped sleeping well. Although over the menopause now I still wake up every bloody 2 hours!
One more thing, when I was a boots Saturday girl in the 70’s a wise woman told me to remember to moisturise my neck every single day! Think it’s helped keep something at bay!

Thank you everyone. There's so much information in this thread, I think I'll keep coming back to it for days!!!

As per EvelynBeatrice's post, I'd also like recommendations of a specific dvd for women our age to aid with weight loss, what weights to get, etc.

I have found my people!

57. I have good skin but am fed up with thinning hair and the receding! I am googling hair transplant clinics! In the meantime I wear it short.

My jawline is going though and my neck -apart from moisturising not sure what else i can do! I did have Botox and some filler in my ‘marionette lines’ a couple of years ago. I may do that again. Realise that’s not for everyone.

I love the gym. Being fit and wearing nice clothes helps me look ok for my age.

This is the only mascara I can wear now at 53, same issue with sensitive eyes since menopause. www.boots.com/la-roche-posay-respectissime-mascara---volume-76ml-10226271p

Hair has always been fine but lots of it. It did thin for a while but turned out I was iron deficient and supplementing iron seemed to solve that. So maybe get that checked. Amazon do home test kits quite cheaply for this.

CC cream and I tint my eyebrows at home now. Walking and home weights are great for strength. Also cheated a little and bought this for my not great tummy muscles. Really worked, although it took around six weeks to start to see big improvements. www.amazon.co.uk/Bodi-Tek-Unisex-Abdominal-Arms-Toning/dp/B01HOEVH2E/ref=sr_1_6?dchild=1&crid=1IFU7EQD5Z3IS&keywords=body+tek+ab+toner&sprefix=body+tek+ab%2Caps%2C184&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&qid=1609588651&sr=8-6

I'm 66 and, if it's any consolation, once I was finally through the menopause my skin improved no end and is now probably better than it's ever been. I use Nivea Q10 serum, day and night cream, which seems to be keeping my skin soft and reasonably smooth.
My hair is very fine so I have a short pixie cut and zhuzh it up with some stuff my hairdresser recommends. I don't colour it as I quite like the grey when it's this short.
I don't use much make up now, but always use Benefit Gimme Brow if I'm going out, especially now we're wearing masks. Before I would just have some dark rose/plum lipstick.
If I do wear foundation I like Clarins - can't remember what it's called, but it's a light liquid and stays on really well but I can't feel it, so it's a winner.

59 here! I've gone against the accepted wisdom and actually grown my hair over the last couple of years - its now a messy/layered bob rather than short and I think is slightly more forgiving of my rounder face (and saggy neck). It also means my thinner hair is less noticeable. I've become a great fan of Philip Kingsley elasticiser which keeps it in great condition, and I stopped dyeing it several years ago - it seems to have stuck at salt & pepper which is fine by me. With exercise, I came back to pilates a few years ago, and can't see myself ever stopping - it keeps a degree of suppleness going.

XiCi Hair - collagen powder.

I have the thinning hair problem and receding at the front. I've tried the usual supplements with little success but I'm cautiously optimistic that collagen is making a difference. I only started taking it a couple of months ago so I don't know long-term, but it's worth a try.

Mine is from Edible Health. You can buy it directly from them or from Amazon.

A bonus is that my thumbnail is stronger. It's tended to split for years and now seems normal.

Really interesting thread and many useful tips. I'm not quite 50 but have had so many health issues, including cancer, I feel 70 most days!
I'm interested in the collagen powder. Can anyone recommend one? And there's a beef one and a marine one on Amazon. Anyone tried either of these?
Dry shampoo is my best friend as my hair is fine and silky, floppy looking most of the time. I also lightly define my brows with a Rimmel brow pencil in brown. (Not too much as I don't want the slug look!)

Maudesmum, I agree, that’s why I’ve got shoulder length hair, hides a multitude of aging stuff!