While it’s true that men can age gracefully, that’s not something we should just trust to happen on its own. We can’t all be George Clooney in that aspect (or others!). The truth is that there are some basics that Gents can stick to in order to keep looking and feeling their best as they age. Let’s talk about them.
Healthy Living
Unsurprisingly, sleep, exercise, and eating well are excellent guards not just to slow aging, but to accelerate living.
- Sleep gives your body time to rest and repair, including repair of your largest organ: your skin.
- Exercise helps to improve your skin’s elasticity, which keeps wrinkles away. And you don’t have to limit yourself just to your gym routine. Easy hacks include taking the stairs as often as practicable and using items like standing desks to promote movement.
- Eating well improves skin tone, supports collagen production (eat more fruit and vegetables), and keeps your skin hydrated (cut back on sugar).
Skincare Routine
While our members tell us that they really enjoy the skincare routines that they receive at our clubs, they sometimes feel unable to keep those routines up on their own at home. Women truly understand the importance of a skincare routine, even though it’s we men that are twice as likely as women to develop skin cancer. Men’s skin is thicker and has a higher concentration of blood vessels and needs to be taken care of. If a face is simply left to the elements it will look like that’s the case, sooner or later. A “routine” works for the gym just as well as it works for our faces.
The bare minimum you should be doing as a Gent is washing with a facial cleanser and finishing with a moisturizer at the end of each day (both are available at our clubs). If you want to really take care of business, in between the cleanser and the moisturizer you can add a serum, which goes into lower layers of your skin to promote collagen production. You can finish off the routine with eye cream after you’ve put a moisturizer on.
You can add to this daily routine by using a facial scrub 1-2 times a week to more deeply cleanse your skin.
The last part of a daily skincare routine is the one that you should take care of before you head out the door: a basic sunscreen. UV rays break down collagen and slow down the growth of new cells. Even if you’re not working out in the sun all day, you should put on some sunscreen before you go out and a few times during the day.
Moderate the Alcohol and Tobacco
We’re the first to say that alcohol, tobacco, and firearms should be a convenience store, not a government agency, but moderation is a smart practice in many areas of life, not just in these particular areas. Alcohol and tobacco will dehydrate your skin and bring on some of those effects that a good routine can guard against. Again, we would never say avoid these pleasures entirely. But have better awareness of how they are affecting you, especially as you age.
Is there a personal tip you’ve got that you’d add to this list? Share with us in the comments below.
