This is especailly true for women as some how, women tend to age faster compared to men in terms of loo. Men for some reason, tend to look better when they age. This is demostrated with those male hollywood stars like Johnny Depp ( I used to like him alot in 21 Jump Street when he was young but I really love him when he got older… so much more! ). Well, stars aside, we ordinary folks also want to look fabulous as we age!

I have been told numerous times that I don’t look my age. I look far younger than I look and always surprised people when I revealed my age. Secret? Well, there are a few "secrets" that I believe in :

1. Use sunblock! That is my number one must do before I step out of the house. This is one scientific fact that has been proven by dermatologist all over the world that we really need to keep the sun out! Above SPF 15 please! Currently I am using SPF50… better to be very safe then sorry…

2. Yoga of course! One of the most importance thing that I do to keep me youthful is of course yoga! I strongly recommend doing inversions as one of the best way to stay young as in our normal day to day  life, we hardly have any chance to allow blood to flow towards our head and face area. Headstands and handstands and even the simple downward dog are terrific way to keep our skin radiant.

3. Then comes what we eat and drink. Do you know that sugar or rather processed food is the number one enemy of premature aging? So think twice before you sink your teeth into sweet things like doughnuts, sweets, cakes etc. But then again who can resist? I for one, will still indulge in some sweets once a while…. but of course, not everyday!

4. Then we need to good facial products to upkeep our fragile skin on our face. Depending on your skin type, always choose those products that are suitable and if possible go for natural products. I tried to use those products from normal shops like Watsons from brandnames like Loreal, Garnier and Olay, but somehow my skin hates them as they are pretty oily they feel heavy on my skin. I am especially adverse to loreal products as using them often causes "oil" sacs on my face! Anyway, I have already given up on using these products.

However, recently I discovered this particular cream from the US which seems to be working well for me. It smells funny ( probably due to the content of Alpha Lipoic and DMAE )  and look like those light brown foundation cream but once you use it, you know that it works! A tiny dab each to the cheecks and forehead is more than enough. The skin feels firmer and softer in an instant. I love it! But remember a little goes a long way! I was greedy once and use alot on my neck and there was some redness as a result of that ( coupled with a few sprays of perfume which chemically spell bad news ).  Plus, its pretty cheap!

This cream is by Derma E : DMAE Alpha-Lipoic-C-Ester Retexturizing Creme

So far I give it a thumbs up as it is working for my skin ( firming and moisturing + anti-aging all in one bottle) and it does not cause any oil sacs. The only thing to note is not to use too much of it at one go. I bought mine here with the discount coupon HEW497 to get $5 off your first order.

5. Finally the most important thing I do every single without fail is to drink lots of water! Water is so important to flush out all the toxins of the water as well as to keep our skin supple. In fact, the less you drink water, the more your body tends to retain the water. Your skin will look clearer and more radiant if you drink water to help the body detox.

But I still went for class on Tuesday, with the hopes that yoga can straighten out this problem. But it did not. I cannot lift the head up right. Oh boy… now I know how precious each part of our body is!

So how to straighten out this neck strain? Bo and Shirley taught me this neat way ( very effective! after doing it once, the pain subsided a fair bit ) :

Turn your head as far as you can to one side, then use your hand and push against the outside cheek. Eg. if you turned to your left, then put your hand on the right cheek. Then push on your cheek using the hand and your head push back on your hand. ( try to do this somewhere where no one can see you… otherwise you will look funny with your face squashed against your own hands… haha : ) )

Test out this tip and see if it really helps your neck strain if you ever had one and let me know if it works. Or if you have any tip that can help get rid of the strain fast, drop me a line here too!

The neck’s much better now. I really need to get my yoga kick… I miss my headstands and handstands….

OM~