Does losing weight make you put ok younger or older?

OnlyoneJasmaine
OnlyoneJasmaine Posts: 5 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi I am 26 years old.... never been good about what I eat and water.... also have a past of yoyo dieting... I am now trying to reverse what I did and look my best. I believe extra weight and my body form being out of shape makes me look older.... however I see heavy set people who look younger. I also see before and after pics of people getting healthy and losing weight and they look younger after which leaves me confused
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Replies

  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    edited December 2016
    It's different for everyone. I look a bit older as I've lost weight but since I look stupidily young for my age, it doesn't bother me. A lot of people do look younger.
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
    Well, taking care of your body makes you look good and it also increases quality of life and longevity.

    A LOT of how we look and age is genetic. Everybody is going to age differently, so that accounts for the inconsistency.

    My experience is that obese people generally look much older. I certainly look younger thinner...I regularly get mistaken for about 15 years younger than I am. Some people lose weight and then look saggy or wrinkly. It didn't happen to me and I don't think that it happens to most people. Take care of your skin (drink water, wear sunscreen, moisturize) and that won't happen to you either.

    You are so young that losing weight and establishing healthier habits can only do wonderful things for you. Good luck!
  • fastingrabbit
    fastingrabbit Posts: 90 Member
    edited December 2016
    Your question is an interesting one. I find that when you're under, say, 40, you look younger when you're thinner. An older person, however, doesn't necessarily look younger when trim.

    Sometimes the slimmer version of a person (whether or not they were heavy before) just looks more aged than the plumper version. The rounder face and more robust looking figure can sometimes translate as more youthful.

    I have seen before-and-after photos where you have to admit that the 'after' photo looks quite a bit older than the 'before' photo, even though it's been a span of only 18 months or something.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    I'm 49..people generally assume I'm 10-15 years younger

    I've got amazing genetics. You'd think my 80 year old mother was in her 60s

    When I was 13 I'd get into 18+ clubs easily (yeah I know youngest of many children so kind of advanced for my age). I probably looked my age in my 20s

    Weight has been immaterial to how old, or in fact confident, I've been

    I feel 20 years younger since dropping 50lbs and getting fit though. I no longer invisible. People generally think I'm still a decade younger. Thank you for the genes ma and pa

  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    I used to look ridiculously younger than my age when I was obese. I look older now that I've lost weight, but I still look younger than my actual age (54). If I bothered to dye my hair, I'd probably increase how much younger I'd look. I don't have many wrinkles.

    As to how I feel and move? That is much, much better and I can't even begin to describe how different that is.
  • lauracups
    lauracups Posts: 533 Member
    At 47 I look younger than I did at 37, 60lbs difference. Now I get asked if I'm even 40 yet. And on rare occasion, still get carded .
  • nowine4me
    nowine4me Posts: 3,985 Member
    Wear sunscreen, don't smoke and alcohol in moderation are my tips to stay young looking. They will age your face faster than anything else. Typically, being a healthy weight gives your overall image a more youthful appearance IMO.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    I think I look more age appropriate. I'm not sure if I look younger. It's more like I look like a healthy fit 40 year old rather than a frumpy 40 year old who has given up.
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
    edited December 2016
    I think it depends. I've seen it go both ways with people. Generally, it depends on how they do it.
    I've noticed when people lose it extremely fast (weight loss surgery, etc...), they tend to have an older, slightly unhealthy look. I'm not saying that's true for everyone...it's just something I have seen.
    On the other hand, people who have done it slowly, especially when throwing in good workout programs, tend to look a little younger. Maybe it's because they have more energy and just have a vibrance to them.
    Genetics play a role, too.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    I 'gained' at least 5 years the year I lost 70 lbs. Sadly.
  • Sumiblue
    Sumiblue Posts: 1,597 Member
    I'm 47, almost 48. People tell me I look about 10 yrs younger. I only lost about 20 lbs but I looked and felt frumpy when I had the extra weight. Def worth losing the fat.
  • robininfl
    robininfl Posts: 1,137 Member
    ?
    I haven't been overweight, but my body type looks younger when I am underweight, and older when I am fit & carrying more weight. For now. Eventually I guess underweight reads as frail.

    I think I look my age, and good for my age, like a reasonably healthy example of how this age looks; but have had people show absolute shock sometimes when I tell them my age if they ask.

    I do think that how people judge age is largely contextual though, not based entirely on looks, so if they've only seen me with my younger kids they tend to assume I'm younger, and if they've seen me with my college age kids they see me as around my age.

    Face - wise I do better thinner, I think more prone to sagging/puffing/skin tone stuff than wrinkles, so less fat around face looks better to me.
  • robininfl
    robininfl Posts: 1,137 Member
    OnlyoneJasmaine wrote: »
    Hi I am 26 years old.... never been good about what I eat and water.... also have a past of yoyo dieting... I am now trying to reverse what I did and look my best. I believe extra weight and my body form being out of shape makes me look older.... however I see heavy set people who look younger. I also see before and after pics of people getting healthy and losing weight and they look younger after which leaves me confused

    Also, Jasmaine, it may be a temporary thing, especially at 26 - your skin may take awhile to bounce back when you get smaller, and once it does you will look better, and as you exercise, over time your form will return.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    I think most people look younger when at a healthy weight and feeling good. It isn't the only thing that makes one look older or younger though.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    robininfl wrote: »
    I think I look my age, and good for my age, like a reasonably healthy example of how this age looks; but have had people show absolute shock sometimes when I tell them my age if they ask.

    Yes, that has been my experience as well.
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    If you get very, very thin, the face can get a bit gaunt looking and look potentially a bit older (but that is more typical of someone who is, for instance, a long distance runner and is extremely thin). You probably won't look older at your ideal weight (unless the excess weight beforehand gave you a bit of a round baby-face appearance that looks younger).
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    Most of the active people I know look much younger than their ages.
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
    Not everybody over 40 has wrinkles--I certainly do not. I get carded 2 or three times per week...mostly because I do social dancing at places where alcohol is served...but also at the grocery store, when buying cough syrup....every darn time.

    Good genes and moisturizing sunscreen EVERY day. :)
  • neldabg
    neldabg Posts: 1,452 Member
    I was often mistaken to be older than I was during childhood and adolescence. Rarely if ever did anyone think I was younger. When I had to get surgery done around 4 years old, doctors guessed I was at least 8 years old. After weight loss, I think I look my age, and I'm not mistaken to be older than I really am. I think I also blend in with others. In one part-time job I had, I worked alongside teenagers, and many customers thought I was between 14-17 years old (I was 20 at the time). In my college town, however, people can tell I'm in my 20's.
  • Cylphin60
    Cylphin60 Posts: 863 Member
    I'm 57 and am often told people are surprised to hear that. They think I'm in my 40's. Funny thing is, when I look in the mirror I see a guy in his mid 50s at least lol.

    We're on good terms now though :) I can't compare to anyone else really. There's eventual disappointment or unrealistic expectations down that road if I do. I need to be content and accepting of myself, and I am. Not cocky, just ok, and it's good. :)
  • Meghanebk
    Meghanebk Posts: 321 Member
    I'm 41. I look young for my age. When I lose weight, I tend to look a bit older due to looser skin on face/neck/arms. But my creaky knees are sure happier, I'll take it! And that skin will probably mostly fix itself once I spend a while in maintenance when I'm done losing weight.
  • fidangul
    fidangul Posts: 673 Member
    I was never told that I looked older but quite the opposite. Worse, I have been presumed to be pregnant which felt awful.

    I turned 30 this year and it feels like I've just entered my 20s (+ 2 kiddies) and I'm told I look a couple of years younger. But having more confidence in myself feels way better than what others think I look like.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    My mom's friend looks older after having lost weight due to her wrinkles being more prominent - but they are in their late 70s.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I think most fit people tend to look younger than they are...fit people look vibrant and healthy...that's not the same thing as being "skinny" though...I think it depends if you're just skinny or overweight...I've seen skinny people who look much older than they are and overweight people who look much younger than they are and vice versa. But fit is almost always a good look.

    I'm 42 and most people who don't know me think I'm in my mid 30s. I look quite different from many 42 years olds who haven't or aren't really taking care of themselves.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    I don't know anyone who will come trudging up to me and tell me I look older than i really am, so it's hard to trust what people say, and they usually always say you look younger anyway because it's the polite thing to say.

    I honestly think it depends on the individual, some people (mostly over the 40's and 50's) can look much older when they lose weight and some look younger. I guess it depends where you lose the fat from and if a lot comes off of their face.
  • ksenya03
    ksenya03 Posts: 51 Member
    For much of my life I was frequently mistaken for being much younger than my age. When I put on substantial weight people guessed closed to my real age, or sometimes even a few years older. Now that I've taken off 30lbs, I'm starting to get guesses that are much younger than my real age again.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    I'm often told i dont look old enough to have a 28 year old son...

    Being slim and fit definitely contributes to me looking much younger but its to do with genes too.

    Sometimes heavier people have less wrinkles as their fuller faces mask/fill them out, but then having a heavier body is extremely aging imo.
  • immixed
    immixed Posts: 8 Member
    edited December 2016
    I was once 164 (I'm 5'3) and am now 100-105. My face did look more cherubic and youthful when I was heavier, but it was also very round and always bloated and I was always self-conscious of it. I have very prominent cheekbones and a prominent jawline now as a thin person, which some people think makes me look older for some reason.
  • joans1976
    joans1976 Posts: 2,201 Member
    edited December 2016
    Just throwing this out there....no it's not always accurate and can sometimes be disappointing but this is what I have to offer. (I'm 40)
    ETA: 50 pound loss between pics, 8 month difference


    28j31ngqi8y5.png

    ^^^super fun website: how-old.net

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