LESSONS IN BEAUTIFUL AGING FROM FRENCH WOMEN UNDER 50

In his famous monologue “Where Do Women Disappear After Fifty” Zhvanetsky talks about a phenomenon that is typical for our latitudes – girls grow into young women, then into young women, and then disappear. They are not in cafes, not on the streets, not in fashionable stores, they are not seen or heard. In fact, this phenomenon is typical not only for Russia – American journalist Rebecca Plantier wrote a book “Lessons in Beautiful Aging: The Secret of French Women”, where she contrasts French society with American society. American women after forty often give up on themselves and “go into the shadows”, writes Rebecca, and in this they are strikingly different from French women, who continue to live life to the fullest at 50, 60 and 70 years old.

TOWhen I first moved to France, I was struck by the number of beautiful and elegant women over fifty on the streets, in cafes, at exhibitions, in expensive shops. These women wear skirts above the knee with no problem, they look great even if their skin is not perfect by Californian standards, they are not afraid of getting old and feel comfortable at their age…

Having studied this phenomenon, the American came to the conclusion that “noble aging” is a consequence of a very special attitude to life and to oneself, characteristic of the French in general. Savoir vivre – “the ability to live beautifully” – has nothing to do with money and status, it is the ability to fill your life with pleasures, which ultimately prolongs the “female century”:

AN ACTIVE LIFESTYLE REMAINS ACTIVE UNTIL OLD AGE

In France, active leisure is part of the national culture, and it is not customary to give it up with age. The French go hiking, climb mountains, love kayaking, play tennis, run in parks, ski, etc. This is precisely a way of life, and not a commitment to sports - it is simply accepted in society to ski with the whole family in winter, and to do something else moderately sporty, but active, in the summer. And even on vacation, the French prefer to go somewhere where you need to do something, and not just lie in the sun with your belly up. At the same time, French women do not overexert themselves with serious sports, unlike some crazy Americans, notes Rebecca - any violence against oneself is harmful to a woman's well-being.

SENSE OF HUMOR AS A POWERFUL ANTIOXIDANT

The famous French sarcasm helps French women not to perceive their age and aging as a drama. No other language has such a number of proverbs and jokes on the topic of "baba berry again" and the second period of "passion", which comes at 40-50 years.

FOOD AS A RELIGION

Everyone knows that the French are obsessed with food, but, unlike Americans, their obsession results in a desire to eat exquisitely and beautifully, and not a lot. French women generally eat very little, Rebecca writes enviously. And with age, when financial opportunities allow, the obsession with the beauty of the process and taste only intensifies - French women often eat in restaurants and cafes, enjoying mini-portions, wine and good company. All this, of course, helps to more or less maintain the original size, such a critical difference in weight at 20 and 40 years old as is observed in American women, French women do not have, the journalist sighs.

WITH AGE, FRENCH WOMEN PERMIT THEMSELVES MORE, NOT LESS

It feels like, writes Rebecca, that French girls absorb healthy egoism with their mother's milk. With age, when children have grown up and require less attention, French women calmly switch to themselves. They spend more money on their pleasures, allow themselves to travel without their families, buy more expensive clothes. A forty-year-old French woman will not be tormented by pangs of conscience when she buys good shoes instead of a gaming console for her teenage son. And she will even consider this the only right decision: "if you want a console, go to work." Sitting with grandchildren is not accepted in France; no one perceives grandmothers as unpaid nannies.

WITH AGE THERE ARE LESS CLOTHES IN THE WARDROBE, BUT THEY ARE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE EXPENSIVE

And better quality. Even women with an average income buy expensive and comfortable things for themselves – cashmere, silk, good shoes and at least one expensive bag. All this together adds up to the elegant style of mature women that tourists admire so much.

WITH AGE, SOCIAL LIFE DOESN'T FAIL TO COME TO NONE, BUT QUITE THE OPPOSITE

Unlike American women, who often prefer TV and home leisure to social life, French women, especially in large cities, are becoming more active. Children have grown up and do not require constant attention, life is established - it's time to go to parties, guests, good bars, cinema, biennales and so on. An active social life keeps you in good shape - a haircut, styling, well-groomed hands, beautiful clothes for going out and - necessarily - comfortable high-heeled shoes.

AGE IS NOT A DISEASE AND DOES NOT REQUIRE TREATMENT

French women (and men) are relaxed about age and wrinkles, too obvious artificial facelifts and tightenings cause a rather contemptuous smirk (as in the case of Catherine Deneuve, for example). Unlike American women, who are obsessed with the idea of preserving youth, French women believe that at a certain age, the absence of wrinkles in a woman is more a sign of mental problems than a reason for envy. In France, hardware support cosmetology is very developed, and cosmetic surgery and Botox are much less popular.

AT ANY AGE YOU CAN WEAR WHAT SUITS YOU

French women wear skirts above the knee and tight leggings until old age without any problem. In France, there is no concept of "dressing not according to age", mother and daughter can often buy clothes of the same brand. It is clear that with age, taste and financial possibilities change, and more expensive classic styles are often preferred, but in no other country in the world are there so many women aged 40-60 in little dresses and skinny jeans.

THERE ARE NO AGE LIMITS FOR SEXUALITY OR SEX LIFE

On the contrary, in France it is generally accepted that after forty comes a second youth - much has been achieved, much has been learned, it is time to enjoy still good physical shape and experience, the son of difficult mistakes. This is both good and bad, writes Rebecca, good - because it affects the self-perception of a woman, bad - because it is precisely at this age that the peak of divorces occurs.

WITH AGE YOU CAN DO EVERYTHING, BUT IN MODERATION

Wine, late nights and even cigarettes – Rebecca describes a French friend of hers, aged 52, who smokes exactly one cigarette a day with coffee after breakfast. This friend had smoked for many years and quit, but found the pleasure of coffee and a cigarette more beneficial than the stress of giving up completely.