How To Take a Shower After 50—Including How Often to Suds up and a 30-Second Heart-Health Hack
Plus see what budget-friendly after-shower moisturizers experts really recommend
Key Takeaways
- Showering with warm water and using a gentle cleanser can help protect mature skin.
- Applying moisturizer to damp skin immediately after showering helps lock in essential moisture.
- A brief cold-water finish may affect circulation, but more research is needed on its benefits.
If you can’t imagine starting your day without a shower, you’re in good company. But once you hit your 50s and beyond, a few small tweaks to your routine can make a real difference in how your skin looks and feels—and some of the advice may surprise you. Here’s how to take a shower that actually works for mature skin, plus one unexpected habit that gives your heart health a boost too.
How often should you shower?
Here’s a twist that catches most women off guard: Dermatologists recommend limiting showers to two to three times per week for mature skin, a recent research analysis found. The reason is simple. As we age, skin loses natural oils more easily, and daily showers in hot water strip away the very oils that keep skin soft, smooth and comfortable. If you’ve noticed dry, itchy or flaky skin—or you’ve been slathering on lotion without much payoff—scaling back may help more than any new product.
Not ready to give up showering daily? You don’t have to. A few small swaps protect your skin while keeping the ritual:
- Rinse with water and skip the soap. A quick water-only rinse leaves you feeling fresh without stripping protective oils. When you do lather up a few times a week, choose a fragrance-free, gentle cleanser.
- Turn down the temperature. Cooler water is much gentler on mature skin than hot water, especially if you prefer to shower every day.
- Spot clean where it counts. Focus on your armpits and groin, the areas more prone to body odor, and let the rest of your skin rest.
How to take a shower after 50
Now that you know the right shower frequency, what should you actually do when you take a shower to keep mature skin soft and healthy and your hair shiny and frizz-free? Our experts share their best tips:
Turn the temperature down
As we mentioned above, “Very hot water can strip the skin of its natural lipids and worsen transepidermal water loss,” confirms Nupur Patel, MD, a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Luma Dermatology in Clearwater, FL. “Over time, chronically dry, irritated skin tends to look rougher, duller and more crepey, which can exaggerate the appearance of fine lines.”
An easy check to protect your skin health: “If your skin is turning pink or the bathroom looks like a steam room, your shower is probably hotter than it needs to be,” she says.
Cleanse gently
That familiar squeaky-clean feeling? It’s actually a sign you may have stripped too much away. “Choose a mild cleanser or moisturizing body wash and concentrate it where it’s actually needed rather than aggressively soaping and scrubbing every inch of your body,” recommends Janis Kosma-Covey, PharmD, a compounding pharmacist and founder of Kosmatology.
Exfoliate smarter, not harder
Skin cells turn over more slowly with age, which is what leaves skin looking rough or dull. Instead of a harsh scrub or loofah, Dr. Patel suggests a chemical exfoliant with lactic acid, glycolic acid or salicylic acid. “I particularly like lactic acid for body skin because it exfoliates while also acting as a humectant,” she says, meaning it draws moisture in. Once or twice a week is plenty.
And Kosma-Covey warns against stacking a scrub, acid and exfoliating brush all in one shower. If your skin is red or stinging, skip exfoliation and moisturize instead.
Follow the three-minute rule for moisturizer
The moment you step out of the shower is your ideal window to lock in moisture. Pat yourself dry so that skin is just slightly damp, then apply a body cream or lotion right away. Melissa Croff, a licensed esthetician and founder of Root + Glow, recommends simple, budget-friendly picks: Dermasil Labs Dry Skin Treatment Lotion (you can find it at Dollar Tree!) and Cerave Moisturizing Cream with ceramides. Then layer Aquaphor Advanced Healing Ointment over extra-dry spots to seal in hydration. “You don’t need luxury products to support healthy-aging skin,” Croff says.
The benefits of a cold shower
Okay so you know how to take a shower after 50 now, but there’s one more tip that could be a game-changer—not just for your skin, but for your health: End your shower with 30 to 60 seconds of cold water. It sounds unpleasant at first, but the payoff is real. “Cold showers trigger vasoconstriction followed by rebound vasodilation,” reveals Kavin Mistry, MD, an academic neuroradiologist and author of Primal Health Design. “This ‘vascular workout’ enhances blood flow, strengthens vessel walls and supports overall cardiovascular flexibility.”
The perks don’t stop at your heart. Cold exposure stimulates brown adipose tissue, which burns calories to generate heat and improves insulin sensitivity—helpful when metabolism naturally slows in midlife. It also spikes dopamine and norepinephrine to lift your mood, and one Dutch study of over 3,000 participants found daily cold showers even reduced sick days.
Dr. Mistry’s advice on how to take a shower with a cold blast: Start with your normal warm shower, then flip the water cold for the last 30 seconds. Breathe slowly through your nose, and add 15 seconds every few days until you’re at one to two minutes. If you feel dizzy or short of breath, switch back to warm—the goal is adaptation, not misery.
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