Rachael Davis
Some people somehow dodge the ravages of time better than others. Tom Cruise is looking as vital as ever at 62, it’s hard to believe Halle Berry is 58, and Paul Rudd… seriously dude, how are you still looking the same as you did in Friends?
Someone who spends a little less time in the spotlight than those Hollywood A-listers somehow trumps them all at 75: fashion designer Vera Wang.
Honestly, if we hadn’t already informed you that she’s 75, what age would you place her at? A guess anywhere north of 60 and you must have a keen eye for the telltale signs of ageing.
The remarkably fresh-faced Wang has mercifully been happy to share the lifestyle choices that might account for her Bilbo Baggins-style time resistance,
And rather than gatekeeping her methods for staving off the effects of the hands of time, Wang is more than happy to reveal which lotions, potions and diets keep her so youthful at the age of 75.
A notorious workhorse with a blisteringly successful career that doesn’t seem to be slowing down, you’d think someone who’s ploughed so much effort into their life would be looking at least a little tired.
For Wang, she believes the hard work has had a big part to play in her youthful looks: ‘work, sleep, a vodka cocktail, not much sun’.
She clearly spends a fair bit of time in the gym, too, with a lean figure and washboard abs that fly in the face of the weakening mobility, muscle loss and slowed metabolism that’s typical of someone in their mid-70s.
Wang has also said she doesn’t skip out on the simple pleasure of a McDonald’s now and then, either.
Speaking with Page Six in October 2023, Wang said she has phases of hitting particular fast food outlets for weeks at a time before switching to another, saying she often visits a McDonald’s ‘every day’ during such periods.
She’s partial to some Dunkin’ Donuts – order of choice: 'a jelly donut, but it’s cream inside, vanilla cream' – and was a previous Diet Coke acolyte before switching it out for water in her late 60s. Wang said that Diet Coke was the 'hardest thing she ever gave up', but was quick to detail all the healthy things she eats and drinks, too.
"I like sashimi with brown rice and vegetables, Chinese steamed broccoli with chicken and rice, or the artichoke salad or fish from Sant Ambroeus," she told Page Six.
"At one point I was eating a slice of Ray's pizza every day, and I never gained a pound on it. It's not a bad thing if you squeeze out that excess oil. It's so filling."
Everyone’s different, of course, and it seems Wang has a particularly robust metabolism considering how lean she’s remained despite her penchant for some grease and carbs.
The difference-maker for her, she said, has been her career.
"Basically, I’ve worked my whole life, so it’s really been about work,” she said, discussing the ‘magic elixir’. “I think work keeps you young and stimulated. I work very long hours, I’ve raised two daughters.
"I think keeping busy is the best antidote [for] good health."
She stressed that she hasn’t deliberately sought to remain youthful-looking and has generally embraced the ageing process.
In 2022, Wang told BBC 100 Women: "I never thought about going way out of my way to preserve my youth in a fanatical, obsessive way.”
It seems a strong sense of purpose, plenty of sleep, not sweating the finer details when it comes to her diet and probably being gifted with some very robust genetics are the key ingredients behind her ongoing youthfulness.
She’s certainly made me feel less regretful of my three McDonald’s trips this month, anyway.