IT is hard enough to look decent in your teenage years, let alone your twenties…

but celebrities like Jennifer Lopez sure make it seem as if it doesn’t take much to roll out of bed looking flawless – in your forties!

Great, that’s just the kind of pressure the world needs now.

That gorgeous woman, who is a mother of two by the way, is more than twice the age of teen sensations like Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift. She’s 41 and looks better than most of us on our good days … with full make-up on and nicely coiffed hair.

Nevertheless, Jennifer is not the first or only over-40 celebrity to look good at her age. The world used to fawn over timeless beauties like Jacqueline Onassis and Audrey Hepburn, and some of us still worship the ground that living, breathing antique, Sophia Loren, walks on.

Anyway, somebody must have died and made Jennifer the queen of over-40 celebrities, because the “actress” (it hurts me to even type that) took it upon herself to tell the world just how much Hollywood needs its “mature” actresses nowadays.

In an interview with Redbook magazine, Jennifer talks about how she knows more today than she did 20 years ago. Yeah … we call it “growing up” in these neck of the woods.

My bitterness aside, I must admit that Jennifer, the original bootylicious girl, looked hot with her smooth skin, lustrous hair and super-banging bod on the cover of that magazine.

In fact, she’s not the only 40-something celebrity looking gorgeous out there. There are many others who are fit, fabulous and over 40.

Well, how in the world can these middle-aged women look good enough to give younger celebrities like Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning a run for their money? I mean, it’s hard enough for a 20-something gal to stay fit and look presentable all the time.

Friends sweetheart Jennifer Aniston, credits healthy lifestyle and a consistent exercise regime for her tight abs and buns of steel.

Aniston is known for her rigourous workouts – she does Pilates like as if the world depends on it – and practically lives on salad.

Well, that lifestyle obviously isn’t tempting for someone content with living on fried chicken, but the end result kind of makes it sound worthwhile, right?

“Look, I eat really well and I work out, but I also indulge when I want to. I don’t starve myself in an extremist way. You’re not taking away my coffee or my dairy or my glass of wine because I’d be devastated. My advice: just stop eating s*** every day,” said Aniston in Harpers Bazaar magazine earlier this year.

Wow, is she talking to those of us who aren’t too healthy?

Another celebrity who follows a strict diet and exercise regime is none other than the Queen of Pop herself, Madonna. The woman has rippling muscles in body parts no one knew existed that she sometimes doesn’t even look human anymore.

Okay, maybe I’m just exaggerating here, but seriously, have you seen her arms? They look as if they belong on Jean Claude van Damme’s body in his prime days, and no, that’s really not a compliment to any woman.

Rumour has it that the 51-year-old singer is hell-bent on retaining her youth that she’s willing to do anything to remain relevant to today’s young generation.

She drinks water like a camel and has even started “retoxing” (that’s the opposite of detox for those who don’t know) her body.

Madonna, who’s been following a rigid macrobiotic diet (a dietary regimen that involves eating grains, vegetables and beans and does not include any type of refined foods) has been including lots of salmon in her meals because of the fish’s anti-ageing effects.

Think it’s working?

Unfortunately, not everybody has the discipline to do hours of the very difficult Ashtanga yoga and eat bird food like Madonna does. So they opt for the easiest thing – plastic surgery.

Not everybody agrees with this procedure of course, and nobody is as crazy as limelight-hungry Heidi Montag, remember? However, Demi Moore is all for it. The 47-year-old actress (yes, that’s her actual age), looks way better and put together than, let’s say Amy Winehouse? Okay, that’s an unfair comparison. The only thing anyone can compare Amy with is a wet, shivering rat.

Anyway, when Demi “revealed” her new look in Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle in 2003, there were speculations that she paid over US$100,000 (RM338,000) to get that hot body.

Until recently, Demi denied allegations that she underwent any plastic surgery to fix her thighs, tummy, buttocks, arms and face (and almost every other part of her body) just to get that movie role.

In an interview with Elle magazine (British edition), Demi finally admitted to having had some help to retain her youthful look.

“I’ve had something done but it’s not my face,” the magazine quoted the actress as saying. Why couldn’t Demi just confess that a long time ago?

The article also claimed that Demi wouldn’t be opposed to having more plastic surgery on other parts of her body when she finds a need for them.

“You know what? Maybe one day I’ll go under the knife,” she said. “It just irritates me that people are constantly saying how much I’ve spent on plastic surgery.”

Sharm says: Too bad that no amount of dieting, exercise or even plastic surgery could help Donatella Versace.