Oprah gets her ear pierced

Everyone remembers Oprah's blowout 50th birthday celebration last year. What could she possibly do for an encore to celebrate 51?

Oprah decided to do something she's never done before: get her ears pierced! "I've worn the most expensive jewelry—all my own—and have always only had clips," Oprah says. "I've been afraid to have my ears pierced."

This was an occasion for another first—Oprah's first treatment with a plastic surgeon! Dr. Emily Pollard performed the ear-piercing procedure.

After this show aired, many women wrote into the show admitting their fear of piercing their ears!
Kelly, before and after

Ten years ago Kelly says she couldn't stand the way she looked. She tipped the scales at 171 pounds, and, she says, eating healthy was "totally foreign." She even had made the dreaded switch to elastic-waist pants.

Then, on April 24, 1998, Kelly made the most important decision of her life, and it paid off big: she joined a gym. Now at 42 Kelly loves weight training, and even entered a fitness competition last year. She exercises whenever she finds time, even doing dips in the kitchen and push-ups in her bedroom.

"How I feel on the outside pales in comparison to how I feel on the inside, mentally and spiritually. And it goes so much deeper than what is on the outside...It's just profoundly changed my life."

Kelly has a great tip to encourage exercise every day. "A lot of times just getting up in the morning and getting your day started is so hard. So...put your alarm clock across the room, across from your bed. But don't stop there: Put your tennis shoes right next to your alarm clock. So, when that alarm clock is going off, you walk across the room, shut it off, and you see those tennis shoes...and you know you've got to get them on and get it done first thing in the morning."
Elaine, before and after

Elaine once believed that letting herself go was just part of the aging process. She had short, dark hair; wore masculine glasses; was much heavier; wore loose, unattractive and unfeminine clothing; and didn't wear makeup. "I had really had this mindset that I was old, and the goal was just to coast from here on out and get through the rest of life as easily as possible," Elaine says.

Then, a bomb dropped on her life—she discovered her husband was having an affair. After struggling with depression, Elaine finally decided to view the divorce as an opportunity rather than a setback. She started using tips from The Oprah Show and O, The Oprah Magazine to improve herself: She lightened her hair, began exercising daily, got contact lenses, whitened her teeth and adopted a younger style. Additionally, Elaine, now 53, started on the Zone Diet, began taking vitamin supplements and lost 17 pounds!

"I got an e-mail from my cousin and she said, 'Your brother said you were hot! And if a brother says you're hot, wow, you must be doing something. What's going on?'"
Corey, before and after

Up until a decade ago, Corey says she "cared nothing about my appearance." Upon realizing that she was in an abusive relationship, however, she made a decision to stop drifting through life and discovered her own fountain of youth. Now she's gone from being very buttoned up to va-va-voom.

She says she "had to reprogram my mind, because I just felt dead inside and I didn't care." Now, Corey says, "Trying new things is one of the best ways to stay young at heart." Her fitness regimen includes regular exercise, fencing and meditation. Her other secrets? "Two tablespoons of flaxseed every day, wash it down with cranberry juice," says Corey. "It's good for the digestive system. I take milk thistle, multi-vitamins and acidophilus, and I take garlic on a daily basis."

Her turnaround has been so dramatic that 45-year-old Corey is now a successful model, even scoring jobs where they're looking for 25-year-olds. And it's no mistake—she even fools college students! "She came to my school one time and she was helping me move on campus," Corey's son, Michael, says. "A friend of mine came up to me and he said there's a whole bunch of fine new girls on campus. I said, 'Okay, what's going on?' He pulled me outside and it was my mama walking to my room!"
Leslie, before and after

After undergoing a few major changes—including braces, waxed eyebrows, longer hair and an updated wardrobe that no longer hides her figure—Leslie feels tremendous. "It took two or three years to get there. ... Now I am proud of the fact that I've had two kids and that I'm still thin. I didn't just wake up looking like I came off of a makeover show. It was a long process, but one that I'm proud of."

After her transformation one of Leslie's old friends stopped over and didn't even recognize her. "She said, 'Leslie, I thought you were the babysitter. I didn't even recognize you,'" Leslie says.
Roseann, before and after

On Roseann's 40th birthday, she had a big surprise—she was pregnant. After giving birth, she was 25 pounds overweight. "I was miserable," she says. "I didn't want to be fat and 50," she says.

"I decided I needed help in taking off this 25 pounds, so I went to a nutritionist." Now healthy at 51, Roseann "swears by salads," having lost weight by eating right and exercising at least five hours a week. She's also conscientious about her skin care.
Denise and Delores, before and after

In 1995, twin sisters Denise and Delores were only in their 20s, but they looked like a couple of little old ladies, having pattered their look after the older women in their church.

"We wore the old hats and the blouses with the ruffles and the long collars and long skirts. We wore white opaque stockings, along with socks and tennis shoes," Delores says. "When I look back at old photographs, what were we thinking?"

But then came a realization and a massive change. "We turned 30 and we realized we wanted to look 30 and not 60," Denise says. "I think it was a big turning point when we had our 30th birthday. We wanted to look hot for our birthday."
Vicki, before and after

Vicki may be almost 60, but she doesn't look like it! She uses some very unique age-defying secrets to stay young looking. For one thing, she swims and dives every day. "I use diving as a way to look and feel younger. ... My diving helps me stay fit. I like being able to wear the same size that I've worn my whole life."

But there's more to it than just water sports. Vicky picked up a little trick from a dermatologist in Florida for her extremely dry skin, caused by her extensive exposure to sun and swimming pools. "I have been putting vaginal cream on my face for 20 years. And I use that with Preparation H for puffiness and dryness around the eyes. I use that every night and it really seems to work."
Kay, doing her splits

At 52, Kay has a jaw-dropping splits routine she's been doing since she was 15! Kay says her secrets for staying young are working out every day, eating every two to three hours, wearing makeup every day and wearing her Saturday underwear every day of the week.
The style team

Special thanks go out to the How To Look 10 Years Younger Now! style team. All of the clothing is from Neiman Marcus, hand-picked by Ken Downing, Neiman Marcus's vice president of fashion. Hairstylists Ken Pavés of Pavés Professional and Rita Hazan of the Rita Hazan Salon in New York did everyone's hair. Dior's celebrity makeup artist Pati Dubroff handled the makeup. Thanks also to Salon Buzz in Chicago.
Dr. Lisa Airan

Top New York dermatologist Dr. Lisa Airan says that one of the most common problems of aging is a loss of volume in the face, which can result in a tired appearance. "In the old days the concept was [that] we'd come in and cut and pull," Dr. Airan says. "A lot of people look very tight. They don't look younger, just tighter. What we're aiming at as a profession now...is to add volume."

Dr. Airan has developed a new age-defying procedure that does not rely on cutting and pulling. To reduce a tired appearance and dark circles under the eyes, she injects Restylane, a non-collagen natural sugar gel, underneath the skin in the lower rim of the eyelid.

Dr. Airan says the treatments take about 45 minutes because she anesthetizes the area before injecting the Restylane filler. Each treatment lasts for about a year.
Reggie Wells, before

Oprah's makeup artist, Reggie Wells, recently lost 30 pounds as a member of Oprah's Boot Camp.

Because he lost so much weight, Reggie has lost volume in his face around his eyes. Rather than getting a face lift, Dr. Airan suggests that Reggie try the Restylane procedure to reduce the hollowness around his eyes.

See the dramatic results from Reggie's procedure!