At 48, Debra Messing looks better than ever. Sitting down across from her, it’s clear that the actress hasn’t visibly aged since the ‘90s. That’s not to say she hasn’t worked hard—oh, she has. In fact, it’s the countless hours Messing’s committed to her career and her “off-hours” as a single parent that inspired her to adopt the many healthy habits she now swears by.
The painfully simple rule that now governs her life? Don’t skimp on sleep!
“I’m usually working so hard,” Messing told InStyle, “like Mysteries of Laura I was working 12 hours every single day, and then I would come home and be a single mom, and then have to learn my lines for the next day. So, for me, staying healthy was really about trying to catch up on sleep.”
But the Will and Grace alum’s sleep schedule isn’t the only thing keeping her fresh-faced and bright-eyed.
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Scroll down below for more of Messing’s beauty and lifestyle tips.
Know Your Skin
"I have super, super sensitive skin, so I can’t have anything with fragrance in it … as gentle as possible. Meaningful Beauty, their cleanser is super, super gentle, so I wash with that."
Treat Yo' Skin
"I’ll do masks every few weeks to try and clean out my skin. There’s a purifying mask, there’s a calming mask… I just try to switch it up so my skin doesn’t get sort of used to anything."
Eat Clean
"I have a very strict diet, and that also came out of necessity, ‘cause when I was doing Mysteries of Laura my adrenals crashed. I was exhausted, and I had to keep working, so the only thing I felt like I could do to try to support my system was to eat better. So I cut out sugar, I cut out gluten, dairy, cut out coffee, cut out alcohol, and anything fried, and it’s incredible the difference. My energy level increased, my mental clarity was honed, I felt like my eyes were clearer, I was able to learn my lines better, and my body leaned out."
Always Remove Your Makeup
"My beauty routine is I will not go to sleep without taking all of my makeup off—that’s a pet peeve of mine."
Give CoolSculpting a Chance
The CoolSculpting ambassador describes the fat-freezing procedure as a miracle. "Unless you’re 12, everybody has different parts on their body that they’d like it to be a little smoother or a little flatter. I kind of liken it to getting facials—I go to get a facial, they do their thing, I come out, I feel more confident, I feel prettier, and that’s it. But the difference is, facials don’t last as long. This isn’t about trying to be perfect or about trying to attain some sort of unrealistic idea of what beauty means, it’s about just embracing yourself. It’s like, I like myself, I like my body, it’s just a slightly better version of it."
Go See the Woman With the "Magic Hands"
"I go regularly to Joanna Vargas (pictured above), she’s my facialist in New York, and she’s kind of magical, she has magic hands, and so basically whatever she thinks I need, she does."
Get Cozy
After our interview, Messing immediately ditched her heels for a pair of cozy Uggs. Take it from Debra—comfort is always a priority.
