Gwyneth Paltrow poses nude in gold body paint for 50th birthday
For her milestone birthday, Gwyneth Paltrow is going for gold.
The actress and businesswoman, who turned 50 on Tuesday, posted a nude photo of herself covered in gold body paint.
In a matter of two hour, Paltrow's "birthday suit" post has already received more than 284,000 likes along with lots of fans sending her thoughtful birthday wishes.
"Happy Birthday Gwyneth!! You make 50 the new 20," commented Spanx founder Sara Blakely. Famed fitness entrepreneur Tracy Anderson also chimed in saying "Happy Birthday to the trailblazer that has mastered the art of living well beautifully!!!! Love you @gwynethpaltrow happy 50!!!!!!!!!"
Ahead of Paltrow's gold birthday post, she posted a black and white photo of herself on Instagram wearing a bikini as she joyfully leaps across lots of grass with her arms up high toward the sky.
"Musings on a milestone," she captioned the photo which led followers to a touching post she penned for Goop, titled "On Approaching 50."
In the post, she reflected on everything from thinking back to when her parents turned 50 to how she feels physically and mentally as she ages.
"My body, a map of the evidence of all the days, is less timeless," Paltrow wrote. "A collection of marks and irregularities that dog-ear the chapters. Scarred from oven burns, a finger smashed in a window long ago, the birth of a child. Silver hair and fine lines. The sun has left her celestial fingerprints all over me, as if she soaked a brush in dark-taupe watercolor, flecking it over my skin. And while I do what I can to strive for good health and longevity, to stave off weakening muscles and receding bone, I have a mantra I insert into those reckless thoughts that try to derail me: I accept. I accept the marks and the loosening skin, the wrinkles. I accept my body and let go of the need to be perfect, look perfect, defy gravity, defy logic, defy humanity. I accept my humanity."
Paltrow, who shares her two children Apple, 18, and Moses, 16, with ex-husband Chris Martin, has been vocal in the past about her experience with aging and body image, telling People in 2021, "For me, as I go through the aging process and really start it, I realize it's less about, 'Oh, I have this wrinkle, am I going to fix it or not?' and more, 'Do I feel vibrant?'
She also made headlines in 2018 when she posted videos about experiencing the beginning stages of menopause. "I can feel the hormonal shifts happening," she said. "Sweating, the moods, you're just like all of the sudden, furious for no reason."
Menopause usually occurs in women between the ages of 45 and 55, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and stops the ovaries from "producing the hormones estrogen and progesterone."
The National Institute on Aging notes that menopause is "a normal part of aging for women."
"Some women don't have any trouble with menopausal symptoms and may even feel relieved when they no longer need to worry about painful periods or getting pregnant," it states. "For other women, the menopausal transition can bring hot flashes, trouble sleeping, pain during sex, moodiness and irritability, depression, or a combination of these symptoms."
Editor's note: This story originally posted on Sept. 23, 2022.
