Bob Greene still remembers the first time he stepped into dermatologist Dr. Harold Lancer’s office.

"He told me to take off my shirt, and then he said, ‘Oh my God,’ and he went out and called everyone in. I didn’t know what was going on."

Lancer said, "I didn’t know what Bob Greene does for a living. I never met him before, but his body was slim, trim and muscular. Physically, he was the perfect specimen of good health and exercise, but his skin had significant sun exposure damage. So I read him the riot act, and after several visits he warmed up to the idea that I was the greatest dermatologist on earth."

That last part was important, because Greene had ulterior motives when he sought out Lancer’s help. The fitness guru was at work on his book, "20 Years Younger," and while his expertise on exercise and nutrition was unquestioned, he knew nothing about skin care that would help the person look younger than their age, so he needed an expert to write that chapter.

The two now have a symbiotic relationship, appearing together on television to talk about the impact of good sleep (at least seven hours nightly), nutrition, exercise and skin care on health and aging, and they’ll both be at the Nordstrom Cosmetic Trend Event beginning 7:30 a.m. May 26. Greene will be speaking about "20 Years Younger" ($27.99) and signing copies of his book, and Lancer will be introducing his Lancer Skincare products, new to the Nordstrom cosmetics floor.

Tickets are $15 at Nordstrom cosmetic counters for the Trend Show, which runs from 8 to 9 a.m., and the cost is redeemable toward cosmetics purchases of $15 or more on the day of the event. Attendees will also receive a gift, while supplies last.

Greene, an author and celebrity trainer, said he had done graduate work in exercise and nutrition and studied elements of anti-aging, but he didn’t think about bringing all those elements together until 1999.

"I got on my bike in L.A. and decided to pedal to each media outlet to promote my book. I was 42 years old and felt stronger than I had in my 20s."

He chalked it up to eating well, exercising and "sleeping like a log."

Even so, taking stock of his appearance in the mirror, he decided his skin needed immediate attention. He couldn’t sell a book about looking and feeling 20 years younger unless his face also reflected the slowdown or reversal of aging.

Through his friend and neighbor — in both California and Maui — Oprah Winfrey, he obtained a list of top dermatologists and started working his way down the list, testing their abilities without telling them what he was up to.

"My wife developed melasma (a darkening of the skin) after she had our first child, so we were seeing some high-profile people but nothing worked. Then she went to see Dr. Lancer, and two weeks later the melasma was gone."

Greene also became a patient and soon was confident enough to make his pitch.

For Lancer it was an opportunity to share knowledge gleaned from working in the field since 1971. "I have 30,000 active files, and my policy, no matter whether someone’s coming in for medical, surgical or skin-care reasons, is that they have to bring in every product they’re using. I have to know what people are being exposed to."

Over years of studying those products, he decided that people are washing their faces incorrectly after being indoctrinated by product manufacturers.

"I notice almost every system relies on cleansing, toning and moisturizing, and it occurred to me that was incorrect," Lancer said.

What was missing was exfoliation, the chemical or physical process of removing the layer of dead skin and debris that gives skin a dull appearance.

"Most people use a gentle cleanser as a first step, but that will not remove makeup and dead skin cells," he said. "If you have a brutal cleanser that does that, no one would use it."

Lancer spent more than a decade to develop a system that would allow gentle exfoliation as a first step. The result is "The Lancer Method." It starts with his Polish, using magnesium sea crystals and protein enzymes to both chemically and mechanically break up debris. His second step is cleansing, followed by Nourish, an a.m. and p.m. moisturizer.

Polish might be used two or three times a week to start, and younger individuals may find they need it only once a week.

Exfoliation, even for a young person who appears to have perfect complexion, helps to accelerate cell growth and collagen production that helps to keep skin elastic over time, said Lancer, who’s seen a gamut of treatments in his 40 years of practice, from cosmetic surgery to injectables.

"In my practice I see people from 80 countries, some who have never been in the sun because they were taught by their mothers early in life to stay out of the sun. They’re now in their 60s, 70s and 80s, and they look like they were minted yesterday.

"In the 21st century we’re now talking about maintenance and prevention. That’s the future of skin care, because with early intervention it is possible to repair damage and reverse aging."

And rather than go to a doctor’s office, 21st-century thinking starts with at-home treatments, he said.

"People who are now in their 20s through 50s, they’ve seen what previous generations of women have done through surgery and other invasive treatments, and they don’t like it. I don’t think anyone aspires to look like Joan Rivers."