Wellness wins: ‘I’m a hairstylist and biohacker – here are 5 wellness hacks you need to know’

You may know him as a leading hairstylist and an expert forecaster of the latest haircare trends, as well as the founder of Aevum, London’s first-ever hair health optimisation clinic. But did you know that wellness aficionado Tom Smith is always first in line to try the latest health and wellbeing hacks too? In fact, they’re his secret weapon for sustaining the multiple hats he needs to wear professionally and personally – both while at home in London and when travelling internationally.

Tom doesn’t believe in the traditional concept of a ‘weekend’ either. While most of us attempt to cram in as much work as possible Monday through Friday, before crashing out for 48 hours, he prefers to manage his time in various blocks that don’t necessarily prescribe to the five-day week. It’s a strategy that works wonders for him when balancing productivity and getting some all-important rest during projects. And, while Tom admits to rarely using his home kitchen, he’s become tuned in to discovering the latest nutritional science, supplements, and biotech solutions to help him remain fuelled on the go.

“Yes, I’m a hairstylist, but what most people don’t know about me is that I’m probably as passionate about health and wellness trends as I am haircare ones,” says Tom. “That’s why I like to be an early adopter of the latest wellbeing innovations.”

Case in point: the treatment menu at his Aevum salon is packed not only with transformational cuts and colours but also with pioneering hair health treatments such as growth factors, red light therapy, acupuncture, reflexology, and referrals for doctor-led DNA testing to get to the root cause of your hair loss issues.

5 wellness wins that work for me

1. Full body red light therapy in my home office

“I first used red light therapy in 2020, back when we weren’t leaving the house due to lockdown, and I started to implement daily use of one of the earlier red light face masks. Having truly made it a habit, I began researching ways to enhance the results further – and get more benefits in a shorter time, to fit my busy schedule! Buying stackable panels made sense: I’d already become used to using the face mask for 10 minutes most days, so why not treat my whole body at once! I now use the Derma Red Plus P900 from Carelamps. They cost £929 each but they are definitely worth the investment.”

Knock, knock. Who’s that behind the office door? Tom and his red light panels!

“I now use two connecting panels (which hang neatly on the back of my home office door) four or five times a week – if my Zoom camera is off, this is probably why!”

Try: Carelamps Derma Red Plus P900, £929, shop now

2. ‘More bang for your buck’ workouts

“I lift weights with a personal trainer three times every week and try to spontaneously add in a spin class or a run when I can – but, to be honest, I find it challenging to do so every week! That’s why the idea of an EMS workout was really appealing, especially when I learned you can get two hours’ worth of full-body muscular stimulation in just twenty minutes of movement.

You have to wear a rather funny-looking full-body suit, which contains the electrodes that send low-frequency impulses to your muscles. But I take comfort in knowing that the muscle contractions target all major muscle groups, meaning the suit supplements my classic weightlifting sessions nicely.

Knowing he is often short on time, Tom likes to try the latest technology to supercharge his workouts

I currently visit Body20, a studio on Great Portland Street, which is very close to home, but I’ve just invested in the Katalyst Suit and accompanying app too. It’s an at-home version of the kind of suits you wear in the studio, so a bit like Peloton but for EMS. It would be perfect to take with me on my international work travel.”

Try: Body20 £65 per session, shop now or Katalyst suit, £2500, shop now

3. Supplement like an American billionaire

“You may have read about the American billionaire, Bryan Johnson, who’s made it his mission to live forever by spending millions of dollars worth of health and longevity hacks every year…Well, whatever you think of him, he has very cleverly brought to market his own ‘Blueprint’ Stack supplements, which contain various pills, powders, and food items to supercharge your health.

I now take seven pills and a powdered drink daily, which together include various health-boosting things like curcumin, spermidine, black garlic, and creatine. It is also powered by his gold standard EVOO (Blueprint Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which he recommends shots of daily), cacao powder, and a nuts and berry mix.

Better tasting than Tequila shots(!), Tom has revamped his diet with daily supplements

“That sounds like a lot, but I did blood work with Randox before beginning the protocol and again six months later. My cholesterol and blood glucose markers (which had been disappointingly sub-optimal!) were both improved. There was a time in my life when shots of Tequila were part of my weekend – shots of olive oil are really quite palatable by comparison!”

Try: Blueprint Stack from £100, shop now

4. Stress-busting tech: vagal nerve stimulation

“I expect a lot from myself and have set up my life so I am constantly ‘switching hats’, whether it’s taking hair appointments with clients at Billi Currie Hair Salon on Chiltern Street or taking a flight to Sydney Australia where I spend three months of the year. I find myself switching from hairstylist to brand consultant, to educator, to content creator, and back again frequently. The pressure of maintaining so many versions of myself can sometimes catch up to me, so I’m always looking for ways to better manage my stress and anxiety.

One piece of tech I love, which easily clips to my ear for a 30-60 session of stress-busting calm, is the vagal nerve stimulating device Nurosym. I learned about it through an Instagram ad and the science excited me enough to invest. [You can read more about how the nervous system-calming devices work in our Get The Gloss guide]. While I haven’t succeeded in making the Nurosym part of my daily life just yet, I always travel with it, and I use it as a tool when I’m feeling overwhelmed or need a moment of calm that I can’t reach with my meditation practice alone.

When feeling stressed or overwhelmed, Tom tries to reach for his nervous system-calming Nurosym device

I also really believe in the benefits of talk therapy. I’ve seen a psychotherapist weekly for almost 10 years, initially spending a lot of time unpacking my childhood. Now I use the sessions to process my week and the various projects or challenges I’m facing at any given time, professionally or personally, and that really helps me.”

Try: Nurosym Vagal Nerve Stimulator, £599, shop now

5. Training in transcendental meditation

“While I’d used guided meditation before, in 2019 I trained in Transcendental Meditation – a technique where you repeat a special, personal mantra silently to yourself to settle your mind. It was the first time I’d invested time to learn the discipline (the training took place over several weeks) and it definitely took my wellness practices to a deeper level. Traditional transcendental meditation involves 20 minutes of practice twice every day, and while I do sometimes manage this, just having TM as a tool to calm my nervous system (when I don’t have Nurosym within reach – or even better, both at once!) has been incredibly useful.

As I write this, I’m realising how wonderful it would be to habit-stack 20 minutes of daily Red Light, Nurosym, and TM all at once – perhaps I’ll see how I get on with that!

Tom in full meditation mode – something he uses frequently to manage his stresses

One I want to try: NAD+ Self-injection pens.

“I used to take NMN capsules (a precursor to NAD+ – a coenzyme which has been shown to reduce with age) but I did not notice a great deal of changes in my energy levels or vitality, so the habit fizzled out. However, the body of evidence for NAD+ as a longevity protocol seems to be growing, and I know Get The Gloss has covered it in their NAD+ supplement guide. I’ve also recently learned about NAD+ pens – self-injection pens similar to how Ozempic is administered.

I’m cautiously optimistic about the ones offered by VAION+ and I plan to deep-dive into the research to see if the body can properly receive NAD+ in this form. While I’m certainly an early adopter of many of these things, I believe proper due diligence is crucial, particularly when deciding about these medicine-based protocols.”

Try: Vaion NAD+ Pen, £395, shop now

Find out more about Tom and his role as a leading hair stylist (among other things!) via his Tom Smith expert listing on The Gloss Book.