You don’t have to work in fitness or wellness to have figured out a few things about feeling good. In fact, some of the routines we’re most curious about belong to people who spend their days living creatively and intuitively and not overanalyzing and indexing data about their bodies.
This week, we talked to Thuy T. Nguyen, a beauty and fashion creative director based in New York and the founder of AN ORI, an herbal inhaler that offers a sensory reminder to slow down throughout the day.
Trained as an artist before moving into commercial design, she has spent more than a decade working with some of the biggest names in beauty and fashion (YSL, Haus Labs, Swarovski, Ferrari), shaping brand worlds before eventually building her own.
We asked Nguyen what has actually earned a place in her own wellness routine, from the Pilates studio she frequents and her $35 Chinatown acupuncture to the wellness habit she thinks we’d all be better off without.
Neighborhood: Greenpoint
Occupation: Founder and Creative Director
Astrological Sign: Virgo
Tell us about your personal approach to taking care of your body.
My approach is pretty simple: do a few things that work, keep it natural where I can, and don’t turn my body into a project. I try to listen to what my body wants, not what my brain wants. For example, NYFW just happened and it was packed with events I really wanted to go to. But I had just gotten back from my Paris pop-up for AN ORI, and my body was very clear that it needed rest. So I skipped most and went back to my routine.
You just launched AN ORI, based on a Southeast Asian aromatherapy ritual. What is the significance of scent for “wellness” and what is your product bringing to (or challenging about) NYC’s current wellness scene?
Wellness in New York can feel like another job, with memberships, protocols and data.
Scent is the one sense you can’t take in passively. It’s also invisible. You can’t post it, nobody sees you do it. This is a small wooden object with no app, no score. It asks you to breathe. It takes three seconds to feel the cooling and you can bring it anywhere. Most of the herbal inhalers on the market are plastic, made in a factory no one can name. AN ORI is carved and filled by hand. The shape is designed to feel good in your hand, like a stress ball.
Where do you actually workout, recover, and relax in NYC right now?
I've tried every possible workout and the only thing that ever stuck is Pilates. I go to East River Pilates. To recover, it's heat or hands. I love going to The Altar for the sauna and cold plunge, and that moment between the two is my favorite part of the week.
Massage in NYC can be very hit-or-miss, but there's one spot in Chinatown called Fishion that is never a miss. Their acupuncture is great too.
What’s in your metaphoric gym bag?
My AN ORI, obviously. Avène face spray, which lives in my bag year round. Conapidil's final balm as SPF and also makeup. Byredo Tulipmania hand cream when I want to feel fancy, and Weleda skin food for all occasions. A cork massage ball for my hands, since I'm on a laptop all day. And a few new AN ORI SKUs I'm testing, but that's top secret ;)
What do you do to take time for yourself when life gets overwhelming in the city?
Organizing my apartment. It’s an ongoing project that goes off track whenever my days get busy, but being in an organized space clears my head. Sauna, then sipping bone broth after. Taking a long bath by candlelight. Walking to the waterfront for sunset and feeling the sun on my face. Not looking at my phone. If I can, I get out of the city and into nature (kayaking on a calm river is especially soothing). And if I can’t, I buy myself some flowers.
What’s the most overrated thing in wellness right now?
Tracking everything. Every step, every hour of sleep, every calorie. What are we going to do with all this information about our bodies? It’s just another set of data to analyze. I get stressed out just thinking about the metrics.
What song have you had on repeat lately?
"A Place Called Home" by PJ Harvey. It reminds me of the New York energy I love, and the renewed optimism that's been running through the city this year.
What have you found lately—books, newsletters, podcasts, accounts—that have stuck with you and why?
I love The Paris Review's Instagram. They post single quotes from their interviews with writers, and sometimes one good sentence in the middle of a chaotic day is all I have room for.
What’s a gym, spot, or trainer in the city that's underrated and deserves more love?
Everything is super hyped in NYC. The most underrated spot, in my opinion, is a ferry ride at sunset. It costs a few dollars, you get the whole skyline, wind in your face, and nobody is trying to sell you a membership.
New York is notoriously expensive for pretty much everything, but especially fitness and wellness. What would you do to take care of yourself in a day if you only had $40 to spend.
That is hard! But a 30 minute acupressure session with Fishion is only $35, plus tip.