Male Supermodel Reveals Salt Depletion Method Actors Use Before Shirtless Scenes (You Feel Awful But Look Incredible)

David Gandy hasn’t had a facelift—yet.

But the world’s most famous male supermodel isn’t ruling it out either.

In a refreshingly candid conversation on The Beauty Desk podcast with beauty director Sarah Jossel, Gandy opened up about everything from his skincare routine to raising daughters in the age of social media.

What emerged was a portrait of modern masculinity that few men are brave enough to discuss publicly.

The Supermodel Who Uses Mousse

After 25 years dominating runways and campaigns—most iconically for Dolce & Gabbana’s Light Blue fragrance—Gandy still credits his signature look to something decidedly old-fashioned: hair mousse.

Larry introduced me to mousse. A lot of your hair is down to your hair cut. A lot of men will focus on products, but actually if you’ve got the right hair cut and hair drying as well, all Larry used to put on my hair was mousse and then just dry it.

That Larry would be celebrity hairstylist Larry King, who Gandy jokes uses him as a guinea pig for new products.

His routine extends far beyond mousse, though. Gandy revealed his carefully curated collection of beauty essentials, including Dr. Sebagh’s Deep Clearing Mask, which he uses once weekly as an enzyme cleanser—a practice recommended by a facialist who told him traditional scrubs were damaging his skin.

Breaking Beauty’s Gender Barrier

Men struggle talking about skincare, Gandy acknowledged. It’s too complicated, too “girly,” too much.

Even his own experience highlights this peculiar masculine resistance—when discussing products, men often ask vaguely for “something that makes it feel nice” rather than engaging with specific benefits like hydration or anti-aging.

I think men struggle to talk full stop, let’s put it that way, but skincare regime also yes, very much.

Despite this cultural hurdle, Gandy swears by expensive products—particularly SkinCeuticals’ Phloretin CF serum, which he calls miraculous. His wife regularly steals from his stash, he admits, pointing to an almost-empty bottle of Dr. Sebagh’s products as evidence.

Spray tans, manicures, and micro-needling also feature in his regimen. He credits James Read for creating fool-proof tanning products that work on men’s facial hair without turning orange—a breakthrough that’s helped shift Read’s clientele from 70% women to majority male.

Salt Depletion and Extreme Preparation

Behind those chiseled Dolce campaigns lies an uncomfortable truth about fashion photography: salt depletion.

It’s a technique borrowed from Hollywood actors preparing for shirtless scenes—think Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. Gandy would undergo this punishing protocol for two days before major shoots.

You drink so much water you deplete your body of salt. You don’t eat any salty foods and then you don’t eat much at all for the day and you don’t drink hardly anything either. You feel awful. It does work because you’re dehydrated, so the skin tightens to the muscles.

He remembers one particularly memorable Dolce shoot where stylists spent hours staring at his crotch, adjusting swim short lengths and tie placements.

I just had people staring at my crotch for just hours going a bit longer, tighter, no, we don’t like that. Take a picture.

That level of obsessive detail would never happen now, he notes.

Eating 4,000 Calories (But Skipping Breakfast)

Contrary to stereotypes about models starving themselves, Gandy consumes between 3,500 and 4,000 calories daily to maintain his 14.5-stone frame and intensive training schedule.

He’s never eaten breakfast—what’s now trendy as “intermittent fasting” has always just been his natural rhythm. When pressed about extreme dieting, he clarified that his infamous mercury poisoning incident wasn’t from eating too much tuna over time, but from a single contaminated tuna steak that shut down a restaurant.

Recent food intolerance testing revealed surprising triggers: caffeine, chickpeas, and legumes—devastating news for someone who consumed a tub of hummus daily and is married to a Greek woman.

His daughters, Isabella and the younger Matilda, are being raised with adventurous palates. Isabella has tried fish eyes and sea urchin. Both love olives and edamame, leading Gandy to joke they “sound so West London.”

Aging Without Apology (Mostly)

When asked about cosmetic procedures, Gandy was remarkably forthright.

I haven’t had anything done so far. I’m not going to say I won’t.

His evolving perspective reflects changing attitudes about men and “work.” What once required invasive facelifts can now be achieved with strategic filler and Botox—procedures with minimal downtime that he’s increasingly open to.

His philosophy? Whatever makes people feel confident is valid.

As for his own hang-ups, Gandy admits he’s never liked his nose and feels envious of men who can grow full beards—his facial hair only grows in what he describes as “Satan’s goatee” pattern. He won’t dye the grey creeping into his hair, believing men can pull off salt-and-pepper in ways women are unfairly judged for.

Raising Daughters in Digital Chaos

Gandy and his wife Stephanie Mendoros—a criminal barrister—have strict rules about technology. No social media. No Minecraft. No exceptions.

If his daughters expressed interest in modeling, they’d have to wait until 18. He doesn’t believe the industry will exist in its current form by then anyway, with influencers, digital models, and AI rapidly transforming fashion.

I think children now have been under a really bad social experiment with social media. I would hope that no one under 16 can be on social media by the time our girls are 13 or 14.

He’s equally concerned about boys, though—particularly the rise of the “manosphere” feeding toxic masculinity to young men desperate for guidance.

Redefining Masculinity

Gandy has become an outspoken advocate for positive masculinity, pushing back against narratives that label traditionally male traits as inherently toxic.

Being competitive, domineering in sports, working hard—these biological drives get celebrated in athletic contexts but condemned when discussing young men’s behavior, he argues.

We need to talk to young men with positive content about positive masculinity, not toxic masculinity. Many things young men are doing is being called toxic when it’s biological.

His own role model was a woman—Sandi Anderson from Select modeling agency. He believes in the concept of the gentleman, a standard he feels has been lost.

When discussing mental health, Gandy emphasized that dark periods affect everyone, regardless of success, wealth, or family. His mother volunteered for Samaritans and taught him the power of listening without judgment—a skill he believes society desperately needs more of.

Wellwear and What’s Next

Gandy’s David Gandy Wellwear line at Marks & Spencer combines clothing with wellness technology—pajamas infused with aloe vera, T-shirts with antibacterial and anti-odor properties.

His argument? Men do care about what they wear, even when claiming otherwise. Every clothing choice—from a favorite comfortable t-shirt to well-fitting trousers—represents a conscious decision about confidence.

Chunky cardigans and knitwear are coming next, items he’s already planning for 2027 collections while the rest of us are still thinking about summer.

The Girl Dad Challenge

When Jossel challenged Gandy to the viral “pints and ponytails” test—where fathers demonstrate their hair-styling abilities—he gamely attempted a plait on the host’s hair.

The result? Passable, if unimpressive.

My wife is in charge. I do their hair and they go, ‘Can you get Mommy to do hair?’ And I’m like, ‘Yes.’

Then came his realization: He should ask Larry King to teach him. One of the world’s top hairstylists is among his closest friends, yet it never occurred to Gandy to request a tutorial.

It’s a small moment that perfectly encapsulates the larger conversation—even supermodels with legendary hairstylists as friends sometimes miss the obvious solution right in front of them.