You may have seen actor and WWE superstar John Cena’s “you can’t see me” meme all over the internet (he has 21 million Instagram followers), but little did he know, what started as a joke would turn into the basis of a campaign with skin-care giant Neutrogena. Highlighting the invisible finish of the brand’s Ultra Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen SPF 70, the playful campaign dubs its SPF as “sunscreen you can’t see.” We love this partnership. “I’m grateful to Neutrogena taking a meme and leaning into a joke to get everyone to chuckle a little bit but also sending a good message,” the former wrestler says. Taking time out of his bustling schedule, Cena chatted with me about his skin-care and hair-care routines, his current wellness outlook and more.
Why did you decide to start wearing sunscreen after so many years of not doing so?
“For most of my life, I was of the mindset like ‘I don’t need this because I’m running fine and I don’t want to add anything to my day.” I love efficiency, and I just wanted to be able to go about my life the way I’ve always done it. I didn’t learn at a young age that sunscreen was important and valuable, but I’ve now completely changed my tune. Neutrogena found this out like halfway through filming our campaign, because a few years ago I had a cancerous spot removed from my right pec. Then, about a year later, I had another one removed from close to the end of my collarbone and my right shoulder. Originally, these patches were removed for simple biopsies, but then I got a phone call from my dermatologist saying they were cancerous.
So, admittedly, my story is one of just laziness, stubbornness and neglect. And I think there are a lot of people out there who share my story. I’ve learned to value sunscreen and how easy and simple it is. If there’s one thing I could tell my younger self, I’d go back and shake him and say, ‘It’s gonna be a hell of a ride. Don’t change anything, except wear sunscreen.’ That’s it. For me, the moment I was like, ‘yo, I’ve gotta step my game up, was when it was almost too late. I just don’t want everyone else out there to go through that. You can do it now and prevent the ‘too late’ moment. If I can hammer home one point, it’s ‘everybody out there, use your sunscreen.'”
How does sunscreen fit into your active lifestyle?
“When my dermatologist told me my spots were cancerous, my ‘why’ immediately became ‘max protect.’ I didn’t really care about what the product was made of, I just wanted max protect. My dermatologist was like, ‘get a high SPF and make sure you’re covered all the time because bad stuff got let in and we want to give you a set of armor.'” Now, Neutrogena has been schooling me on all these sunscreens that don’t look like you’re wearing medicine. I’m like a rookie learning all of these secrets. My ‘why’ started as ‘protect yourself,’ and now it’s become a self-care thing.”
In my morning routine, I’ve added Ultra Sheer SPF 70 to my mix of shower, do the manscaping, shave, take care of my hair, take care of my teeth and then put on sunscreen. Throughout the day, I don’t want to do that again because I like efficiency and ease of use, so I use the Ultra Sheer spray and repeatedly apply it.”
You mentioned taking care of your hair. What does that entail?
“I’m one of those folks in the 7 out of 10 men with thinning hair. I’ve learned that, hey, you’re not at the mercy of the court—you need to keep the hair you have healthy. So, now I take care of the follicles I have on my hair because I want them to last as long as they can. I do minoxodil at night, I do red light therapy, I take vitamins, I make sure I’m washing and conditioning with products that strengthen my hair. It’s crazy that we’re talking about all this, but in becoming more educated about skin care through the Neutrogena campaign, it’s kind of eased the door open for me to search through self-care.
I think, ‘am I doing the best I can?’ I know there’s always a level up, but where can I be better while maintaining the comforts I enjoy in life? Ultimately, I am just taking better care of myself. I wish I would have taken better care of my hair earlier so I’d have less of it falling out now. But, I can’t turn back the clock; I can only try to do the best I can now.”
What does your wellness routine look like these days?
“A lot of it just depends on geography. I’m so grateful for the opportunities life has given me, but some of the difficult hills to climb are my geography changes a whole lot. And with that, some of my time zones change and my consistency. I love the sun, and I know data shows that sweating through your pores is a positive thing. I also love the way a cold plunge enhances circulation. But, you also have to be consistent. You can’t do it once and never do it again. If I went to the gym once and then closed the door and called it quits, I wouldn’t see any yield. But, there’s only so much I can wedge into a day, and part of my self-care is a workout in there somewhere. I wish I could cryo, I wish I could do cold plunges, I wish I could do electrical muscle stimulation, I wish I could do saunas on a regular basis. But, unfortunately it would be really difficult for me to keep consistent right now, and I don’t want to start something and not be able to follow through.”
