Introduction
Welcome to the Epic Biohacking for Beginners Guide!
If you don’t already know, biohacking is the practice of using science, technology, and nutrition to optimize your physical and mental health to achieve your full potential.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Biohacking Definition
- Who Started This Biohacking Movement?
- Is Biohacking Your Body Safe?
- How to Biohack Like A Boss
- Nutrition Biohacks
- Conclusion
Biohacking is becoming a popular trend among people who are interested in human enhancement and optimal performance. There have been advances in the sciences, and technology, and the information available has become more diverse.
However, for beginners, the vast amount of information and the complexity of the topic can be overwhelming. The goal of this guide aims to give you a complete introduction to biohacking, with a focus on practical tips and strategies that beginners can use to improve their overall health (Who knows: some of you pros may find something new, too!).
Whether you’re interested in improving your sleep, boosting your cognitive function optimize your biological processes, or enhancing your physical performance, this guide will provide you with the knowledge and tools to get started on your biohacking journey.
So, let’s get started unlocking your full potential through the power of biohacking!
Biohacking Definition
What is Biohacking
So what does the term “biohacking” mean?
Do-it-yourself biology, aka human augmentation or human enhancement, aims to improve performance, health, and wellbeing of human beings through deliberate interventions. Meditation and intermittent fasting are two popular biohacking practices that have been practiced for centuries.
However, as advanced technologies such as Crispr Cas-9, smart drugs, and other genetic engineering innovations become available to the public, more and more people are seeking to take control of their health and bodies.
Biohacking is the democratized means for everyday individuals to take the control of their health and wrench that control from Big Medical institutions and Big Pharma.
These trailblazers test, analyze and optimize their health and performance, in the hopes to thwart the normal aging process and to live a better (some say “superhuman”) quality of life.
Biohackers have a pretty diverse arsenal to work with:
- Nutritional interventions such as intermittent fasting, ketogenic diets, and supplements
- Exercise and physical activity routines to improve strength, endurance, flexibility and weight loss
- Sleep optimization to improve sleep quality and quantity
- Stress management techniques such as meditation and breathwork
- Cognitive enhancement techniques such as nootropics and brain training games
- Using wearable devices and other technologies to track and monitor various aspects of health and performance
Who Started This Biohacking Movement?
Back in the dim past of early 2008, in a small forum of like-minded men and women, the idea of biohacking was born. These people were, to coin the phrase of biologist Rob Carlson, “garbage biologists”.
They were the hackers of the human body utilizing diy biology, having the same values as traditional hackers of which we are now familiar: open access, decentralization, freedom of personal health care, and access to medicines designed by and for the individual – not by Big Pharma.
DIY biology is a growing area with origins in open source and hacking groups like the Maker Movement and the MadLab in Manchester. Also, it ties to the do-it-yourself culture that emerged in the 1950s and 1960s with specialized publications, books, stores, and television programs.
The defacto Father of the Bio-hacking movement is Dave Asprey. He was one of the earliest leaders of this movement, and is renowned for popularizing the idea of his “Bulletproof coffee”, as well as launching the business Bulletproof 360, selling a wide range of biohacking goods and supplements.
Further, Asprey has authored multiple books on biohacking and the pursuit of human enhancement.
Tim Ferriss, author of “The 4-Hour Work Week” and “The 4-Hour Body,” and Dr. Jack Kruse, a neurosurgeon who advocates a “Paleolithic” lifestyle and has also recently gained popularity on the biohacking scene, are two other early pioneers of the practice.
Due to these influencers and their prominence in the media, the biohacking movement has taken hold and has swiftly expanded into the mainstream.
As a result, numerous individuals and organizations are testing out various methods and tools to enhance their longevity, performance, and general well-being.
Is Biohacking Your Body Safe?
As experimental as biohacking is, there have to be some risks involved in testing methods, and the genetics are totally created as we go. Nevertheless, there are benefits to biohacking, while following the well-worn paths others before us have trod.
The danger lies in us getting into the weeds of the science without properly educating ourselves on the new technologies and methods, or not being safe in our own personal experimentation by having the right protocols in place.
So, let’s take a look at the Pros and Cons of biohacking, and you can make your own assessment as to whether or not biohacking is right for you.
Pros
It’s been proven to aid in mental health – Biohacking has been shown to greatly improve mental health issues such as metabolic and brain disorders, and it may be an ideal preventative measure for optimal mental health.
One of the reasons for this is that some biohacking treatments releases the “feel-good” chemicals dopamine and serotonin that improve mood and perception.
It can increase memory and focus – Biohackers can expect an increase in their ability to concentrate and may even see improvements in their long-term memory, due to their new dietary and lifestyle changes.
It puts you in control of your health – Biohacking is a cost-effective and revolutionary means of controlling your personal well-being. In time, this technology will minimize the need for traditional medical treatments, which are becoming increasingly expensive and restrictive.
Hopefully, there will be some pioneers out there who will create a means of developing our own medicines from the comfort of our living rooms.
Cons
Biohacking is invasive – Taking a homemade pill or zapping yourself with some “Spiderman” tech sounds romantic and exciting, but it could also prove fatal.
As I’ve stated earlier, it’s smart to get the right knowledge of the technology and experiment first before applying whatever you discovered to yourself. It only takes one mistake to inflict irreversible damage or end a life.
Could have unforeseen consequences – Another problem we face with biohacking is the long-term effects we may not see immediately. We have no idea of human nature and the effects down the road.
Today, we may be feel great and can lift cars with one hand, and tomorrow we’re barely able to get out of bed, or worse we’ve mutated into a three-legged slug!
In other words, there could be cumulative effects involved with using this human enhancement technology for prolonged periods.
Questionable ethics – With all of the talks regarding the ethics of biohacking, it just boils down to having an unfair advantage over your fellow humans. If, by chance, someone discovers a means of unlocking superhuman abilities, then where would that leave the rest of us?
Even though the technology is available to everyone, not everyone may be willing to share their discoveries, especially if those discoveries put them above others.
Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing whether anyone out there has superhuman abilities, since if they do find it, either they would quickly bury their findings, or our great government will whisk them away to some luxurious location, never to be seen again.
How to Biohack Like A Boss
DIY Biohacking Crash-course
Now that we’ve unpacked the minutiae of biohacking, lets jump into the actual practice of biohacking your body! Below are several biohacking techniques that you can add to your program.
The first thing that we need to understand is that biohacking (and it’s brother neurohacking) is no quick fix, but rather a lifestyle.
It means a fundamental change in your diet, your exercise habits and your mental attitude. There’s equipment that you may want to use to monitor your progress, and your approach to biohacking is just like any other science.
Knowing this, we should strive to keep meticulous records of our successes and failures. Keeping a journal of your progress is a great start.
Nutrition Biohacks
Many biohackers will tell you that a healthy diet and nutrition are fundamental to optimal wellness. Getting rid of processed food and switching to better eating habits has been shown repeatedly to improve health conditions such as chronic pain, body weight, and overall athletic performance.
Top 10 Intermittent Fasting Ideas
But sometimes, it’s not what you eat, but what you don’t eat that can improve your health. Intermittent fasting can take many forms. Here are 10 most popular fasts that you can use in your biohacking program:
- Choose-Your-Day Fasting – Choose your day fasting is a type of intermittent fasting that can offer several benefits. This approach involves practicing time-restricted eating a few times a week. You get to choose the days you want to fast based on your physical feeling and schedule. By skipping meals occasionally, your body can burn fat, improve insulin sensitivity, and reduce inflammation.
- Overnight Fasting – Overnight fasting, also known as time-restricted feeding (TRF), is a type of intermittent fasting that involves restricting food intake to a specific window of time during the day and fasting for the remaining hours, typically overnight. This approach is considered a more manageable form of intermittent fasting and has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity, promote weight loss, and reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
- One meal a day Fasting – One meal a day (OMAD) fasting is a type of intermittent fasting that involves eating all of your daily calories and nutrients during one meal each day. The benefits of this approach may include weight loss, improved insulin sensitivity, reduced inflammation, and increased longevity.
- Eat Stop Eat Fasting – Eat Stop Eat fasting involves intermittent fasting for 24 hours once or twice a week. This approach may help reduce oxidative stress, improve metabolic health, and promote weight loss.
- Time-Restricted Fasting – Time-restricted fasting (TRF) involves eating within a specific window of time during the day and fasting for the remaining hours. TRF may help improve metabolism, promote weight loss, and reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
- 16:8 Fasting – 16:8 fasting is a type of TRF that involves fasting for 16 hours and eating all daily calories within an 8-hour window. This approach may help improve blood sugar control, reduce inflammation, and promote weight loss.
- Alternate-Day Fasting – Alternate day fasting involves alternating between days of normal eating and days of either complete fasting or significant calorie restriction. This approach may help reduce inflammation, improve heart health, and promote weight loss.
- 14:10 Fasting – 14:10 fasting is a type of TRF that involves fasting for 14 hours and eating all daily calories within a 10-hour window. This approach may improve blood sugar control, reduce inflammation, and promote weight loss.
- 5:2 Fasting – 5:2 fasting involves eating normally for 5 days a week and consuming only 500-600 calories on the remaining 2 days. This approach may help reduce inflammation, promote weight loss, and improve metabolic health.
- Whole-Day Fasting – Whole-day fasting involves going without food for an entire day or a set number of days per week. This approach may help improve insulin sensitivity, reduce inflammation, and promote weight loss.
- 40-day Sugar Fast – 40-day sugar fasting is a type of fasting that involves giving up added sugars for a period of 40 days. This approach may help improve blood sugar control, reduce inflammation, and promote weight loss.
Below I’ve taken the liberty to list several technologies and therapies popular in the biohacking space. Here are some non-invasive ideas that are perfect for beginners in order to find out if biohacking is a journey you want to begin.
PEMF (pulsed electromagnetic field)
PEMF devices are used to charge your cells via magnetic energy using a non-invasive procedure. The theory goes that when we’re active and constantly on the move, our cells become depleted.
We can’t naturally reverse this, due to the constant bombardment of free-radicals and high energy fields in our environment. PEMF works by affecting your own magnetic field, facilitating electrical charging on a cellular level to help your body heal.
Blue and Red light therapy
Research shows that our bodies positively respond to wavelengths red and blue light in the spectrum between 650 and 900 nanometers for red light and between 400 and 500 nanometers for blue light.
Biohackers have figured out a way to exploit this to their advantage by utilizing infrared light to unlock the body’s natural healing powers.
Red light Therapy been seen to treat a number of health issues such as circulation, pain and aid in metabolism, whereas blue light therapy is typically utilized to cure acne.
It may accomplish this by lowering sebaceous gland activity, which in turn reduces production of the oil that can clog hair follicles and cause acne. Acne-causing Cutibacterium may also be eliminated by exposure to blue light.
Moreover, it has been shown to treat diseased and damaged skin such as actinic keratoses.
Cryotherapy
Cryotherapy, or cold therapy which is essentially putting your body under intense cold for a short period, is said to be beneficial for nerve irritation, arthritis, migraines and mood disorders.
Although there’s been no definitive studies either proving or disproving claims of spas and clinics promoting cold therapy, there’s plenty of popularity within the biohacking community (think: ice bath) as to its effectiveness as a means of building endurance and resistance to extreme temperatures, which can’t be bad from a superhuman perspective.
tDCS Devices
tDCS (Transcranial direct current stimulation) is a promising brain stimulation device that is said to help improve the human cognitive processes in the brain through neuroplasticity.
While much of the research out there is inconclusive as to the optimal frequencies used, there is an excellent article here where you can begin to conduct your own research experiments.
EEG Headsets
EEG (Electroencephalography) devices are used to measure electrical signals on the surface of the brain.
Originally a medical instrument used to diagnose sleep disorders, coma, epilepsy, brain tumors, and strokes, these devices are being increasingly utilized by biohackers to monitor and optimize their own brain activity for improved cognitive performance.
By tracking their brain waves, biohackers can identify patterns and make adjustments to their lifestyle, diet, and other factors to enhance their brain function.
Breathwork Devices and Techniques
A breathwork device is a tool used in biohacking to optimize breathing patterns and increase lung capacity. An example of such a device is PowerLung®.
It is a hand-held product that’s been proven through independent studies to increase lung capacity and enhance breathing performance. Using a breathing device can help individuals achieve a relaxed and focused state, which can improve their overall cognitive function.
Additionally, some biohackers utilize oxygen therapy, which involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized chamber, to further enhance their breathing and overall health.
By improving their breathing patterns and lung capacity, biohackers aim to increase their physical endurance, cognitive performance, and overall well-being.
Concerning breathwork, most involve ancient breathing techniques such as Pranayama, Rhythmic Breathing, and the Buteyko Breathing Technique (BBT).
These have been repeatedly shown to strengthen the immune system, aid in relieving PTSD (Post-traumatic Stress Disorder), reduce stress levels, and have a host of other benefits.
Sleep Devices
Everyone knows not getting at least eight hours of sleep could lead to both mental and physical health problems. Therefore, it’s important to monitor and calibrate our sleep.
Sleep devices are tools used in biohacking to monitor and measure sleep quality. These devices use sensors to track various metrics such as heart rate, breathing, and body movements during sleep, and they provide detailed insights into an individual’s sleep patterns, including the number of hours slept, the quality of sleep, and the stages of sleep achieved.
By analyzing this data, savvy biohackers can make adjustments to their lifestyle, diet, and other factors to optimize their sleep and improve their overall health and well-being.
One example of a popular sleep device used in biohacking is called the WHOOP Strap, which provides actionable insights into performance, sleep, and recovery.
Another example is the Muse S, a multi-sensor meditation device that also tracks sleep and provides real-time feedback on brain activity, heart rate, breathing, and body movements.
By using sleep devices to measure and monitor sleep quality, biohackers aim to optimize their sleep for improved physical and mental performance.
Brainwave Entrainment
Brainwave entrainment is a technique used in biohacking to synchronize brainwaves with external stimuli, such as sound, light, or electromagnetic fields.
This technique is based on the principle that the brain can be induced to produce specific frequencies of brainwaves by exposing it to external stimuli that match those frequencies.
One example of brainwave entrainment is audio entrainment, which uses binaural beats and tones to synchronize brainwaves with the music being played. By synchronizing brainwaves, this technique can induce a meditative, relaxed state, improve cognitive function, and reduce stress and anxiety.
Another example of brainwave entrainment is delta-frequency brain stimulation, which is used in the treatment of sleep disorders and has been shown to improve memory processes.
By using brainwave entrainment techniques, biohackers aim to optimize their brain function and achieve various cognitive and emotional benefits.
Fitness wearables
Fitness wearables are commercial wearable devices that are designed to track and analyze various metrics related to physical activity and health.
These devices include popular brands such as Fitbit, Apple Watch, Garmin, and Polar. They typically use sensors to measure metrics like heart rate, energy expenditure, and step count and are usually employed for weight loss.
In the context of biohacking, however, fitness wearables are used to monitor and optimize physical activity and health. By tracking these metrics, biohackers can identify patterns and make adjustments to their lifestyle, diet, and exercise routine to improve their overall fitness and health.
For example, if a biohacker notices that their heart rate is consistently high during their workout, they may adjust their routine to include more low-intensity exercises.
Additionally, fitness wearables can help biohackers set and achieve fitness goals, track progress, and stay motivated.
By using fitness wearables as a tool for biohacking, individuals can optimize their physical activity and health to achieve their full potential in everyday life.
Mindfulness tools
Mindfulness tools are techniques and practices used in biohacking to cultivate mindfulness, which is a mental state characterized by awareness and non-judgmental acceptance of one’s thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations.
These tools can include meditation, breathing exercises, and other techniques designed to promote mindfulness and reduce stress and anxiety.
The fledgling wellness industry has a promising future, indeed. Digitalization has expanded the technical range of these tools and offers up individual metrics for happiness.
Mindfulness tools are used in the context of biohacking to optimize mental health and cognitive performance. By practicing mindfulness, biohackers can reduce stress, increase focus, and improve their overall well-being.
Additionally, mindfulness tools can be used to manage emotions, reduce negative thinking patterns, and improve sleep quality. By using mindfulness tools as a tool for biohacking, individuals can optimize their mental health and cognitive wellbeing.
Conclusion
Biohacking is the practice of using technology and lifestyle interventions to optimize physical and cognitive performance.
By leveraging tools like EEG devices, breathing devices, sleep devices, wearable technology, and mindfulness tools, biohackers can gain insights into their body and mind and make data-driven decisions to improve their overall health benefits.
In this article we’ve gone over everything from the origins of diy biology and the safety risks, to explore unconventional ideas such as cold therapy, breathwork and sleep devices to optimize your own biology.
So, if you’re interested in exploring biohacking as a means of optimizing your physical and cognitive performance, there are many resources available to get you started.
From online communities to workshops and conferences, the biohacking community is a vibrant and supportive group of individuals who are passionate about exploring the limits of human potential.
So why not take the first step towards biohacking today and see how you can optimize your health and well-being to achieve your full potential?
