The Ultimate Biohacking Guide for Optimal Health | Dave Asprey

A Note from James:

Dave Asprey was this fat aging tech entrepreneur who realized he was going on a bad path and so he completely changed his life around. He kind of went to the scientific sources and did the research himself and practically started the field of biohacking, of doing experiments on himself with his diet, with the supplements, with the devices he uses. And now it's as if he's 20 years younger than he was 20 years ago.

He started Bulletproof Coffee, which I'm sure many of you have heard of, and a new coffee company called Danger Coffee. You've probably listened to him on this podcast. And now he just wrote the book Smarter, Not Harder. I'll describe that in a second.

I want to tell a story when Dave asked, but he's been on the podcast a bunch of times when he was on in 20, I think it was 2016, it happened to be coincidentally the first day I was trying standup comedy. So at the end of that episode, it might have even been after we shut down the cameras, at the end of that episode, I asked him, "Dave, I'm doing standup comedy for the first time tonight, and I'm really nervous. What's your advice?" I just wanted to, he's a smart guy. I respect him. I just wanted to put him on the spot a little bit and see what his advice would be. And he thought about it for about a second. And then he said, "When you get up there, love your audience." And that is the best advice for a standup comedy that I have ever heard before or since.

And it's really worked well for me. And I would say the same holds true when I write, I always love my audience. And when I do public speaking or even this podcast, I always picture in my head loving the audience. 

So what does Dave write about in Smarter, Not Harder? 

Well, his very interesting point is that humans, from an evolutionary perspective, should be somewhat lazy.

We need to have a lot of energy when our fight or flight reflex triggers. Like when you have to run from the lion that's chasing you, you have to use a lot of energy very quickly. And then, you rest. But Dave's point is that in our society, just staring at screens, we get that fight-and-flight response sitting still.

And so our body and mind don't know what's happening. And his argument is the same for exercise. His point is, and he, and you know, we'll see a lot of people are going to have different opinions on this. His point is you might not need to exercise for hours at a time because. That's not what the human body is supposed to do. It exerts itself for very short spurts of time and then rests. 

So his whole book is kind of his biohack experiments on exercise, sleep, diet, and how you can live your life to perform more optimally. You know, it's an anti-aging book, so it's in that category. We've done a lot of anti-aging.

Podcasts and they're always very fascinating to me and I ask him very, very specific questions about food, supplements, and exercise because I always want to know what I should do. The answers are always enlightening. 

So anyway, once again, here is Dave Asprey. 

Episode Description:

In a comprehensive discussion about biohacking for better health, Dave Asprey, the founder of Bulletproof Coffee and Danger Coffee, shares his journey from overcoming personal health issues to pioneering in the biohacking space. The conversation expands into Asprey's latest venture, Danger Coffee, and the release of his book Smarter Not Harder, offering insights into efficient exercise, debunking nutrition myths, and providing a deep dive into bodily and mental wellness. 

The episode covers a broad range of topics including the importance of dietary choices, quality animal proteins, managing stress, optimizing hormones, and the role of supplements like NAD+, zinc, and magnesium. Asprey also touches on technological advancements wit