A Biohacking Clinic Straight From The Deck Of Star Trek, The Minimum Effective Dose Of Exercise, How Ben Greenfield Fasts, Increasing Mitochondrial Density & Much More!

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NextHealth is a brand new, cutting-edge, biohacking facility that is taking California by storm, and in this conversation between Dr. Shah of NextHealth Clinic and I, you'll hear…

…a magnitude of information related to health and wellness, including: diets, exercise regimens, herbs, music, CBD, lab tests and much more, recorded straight from the NextHealth Clinic in LA, which is like the deck of a Star Trek spaceship and a complete playground for biohackers and health or longevity enthusiasts!

This particular episode will teach you how to become the best version of yourself by taking advantage of the information that’s out there in the health, science, wellness and fitness sectors. The barrier to entry to biohacking and self-optimization is becoming far more cost effective and there’s a plethora of information, supplements, tests and programs out there that are becoming more mainstream.

Finally, if you like what you hear, you can click here for $500 savings on a full body MRI and full genome sequencing package from NextHealth.  Please also note that I will be speaking at NextHealth in Century City on January 30 at 7pm, and the event is completely free to the public to attend! More details in the resources section below.

In this conversation, you'll discover:

-How to increase longevity using ancestral wisdom and biohacking through telomere analysis…8:05

  • Telomere analysis is not an ironclad measurement but is efficacious in conjunction with other analyses.
  • Longevity markers:
    • Grip strength
    • Walking speed
    • Ability to sit and stand
    • Face
    • Inflammatory markers
  • Track your chronological age, and your health while you're on this earth
  • Humans crave variety, improvement
    • We've been led to believe the top of the totem pole is our workouts, strength, etc.
    • Look for ways to “scratch the itch” for self-improvement other than your workout
  • Find the “minimum effective dose” vs. an all or nothing approach
    • Sitting around waiting to see the chiropractor; at airports
    • Find ways to be active throughout your day to day activities; get creative!
  • Walking Desk changed Dr. Shah's life
  • Lift occasionally, sprint occasionally, move all day long.

-My thoughts on High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)…19:35

  • Two ways to increase your mitochondrial density. Both are effective
    • Long, slow aerobic training
    • Higher intensity, brief spurts of exercise
      • 1-2x/week, do 4 extremely hard efforts for 30 seconds; rest (or low-intensity exercise) 4 minutes between.
    • Tabata set: 4 Minutes; 20 seconds hard, 10 seconds easy.
    • VO2 max

-What my diet looks like…26:25

  • Varies widely due to extensive international travel schedule
  • I love to eat whatever local food is available
  • While at home, my diet most resembles the Weston A. Price diet
  • There's not a single “perfect” human diet
    • Eating healthy goes in phases; maybe depending on a certain condition they have at a given time
  • You can try more variety once you've been on a restrictive diet for a period of time (2-6 months)
  • I eat a whole foods diet; seasonal
  • Eat a whole foods diet as much as possible; use all self-quantification data available to you (ancestral, blood, etc.)
  • Epigenetics: eating according to your ancestry

-My thoughts on testing the microbiome…37:50

  • The biome of the large intestine isn't necessarily reflective of the small intestine.
  • As testing becomes more popular, data is collected; solutions to particular problems are possible.
    • AI can be used to sort through the vast amount of data
  • Probiotics not effective in populating the gut.
  • People with bacteria deficiencies have GI, digestive issues; not enough fiber and fermented foods

-My sleep habits, and how I track my sleep…43:20

  • Tracking can be a distraction at first as you're so focused on the data
    • Eventually, you just get used to it
  • I use the Oura Ring to track my sleep
  • What I track in my sleep
    • sleep latency
    • deep sleep percentages
    • REM and light sleep percentages
    • Number of times I woke
    • Body temp
    • Heart rate variability
  • Low hanging fruits when it comes to tracking sleep:
    • My quality of sleep is correlated to the amount of bright sunshine I get before noon
    • Anything that targets the endocannabinoid system is helpful for deep sleep
    • Breathwork helps with sleep latency
      • Box breathing
      • 4-7-8 breathing
  • Melatonin is effective when traveling west to east

-Why I travel so extensively when I don't really need to…57:05

-The relationship between fasting and circadian rhythm, overall health and longevity…59:18

  • It's difficult to see the benefits; stoic approach
  • Daily 12-16 hour intermittent fast
  • 3-4 times a year, do a 5-day fasting-mimicking diet
  • Fast Saturday dinner to Sunday dinner, twice a month

-The pros and cons of drugs such as rapamycin and metformin…1:08:00

  • I don't use rapamycin; I get sufficient autophagy and mTOR through fasting
  • I don't take metformin either
    • Good for longevity, not so much for athletes
    • Increased risk for diabetes, Alzheimer's, etc. after prolonged use
    • Other studies have shown the opposite…

-Some of my strategies to optimize my brain (outside of nootropics)…1:11:30

  • The power of music to enhance neurogenesis; the joy it brings emotionally
  • Not a fan of device-based entertainment
  • Reading, especially fiction (reading and writing)
  • Psilocybin
  • Halo TDCS device
  • Vielight (use code: GREENFIELD)
  • How I test my cognitive ability
  • General rule: If I'm doing something outside my comfort zone, leaving me a bit irritated, I know I'm triggering neurogenesis.
  • Focus on things like gratitude, socialization, meditation, etc. then complement it with nootropics.

-My strategies for optimizing my cardiovascular performance…1:20:05

  • 3 areas to track:
    • Nervous system
    • Exercise
    • Diet
  • Never done a calcium scan score (although I want to)
  • More is not better (exercise, Vitamin D, etc.)

-An overview of the services provided at NextHealth…1:29:00

-And much more!

Click here for the full written transcript of this podcast episode.

Resources from this episode:

Click here to get info on Ben Greenfield's new book (set to release in summer of 2019)!

-NextHealth FOREFRONT Talk with Ben Greenfield: Wednesday 1/30/19 at 7pm at NextHealth, Century City, CA Westfield Mall 10250 Santa Monica Blvd LA CA 90067 To RSVP and for more information, send an email to [email protected]

Dr. Darshan Shah

-The Weston A. Price diet

Finally, if you like what you hear, you can click here for $500 savings on a full body MRI and full genome sequencing package from NextHealth.  

Episode Sponsors:

The Kion Fasting Challenge Learn the most popular fasts, how to do them and how they can boost your healthGet the free guide, Fasting Decoded and get in on all the goodness at GetKion.com/fast

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Got a question for Dr. Shah or myself? Just leave a comment below and one of us will reply ASAP!

Ask Ben a Podcast Question

11 thoughts on “A Biohacking Clinic Straight From The Deck Of Star Trek, The Minimum Effective Dose Of Exercise, How Ben Greenfield Fasts, Increasing Mitochondrial Density & Much More!

  1. Michael says:

    Awesome to have these every once in a while so we can get a summary of all areas of your fitness/performance protocol all in one spot. A continual thanks for sharing with the world all of your findings and info, people such as myself are benefited tremendously from your efforts.

  2. Carole says:

    Where would you recommend getting the Glytamins suppositories you mentioned?

  3. Karina says:

    Ben what is your advice for me living in Iceland with literally no sun last moths. :( I do sauna, hot tub, cold tub, supplements and of course trainings, kale shakes and all that healthy stuff :) But I feel my energy is dropping now during winter.

    Solarium is not an option I just fix my skin damage after and dont want to repeat this mistakes.

      1. Karina says:

        ok thanks I will travel to California in March I’ll try to find it or other it :)

  4. Cara Zaller says:

    Where do you get the peptides that help with deep sleep? How long does it last?

  5. luisa says:

    hello Ben I want to study and certify myself about all this new way of life, functional medicine biohacks. where do you recommend me to do it online

  6. Cara Zaller says:

    I took a z pack several years ago after a very high fever. The next week was my best week ever. My HRV was in the 90’s but sadly it was only one week. Now 4 years later, my HRV is in the 30’s and I’m sure that some type of chronic infection is activating my immune system at night causing me to have extremely low HRV daily. I’d love to take another Z-pack but it doesn’t seem to be a long term solution. Plus have you seen this: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fda-warns-azithromycin-z-pack-antibiotics-could-lead-to-deadly-heart-rhythms-for-some/

    What are the best tests to run to find out the underlying cause?

  7. Schmordoff says:

    Hi.

    Your lifestyle is sad.

    1. Rory says:

      Bens lifestyle owns because he loves his life and is helping other people live longer including someone close to me who was saved from cancer because of the knowledge his lifestyle has given to us all.

      1. Rosanna says:

        Ben is an amazing human being. Love his lifestyle and how he helps millions of people. Just listening to his podcasts changed the way I live my life. We learn of other amazing people that he interviews as well.
        I am helping my Dad heal his prostate cancer through diet, lifestyle changes and supplements.
        I am just curious Rory what other methods you used to help your special person heal from cancer. I know every cancer is different and response to natural treatment is also different for everyone. I just want to be informed with anything that can potentially be useful and help my Dad.
        Thank you!!!!!!

        Rosanna

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