The New “Science” of Training Your Brain and Body Can Make You A Superhuman

Some biohackers say you can even refuse to age.

Ever thought of biohacking your lifestyle!

The random questions dwelled when I embarked on my journey towards it. Similar to what any beginner would face before trying something new.

- What is biohacking all about?

- How do people refuse to age?

- How would it help bring back your path to a more error-free zone, similar to its practice-driven approach experienced by me?

In general, Biohacking can be described as a citizen or do-it-yourself biology.

Hence, stands the phrase Biohacking where bio stands for life and hack as the methodical solutions (here scientific or experienced-based) to bring about a well-balanced living in a systematic manner.

It is all about optimizing human performance, health, and well-being with the help of the latest science, technologies, experts, and data-driven self-experiments.

You can name it “Self hack” as well.

People who get into decoding such life hacks are called as Biohackers or Self Hackers.

I fit myself into this category rightly after practising it.

Hence, biohackers conceptualize as a broad term. It’s not merely subjective.

For many biohackers, biohacking consists of making a change in certain areas of their lifestyle which remains disordered.

Hence, by adopting small, incremental changes, one can bring about holistic improvements in health and well-being.

With so much of ease, comfort, and opportunities of relief in the laps of this decade, getting into a rough phase of unhealthy attitude towards life becomes common.

Dur to this, people gain weight, are prone to obesity and severe other diseases follow. Headache, stress, strain, procrastination, depression, anxiety, mood swings, remain few of its after-effects.

Calm down. Biohacking believes in this. For it restores the path. Gives directions. With facts, experience, and practices.

Biotechnology and Biohacking: Differently Similar

While in-practice of biohacking in areas of improving my health, I stumbled across the question — how is biohacking different from biotechnology?

Or is there any established link of connection between the two?

To answer, Biotechnology is a broad term referring to the study of biological processes to bring about technological advancement. Its usage is a wide range.

Right from editing genes to brewing, this biological science gives technology its power. The learnings and advances in biotechnology often affect experiments in biohacking and vice-versa.

For instance, many biohackers use breakthroughs achieved in biotechnology as an inspirational source for creating thoughts and ideas.

Sometimes the biotechnologists also look up to the experiments done by the biohackers to get directions in biotechnology research.

Though both of them differ in the approach followed yet remain intact in — bringing about positive changes to human lives.

Also, biohacking differs in bringing about self-improvement in its own manner — systems thinking approach established by each working according to their biology.

Hence, Biohacks starts with an idea of picking up an improvement area in an individual — health (physical and mental), psychological, emotional, habit-building patterns, decision-making capabilities, goal orientedness, the mindset towards approaching life, and so on.

The idea is to resolve these issues. Bring about improvisation.

To me, it started with the morning rituals of doing meditation, a diverse range of exercises (used Fitbit band to track my improvements in heart rate, blood pressure, calories burnt, etc) that influx strings of positivity within me, followed by writing journals.

It starts with one. Builds.

Then other aspects gets strengthened.

Sooner, clarity in thought patterns governed my life towards better decision making. From a random being, it kind of set my path fairly in an ordered manner.

That said, Biohacks promise anything from quick weight loss to enhanced brain function. But the best cumulative effect of results comes from being well-informed and cautious about what works for your body.

In simple words, if you don’t try it, how would you know that it even works?

Hence, biohacking has its hold on the model of — experience-based learning.

Pick up one grey area for improvement, practice it for a week, then witness the response. One gets a fair idea about the things turning in favour, or against, and areas that need improvisation.

The momentum of Biohacking has gained strength since long back. From the 2014 Bulletproof Biohacking conference to the recent ones which are yet to takes place. The current ones on the list are; Biohacker Summit 2020 Helsinki in October, The Biohacker Summit (Hack The Ego) in the upcoming year of 2021, Amsterdam.

The speakers remain the top international experts in hacking — health, performance, ego to bring about overall growth in the wellness of an individual.

Hence, to know the areas of improvement, one needs to be vulnerable. Identify their strengths. Weaknesses. Then act upon.

To this renowned Psychologist Sigmund Freud rightly mentioned,

“Out of your vulnerabilities will come your strength.”

Hence, being vulnerable is healthy.

Randomness is the first step towards the identification of our real selves.

Imagine, if you spend sedentary lifestyle, just don’t converse with your emotions, you have plenty of stuff going in your head, have a quagmire path, find difficulty in bringing about a balance — in your lifestyle, relations, which ultimately lands you into a zone of being fearful, conscious about external judgments — of Life, people and society.

So does anyone want this piece of lifestyle?

Righteously no. Not even me.

Hence, Biohacking acts like valid structures to a foundation.

However, who brings about these changes?

It’s you, me, and every individual out there. By identifying the aspects which remain in discords, one can rewire them to bring about functional balance.

In simple terms — The desire to be the absolute best version of ourselves.

Hence, biohackers use sets of quantified self-based tools to measure the inputs and outputs and to experimentally test the effect of different tweaks.

My experimental start two months ago was with meditation, in order to bring about a concentration on every task enlisted in my schedules which I previously felt difficulty in.

To simplify, mentioned below are a few of the filtered actionable bio hacks that any individuals can have an immediate start to.

1. Improving Your Back Posture

Since the pandemic has been strikingly affecting our lives, our work-life balance seems to have been largely affected.

Being stuck behind the four walls of the room, to the mindset adopted, to no amusement visits, linen of monotony has fairly hit our lives.

How could we forget the gift brought by this eventuality — Work from home culture!

Certainly, the tech industries have been ruling with its power over pandemic in carrying out its projects.

With certain job-losses, to current freezing up, what remained unnoticed is the working patterns of continuously sitting on the chair and glaring the monitor screens.

The stretch of work sums up as 8 to 10 hours, sometimes even more. This remains unhealthy for our health. Especially our back which remains the core of the spinal muscles.

We all know sitting for prolonged periods is terrible. Causes muscle tightness and destroys our potential for athletic performance. Eventually, it causes injury and chronic pain.

And we are not deserving of this pain.

Kelly Starrett, the author of Becoming a Supple Leopard and Ready To Run, gave tips for restoring our natural mobility.

• Spend ten minutes of foam rolling each day. Simple and effective.
• Maintain a neutral spine position.

Activities like a simple walk, a few of the stretching exercises, bits of breaks in between can help.

Fit bands at such times can monitor track overtime and health-related healthy update.

2. Consuming The Right Nutrition

The food we eat has a direct role-play in our moods. The healthier, the better.

With the wrong selection of the right kind of nutrition, the curve gets leaned towards the junks.

Certainly, at times of extremes — highly stressed, boredom strikes, in times of extreme happiness, or melancholic phases, we rely on such quick active stimulations for increasing our metabolism.

To our dismay, it turns out to be negative.

It only helps in giving temporary relaxations or cover-ups. If served frequently, it creates permanent retardation in health. Thus, the turmoils of diseases follow.

For example, excess sugar can bring about insulin changes, much of the burger and pizzas have the potentials of increasing cholesterol levels thereby making people go obese.

Hence, if you have food sensitivity but continue eating that food anyway, you get inflammation. And inflammation makes people go dumb.

As a bio-hack, adjust the right kind of nutrition for all the unhealthy food eating habits. Eat veggies, healthy fats, high-quality proteins, cut down on sugar, and avoid food sensitivities.

Rightly said in the words of Carolyn Myss, “What drains your spirit drains your body. What fuels your spirit fuels your body.”

3. Connect Oneself With Nature

Nature remains our healthy greener home. Its peace.

One can benefit its essence by connecting and reconnecting through its source.

Much like, drinking unprocessed spring water which is chemically free and minerally rich. Embracing the sunlight heat which acts as a source of natural nutrition and is abundant in Vitamin D.

Hence, expose yourself to bring connectivity towards nature to unleash its benefits.

This is a simple bio-hack which my elderly used to confide in.

I believe in them too, for the lightening rays of the sun enlightened my spirit towards brighter sides of life.

Try embracing the rays, it will definitely leave you with its magical powers.

Hence, after so much of disbalance and disharmony, one concludes that without nature our natural well-being of survival gets affected.

4. Art Of Meditating

Meditation is like discovering the subconscious version of self.

Mostly like self-reflecting, self discourse, to finding our true identity.

Through the art of meditating, our thought patterns visions awareness.

Hence, to change where we direct our attention to, we need to become aware of our attention. Then we can consciously create the internal balance of behaviours, feelings, situations, and meanings of life we desire.

Since meditation is a tried and true path to enhanced awareness, practising this bio-hack can be a step towards harmonious living.

Start with meditation.

5. Listening To Music

At times when the focus gets disturbed, one can switch on the musical play buttons.

The focus shifts. Mood gets amplified.

Also, the frequency of the audio heard, the patterns of signalled improvements can be witnessed.

In a process called Frequency Following Response, a consistent sound wave has been depicted which seems to change our brainwaves.

For instance in the —

Alpha state: the brainwaves remain in a meditative mode. The Beta state: it remains awake, concentrated, and alert (most of our day is spent here). Theta state: dreaming and access to the unconscious mind. The delta state: deep dreamless sleep and complete loss of awareness.

The type of music one listens determines its frequency followed by its intensity.

The right kind of melody balances the mood of anger, the pop songs can put up energies high when your mood remains slightly off, and so on.

This is how music sings as a bio-hack.

Depending upon the stories and circumstances faced upon, one can move along the rhythmic lines.

Put on your headphones and just listen to music.

Play instrumental music or electronics, it all depends on you.

Just listen. Sing. Groove.

Your Goal

•Pick one: Mobility, Nutrition, Nature, Meditation, Music, or habit of practising kindness.

•Try exercising it. Commit to it at least a week.

•Make it failure-proof. Continue.

A growth response will find your way.

The key — What you put into your body affects your external influences. In this case, your thoughts create the world you experience. If you put the kindness in, you get kindness out.

In the words of Alex M. Vikoulov —

“People have been willing to alter their perceptions of reality for as long as there have been people, and now, the newest and oldest tools to explore ways for self-transcendence are coming together: Biohacking is on the rise and psychedelics are now oftentimes used to enhance the experience in virtual reality.”

Hence, the biology of Biohacks functions through the sets of experiences based on experiments carried out.

Also, the most awaited answer —

With the practice of such rituals, our mind, and heart cooperatively functions. This in turn has a positive effect on our metabolic rate.

Guess what?

Since the internal functions remain much sorted, balanced, and in harmony that most of our problems find their real solutions. This includes even our refusal to age.

So, are you growing younger? Think about it.

Final Thoughts —

If we want better outputs, have more energy and focus, a better memory, be disease-free, perform optimally in our work life and achieve balance, then breaking the things into a minute concrete process will guide our mind and our heart in achieving overall balance.

To this, Rene Descartes rightly quotes, “Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to resolve it, and watch the whole transform.”

The Key — Getting started.