Let’s Talk Biohacking

How to make changes to your lifestyle so that you can live your healthiest life as you age.

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I LOVE Biohacking. Give me all the Infrared Sauna, Compression Therapy, Cryo, Red Light, IV Hydration, and Smartwatch Metrics. Biohacking by definition, according to draxe.com is “the process of making changes to your lifestyle in order to “hack” your body’s biology to feel your best.” Because I’ve always been open to new modalities of health I’ve probably been doing some form of biohacking before it even had a trendy name. Back when I was in personal training, I was educated on how we are all different and so each individual needed their own specialized programming for them to feel their best and reach their goals. I’ve carried that as I’ve moved on to a different career and made it my personal responsibility to care for my own body and find the workouts and recovery systems that work best for me, sharing what I learn with anyone who wants to test it for themselves. Well, I make Scott test things too, sometimes against his will but even he has found a few tricks to keep in his toolbox. 

I did Whole 30*, which is considered an elimination diet a few years ago. That was one that I made Scott do with me and outside of giving up alcohol which he was not in favor of being that it was July, which includes his birthday, Chandler’s birthday, and the Fourth of July block party in Floral Park. He did enjoy the change in food as much as I did. We eliminated all sugar, made our own salad dressing, mayonnaise, and barbeque sauce, and ate a lot of vegetables and proteins. We felt exponentially better which was shocking because we don’t eat that unhealthy to begin with. We are not big sweet eaters nor do we eat a lot of processed food or fast food. We do like a good restaurant meal and an adult beverage and realizing how much that contributes to not feeling your best was eye-opening. 

I stumbled into my smartwatch obsession quite by accident. I have always loved a good watch but when the iPhone became such a ubiquitous accessory, I stopped wearing them once they needed a new battery. My phone had a clock handy and it freed up more wrist space for bracelet stacks. A few years ago, Scott was at a loss for a Christmas Gift and on a whim, got me an Apple Watch.* I don’t think I have taken it off since. To say I am obsessed with closing my rings would be an understatement. IYKYK. Could you give me all the metrics? Please give me all the metrics. Tell me how many steps I’ve taken so I can hit my 12k goal. Tell me to stand up and move around every hour. Tell me to take a mindful minute and breath. Tell me I’m going to hit 500 miles of running in a year. Keep a log of my Peloton 30 Day Challenges. Tell me if I got enough deep sleep and how long I was in REM. Tell me that my drinks last night affected my heart rate while I was sleeping. ALL. THE. THINGS. You can use all of that information to make better choices for your health and I am here for it.

I have to thank my friend JZ for introducing me to IV Therapy and Compression. I would NEVER willingly go sit in a comfy chair and let someone stick a needle in my arm so that vitamin-packed fluid could slowly drip into my system. NO THANK YOU. But JZ was doing it and she asked me to come with her, so I went. While I can’t say I do it regularly, I have been back of my own volition, shockingly, and know that if I need a boost to my immunity after too much travel and not enough sleep, or extra recovery after too much marathon training, IV therapy is available and effective. Compression therapy on the other is one of my all-time favorites. I saw the benefits firsthand and loved it so much that I bought my own boots to have at home so I could put them on whenever I needed to.
I knew JZ used compression for recovery as she travels a lot for her work as a college basketball referee. During my original season of training for the Paris marathon, I discovered a place near me in Tribeca that offered Cryotherapy and Compression. After a particularly painful long run one Saturday I made an appointment as soon as I finished and settled into a recliner with my legs encased in space boots. 45 minutes later I was an evangelical. I couldn’t believe the difference it made. My legs felt as fresh as if I hadn’t run in weeks. It became my Saturday routine, long run, eat, shower, straight to QuickCryo for my boot therapy and it got my 50-year-old legs through the training and on to Les Rues de Paris. When the pandemic hit and sadly my favorite recovery studio closed I asked Santa for Normatec* boots for Christmas and now even Santa uses them after his long rides through the Hudson Valley.

I have a love/hate relationship with Cryotherapy. I know it is so good for me, with benefits including reduced inflammation, workout recovery, reduction in pain, an endorphin rush, and accelerated collagen production. But for the record, IT’S FREAKING COLD. I always love it once I’m done but let me tell you it is a lesson in mind over matter while you’re in there. I’ve used music to get me through it. My favorites are Perm, Born for This, and Whatever It Takes. But I’ve also used those three minutes to literally reframe my experience reminding my brain that I’m stronger than this, I can do hard things, training my mind to feel the discomfort and find ways to work through it so that I can use those same tools when life throws me hard things. 

I found a new recovery studio after the pandemic called Restore and it has all the biohacking goodness I could want. In addition to Whole Body Cryo, Compression and IV Drip, they also have Red Light Therapy and Infrared Sauna. Infrared Sauna was new to me at the time and now it’s also in regular rotation as I bought a sauna blanket* to have at home for convenience. While I would love to have the space to have an actual sauna this will work for the season I am in. And when I want to be completely immersed in it I just head over to Restore. Infrared Sauna benefits include a boost in heart health and reduced blood pressure, muscle recovery, and pain relief, reduced oxidative stress, and detoxification. Because infrared sauna heats the body directly instead of the air in the sauna, like in traditional methods, you can stay inside longer which helps you reap more detox benefits. Red Light Therapy is also a great tool for biohacking, especially in the winter when the amount of available sunlight is shorter. Light activates the mitochondria in cells which are the energy powerhouses so if you can support them you will reap the benefits of more energy, lower inflammation, and improved blood flow. It is also amazing for your skin and your mood.

There are so many amazing tools out there to help you live your healthiest life. Have you tried any of these? What have you found that works best for you? For the record, there are a lot of available tools found in nature that don’t cost anything but give the same benefits. Cold showers and cold plunging instead of Cryo. Early morning sunlight instead of Red Light Therapy. Electrolytes* or lemon and sea salt in water instead of IV Drip. Inversions and Dry brushing instead of compression therapy. But as I shared in an earlier post here, it really is up to us to take control of our own health.