There’s this chap floating about the internet called Bryan Johnson, whose whole deal is trying to live forever (or at least as long as possible). I’ve known about him for a number of years. In my early 20s, I thought he was just some nutter experimenting with his own body and millions of dollars. Now that I’m nearing the end of my 20s, I see that he’s still a nutter experimenting with his own body and millions of dollars—but he might have a point.
Dying sucks. Ageing sucks. And now that I’m acquiring my first few human DLCs (Tinnitus: what a rubbish roll that was), I find myself concerned about my health in ways I never was before. Everything from “I’m now too old to start a new sport competitively” to “increased risks of cancer” and the like. The fear is setting in, and I have two choices: do nothing and see where life takes me, or do something and try to slow the march of time on my being.
To that effect, I will be trying to undertake what I’m affectionately calling Bootleg Blueprint. Bryan Johnson is selling what he calls the Blueprint Program—a bunch of supplements and oils that are well out of my budget. However, what is not out of my budget are a few tech devices (smartwatch, smart scales, etc.), some basic supplements (Centrum, cod liver oil, etc.), and the basics of Bryan’s protocol: Diet, Exercise, Sleep, Relationships, Avoid.
My Diet Plans (Including Supplements)
Bryan’s diet is a bit extreme for my willpower, but I do need to change my diet (which currently ranges from poor to mediocre). I’ll start meal prepping like he recommends and modify his meals to suit my tastes.
As for supplements, the prospect of paying £600 for the privilege of taking 20 pills a day doesn’t fill me with joy. So, my supplement journey will start as follows and evolve from there:
- Centrum multivitamin
- Cod liver oil tablet
- 1–2 scoops of protein powder (shake)
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil with meals (when appropriate)
- Kombucha
- Creatine monohydrate
- Magnesium glycinate (at bedtime)
- Ginger shots
When it comes to food, there’s only room for improvement as my diet is currently poor.
Also: drink more water.
Exercise
I have an on-again, off-again relationship with exercise that I need to fix for this to work. This plan will evolve over time, but here’s what I’m starting with:
- Climbing sessions (3 per week):
- 1 endurance session (long routes on belay)
- 1 intense session (hard bouldering routes)
- 1 volume session (flashable bouldering routes but lots of them)
- Running (3 times per week):
- Current max distance: 5k (will increase as fitness improves)
- Yoga (3 times per week):
- Home sessions
I hope this is a good starting point that won’t put me off straightaway. I’m considering using Apple Fitness for some home workouts, but I might be able to achieve the same with YouTube and some planning.
Sleep
As I write this, it’s almost midnight, and I’m up in six hours. This isn’t typical for me, but I do need to improve my sleep. I suspect this will be the hardest habit to implement. Bedtimes are easy; wake times are not. Here’s my plan:
- Strict bedtime: 22:45; wake time: 07:45
- No screens an hour before bed
- New mattress (current one is 10 years old and utterly rubbish)
- Blackout blinds
Relationships
This one is very easy for me. I have great friends and family who I love and enjoy spending time with. None of them will try to stop me from doing this, and they’re all very supportive.
Avoid
I don’t drink, and I don’t smoke, but I do have an addiction to sugar and fast food that I’ll need to break. I hope meal prepping will help with this, but it’s a bridge I’ll cross when I come to it.
This will be an ever-changing process, and I’ll endeavour to keep up with it and document the results here. I’ll take some starting measurements and update this article below.
The long and short of it is: I’m scared of dying. But instead of accepting that, I’m going to do something about it (albeit without the resources of a millionaire).
Mesurments will be here