Technology is often used in biohacking. Biohackers are doing things, such as using fitness and sleep trackers, doing light therapy, getting all sorts of tests done, and using apps that help them stay on track with their goals, train their brains, and help to make becoming superhuman easier.
Using technology can make biohacking a lot easier and add elements of fun to the journey too. Trying the latest biohacking technology can be exciting. That is why fitness trackers have become so popular. We want to see if we are moving enough, sleeping enough, and are burning a certain number of calories in a day.
Technology can make biohacking a lot easier. Personally, I cannot wait to have enough money to try every biohacking technology available. The first on the list of things I want to try are cryotherapy, a continuous glucose monitor, and the Oura Ring.
Keen to learn how biohacking technology can help you become your best self? Continue reading to learn how we are using technology to help us become our best, superhuman selves:
Red Light Therapy
I first learned about the benefits of light therapy when doing research about different acne and skin-care treatments. You get blue light therapy, which is for acne-prone skin, as it helps to kill bacteria that contribute to breakouts.
Then you get red light therapy, which can help with collagen production and thereby slows the formation of wrinkles. This kind of therapy improves pigmentation marks as well. There are other benefits of doing red light therapy, which include:
- reducing inflammation, which is especially helpful for skin and joint problems
- reducing the appearance of stretch marks and scars
- increasing energy
- reducing sun damage, and
- speeding up wound healing.
We actually built our own red light therapy device, as it was a lot more affordable to do so where we live. Jonathan, my husband, researched exactly which lights were used in the therapy devices, ordered them online, and made a light that we hang underneath our dining room table. When I want to do red light therapy, I just roll my yoga matt out under the table and lie on top of it. Usually, I listen to a guided meditation when doing so.
Use a Fitness Tracker (Basic Biohacking Technology)
If you get a fitness tracker that can track how many calories you burn in a day, track your heart rate (and hopefully heart rate variability), and track your sleep, you can improve your health in the following ways:
- By working out how many calories you want to eat in a day. If you want to gain weight, you should eat more calories than you consume, and the opposite is true if you want to lose weight. If you want to maintain your weight, you can eat the same number of calories that you burn in a day, which is hard to figure out without a tracker.
What I love about my Fitbit is that I can sync my fitness tracker with the app that also has a calorie tracker, so I can keep track much easier.
- Your heart rate during exercise can influence the effects that the exercise will have on your body. To get your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from 220. For fat loss, aim for 50% to 65% of your maximum heart rate. If you want to improve your fitness, aim for 65% to 85%. A good resting heart rate would be up to 50% of your maximum heart rate.
- If you track your sleep, you can see how many hours of sleep, and especially quality sleep you are getting. This can then help you adjust your lifestyle accordingly.
Try Blue Light Blocking Glasses and Apps
Blue light exposure, after a certain time in the day, can interfere with melatonin production, which is the ultra-important sleep hormone. The main sources of blue light are our phone- and TV screens, as well as LED and fluorescent lights. Thankfully, you can reduce your exposure in various ways, which includes:
- downloading blue light filter apps that will allow you to still work on your devices after the sun has set
- you can also buy blue light blocking glasses that you can start to wear after the sun has gone down, and
- not using your devices a few hours before going to bed and spending the time talking to your family or roommate, reading a book, doing gentle yoga, etc.
Improving sleep quality and duration are vital if you want to get to a state of optimal health.
Listen to Podcasts and Audiobooks, or Read Books and Blogs
While a podcast will not affect your body directly, educating yourself about health and different ways of improving your mental and physical performance is crucial. You can choose how you want to consume information. There are blogs, books, audiobooks, YouTube videos, and magazines out there that are filled with information about health and biohacking. Your job is to educate yourself, try different things that you learn, and select the habits and practices that you feel work for you and to get rid of the ones that do not.
Biohacking technology is not limited to the ones that I have listed in this blog post. There are many more that you can discover and try. Just remember that you cannot rely on biohacking technology alone. You also need to focus on your diet and lifestyle if you want to improve yourself and become superhuman.
