A day in the life of a millionaire biohacker

Telegraph

2 days ago

There's no mistaking the incongruously pallid hue that greets me over Zoom from California. Bryan Johnson, with his swept-back brown locks and creamy complexion, is sitting at a desk in what looks like a typical podcast studio – all potted plants and grey hues.
Ironically, the setting feels almost languidly devoid of life for someone who is the founder of the Don't Die movement.
At the age of 47, Johnson is the leading athlete in a new competitive sport of his own creation: how to be the healthiest person in the world.
The millionaire tech executive has become famous around the world for his strict daily diet and exercise protocol that has taken health obsession to new levels. From plasma transfusions from his teenage son, Talmage, 19, to shock therapy on his genitals, there is seemingly nothing he won't try in his pursuit of a younger life.
Does he really not have any bad habits?
'That's like asking LeBron James, 'Do you have any anti-basketball habits?' Rejuvenation is my sport – I'm playing it as an athlete. It's a discipline and profession for me,' says Johnson with well-practised patience.
No stranger to the incredulity his life engenders, he appears to at least appreciate the curiosity that accompanies his being so open about it. Johnson has chronicled his 'longevity journey' on his social media – 1.8 million followers on Instagram - and was recently featured in a Netflix documentary, Don't Die: The Man Who Wants to Live Forever.
All of which means that his idiosyncratic health peccadillos are immensely public; you can read them in obsessive detail on his own website.
Such a monastic dedication to living as healthy a life as possible, while using his body as a human longevity laboratory, has drawn ridicule but also dedicated followers.
You may already have an opinion about him: ick, or inspiring?
I confess to entering our chat feeling the former. But speaking to Johnson forces me to confront my own prejudices. A common reaction, he tells me.
We are talking ahead of the first-ever Super Human Network Summit, to be held in Stockholm, Sweden, on June 7 – billed as an event where 'the world's leading minds' will meet to discuss longevity science, technology and human evolution.
Johnson clearly relishes the influence he has in the world of longevity, in particular the way his openness about how much better his life is now gives others the tools and permission to pursue a healthier path too.
'What I've learnt is there's this phase people go through where they're critical initially and then they realise what I'm saying makes sense and they too want to feel good. And then they change their habits.
'Oftentimes I'm the sole voice in their life that's encouraging them to do good things for themselves.'
Scanning his day, I'm not sure what gives him joy. So many centenarians, after all, reveal their secret to be a daily whisky, or regular fish and chips. Is there nothing that he misses?
'No. People find it incomprehensible that I wouldn't want to eat a doughnut, or a pizza, and have beer. Those things just make me sick. I can't even imagine. It wrecks my sleep.'
Are there other treats that aren't doughnuts and burgers? It doesn't have to be junk or nothing, I counter.
'A treat is a reward, right? And my reward is to feel amazing,' says Johnson. 'I feel energetic, clear-headed and my mood is stable. That's my treat. It's just really a great way to navigate life.'
Within the broader context of Johnson's life, his dedication to what makes him feel good makes sense.
Raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Johnson served as a missionary for the church at age 19, spending two years in Ecuador. Aged 24, he fell into a deep depression that lasted 10 years and led to him questioning the very religion his life was based around. After selling his payment processing company Braintree to rival PayPal in 2013 for $800 million (£594 million), Johnson left the church and divorced his wife, with whom he has three children.
'I was chronically depressed for a decade. I know what it feels like to not have hope. Every moment just feels awful,' says Johnson.
No wonder life now tastes so sweet.
'The greatest joy in my day is that I don't feel depressed. Even though I take so much heat in the world, so much hate is pointed in my direction, I feel great, I'm having fun and I enjoy life. So I really appreciate being alive. And that just brings me so much joy.'
It's not even that he wants to live forever: 'What I'm really saying is that I don't want to die right now,' he explains.
'We all want to wake up tomorrow and feel great, for our body to move, and to have no aches and pains. It's about being your best, moment to moment.'
Dig into the detail of his life – not the pill popping and oxygen intake – and there seems to be some fun stuff in there, too. Johnson clearly has a strong bond with Talmage. The pair play a lot of sports together as well as hiking, biking and trail running.
'We enjoy outdoor activities,' he says. Funny for someone so pale. Johnson doesn't wear SPF, preferring to cover up.
'In Asia they understand that when you are in the sun it damages your skin. I don't want that; it ages my skin and that's not my sport,' he explains.
Sports people are noted for their dedication, at the exclusion of almost everything else in their lives. And yet we know socialising is a key contributor to healthspan.
Johnson agrees: 'Socialising is one of the most important things anyone can do. I make a substantial effort on my behalf to socialise and maintain a robust community of friends.'
How? 'We do early morning dance parties and raves. And we do evening gatherings between 6-8pm. That allows people to get to bed on time.'
Does he eat or drink at them?
'To soothe social conditions, I'll put food on my plate and kind of nibble at it. I don't want to draw attention to myself. People are there to express their thoughts and feelings, and when there's too much attention on one person, that's uncomfortable for everyone.'
There is a human after all under the tech-bro carapace. We even laugh about his love of drinking olive oil; his most consumed food by calorie. How does he stop the worldwide criticism from affecting him?
'Most people, when they criticise me, are just talking about themselves. People lash out and they want to hurt other people, and I'm out there, so I'm a target. They want to project their frustrations and hate onto somebody else. I'm empathetic. So if I'm a vector for that, it really doesn't bother me.' He adds: 'If I wasn't getting good sleep and feeling healthy, I think it would.'
Unwittingly, I've been part of the casual pile-on that happens when we forget that public figures are real people. I leave the chat room feeling a little more open-minded, if not quite ready to join the sports team.
The finer details of Johnson's day
What is your morning routine?
I get up around 4.30am, waking naturally. I measure my body temperature through my ear and then do three minutes of 10,000 Lux light, because I wake up before the sun. That sets my circadian rhythm and mood. I do a pre-workout food mix, work out for an hour, then sauna for 20 minutes, and I'll wear a red-light therapy cap for six minutes for hair growth. I'll then do hyperbaric oxygen therapy in a pressurised chamber. Then breakfast. And then I'm ready for the day.
How many supplements do you take?
About 40: basic things such as vitamin D, E, glycerin, magnesium, as well as some advanced things like creatine and calcium alpha-ketoglutarate.
How much water do you drink a day?
At the moment I'm doing a 'sauna protocol': 20 minutes every day at 200F [93C]. In that session I sweat 18oz, with 34 milligrams of sodium per ounce. So I consume around 96 ounces [2.8 litres] of liquid per day that I put potassium, magnesium and salt in.
Why do you lead a vegan diet?
If you follow the evidence, you can arrive at the place where you see that a plant-based diet produces some of the best outcomes for longevity. The only non-plant-based thing I do are collagen peptides supplements.
What is your typical daily diet?
I consume 2,250 calories a day, which is about 10 per cent caloric restriction. That includes 130g of protein, 206g of carbs, 101g of fat.
I find my protein in legumes (lentils, edamame, chickpeas), pea and hemp protein, and from collagen peptides. There are also small amounts in things such as cauliflower and broccoli.
I also consume a lot of olive oil. I put it in my protein shakes and vegetables.
What do you do before bed?
My bedtime is 8.30pm. So I typically work until about 7.30pm, and then I have an hour wind-down routine. I turn the screens off, I'll read a book, wash my face and teeth and hang out with my family. It's meant to be time that transitions you from work mode to relax mode.
You want to eat your final meal of the day at least four hours before bed. And exercise in the evening is bad for you. I also journal, so that when my head hits the pillow I'm not thinking about my day.
What's the most important step in your longevity routine?
All bad habits make your heart rate increase. And all the good habits make it decrease. So the goal is to lower your heart rate to 55 and then 50 before bed. If you have a low resting heart rate, you get a good night's sleep. You can check your heart rate if you have a wearable [device]. Lie down on your pillow, take a few breaths and calm yourself down, and then look at your heart rate. If it's 60 beats per minute, your goal in life now is to lower it to 55 and then to 50.
How do you limit environmental pollutants?
I'm very mindful of air quality at home. We have almost no plastic anywhere – no cutting boards, containers and kitchen tools. I test my water every month looking for contaminants. And I test all of my food. I found it was so hard to control for heavy metals, so I started manufacturing my own food.
Why do you use night-time erections as a marker of health?
Sleep is the number-one performance-enhancing drug in the world, and night-time erections are something both males and females experience [clitoral tumescence for females]. It's a natural physiological process, and when the body's not getting enough sleep it stops having them. If you're not having night-time erections your body has shut down critical functions.
Does your life make romantic relationships more difficult?
It is sometimes difficult from the point of view of co-ordinating schedules.
Does your son follow your lifestyle?
I've instilled in him these basic principles about health and wellness, and he's a wise kid.
What exercise do you do?
I do an hour in the gym every day and one-to-three HIIT (high-intensity interval training) sessions per week. I also do zone 2 (exercising at a low-to-moderate intensity, targeting a heart rate between 60-70 per cent of your maximum), such as light jogging, rowing, cycling and elliptical training.
What longevity treatments have you stopped doing?
I stopped taking rapamycin, which was one of the more promising drugs in anti-ageing. We found the side effects weren't worth the trade-off. Shortly afterwards, a paper came out saying it actually increases the speed of ageing.
What in the health world are you excited about right now?
I'm excited that the social and cultural norms are changing around health. Being healthy is becoming a status and power symbol.