I achieved the best recorded sleep score in history.
Eight months of perfect, 100% sleep.
Spent a year learning how to do it.
Here are 10 habits that fixed my terrible sleep... 🧵
1/ If you sleep less than 7 hours a night, read this…
+ One 4-hour night reduces cancer-fighting immune cells by 70%
+ Chronic 6-hour nights make you 4.2x more likely to catch colds
+ 18-24 hours awake = 0.05-0.1% blood alcohol level equivalent (0.08% is legally drunk)
Sleep loss also impairs cognition, slows reflexes, and leads to poor decisions.
It's tied to heart disease, diabetes, obesity, anxiety, depression and a weak immune system.
Here're 10 habits that improved my sleep...
P.S. I've made a free sleep checklist too, so read till the end.
1/ Reframe Your Identity: You are a professional sleeper
Make sleep your #1 appointment in your calendar.
Nothing influences your conscious or subconscious existence more.
+ Plan your day around sleep.
+ Ignore those who say sleep is for the weak. They’re drunk.
+ Get support from others by explaining your priorities.
Most people are drunk from sleep deprivation. Sleep will make you a top performer.
2/ Have a Consistent Bedtime
Choose a non-negotiable bedtime for 7-9 hours in bed each night.
+ Be consistent, even on weekends.
+ Use a wearable or journal to track
You’re on time for work meetings. Be on time for your bedtime and respect yourself.
3/ Create a 60-Minute Wind-Down Routine
✅ screens off 60 min before bed
✅ calm: read, music, walk, bathe, breathe, meditate
✅ softly bring your focus back to sleep prep
✅ minimize light, red light ideal
✅ in bed within 30 min of bedtime
Sleep is your #1 priority. Everything else can wait.
4/ Eat Your Last Meal Early
For years I tested my eating times on sleep quality and landed at 11 am being the best for high quality sleep.
Not everyone can do this, but here are the general guidelines:
+ Avoid eating within 3-4 hours of bedtime
+ Have your largest meal in the middle of the day
+ When socializing late, choose light options like veggies
+ You can experiment extending to eating your final meal 4 and 6 hours before bed to assess how it effects your sleep quality.
+ By the time I go to bed at 8:30 pm, primary digestion is done and my resting heart rate is around 47-49 bpm.
Here’s why:
Eating close to bed creates large metabolic demands on your body, causes blood glucose fluctuations, reduces melatonin production, and disrupts your body’s natural process of lowering core body temperature.
5/ Discontinue Stimulants After Noon
Try to avoid caffeine and other stimulants well before sleep.
+ Skip alcohol near bedtime - it disrupts sleep
+ Each person has a unique tolerance to stimulants so find your right cut-off time
+ Avoid high arousal settings close to bedtime
6/ I don’t consume caffeine or alcohol.
They each disrupt my mood and negatively affect my sleep. But that’s me.
You can find what’s right for you.
7/ After Sun Down, Minimize Evening Light
Blue light suppresses melatonin secretion and can disrupt your circadian rhythm. Other types of light can also impact melatonin to varying degrees.
+ Install dimmer switches and use low, warm lighting
+ Wear blue light-blocking glasses 2-3 hours before bed
+ Enable night mode on all devices or install blue light filters
+ Red light is best (red bulb + lamp ftw)
And remember to limit screen time *at least* an hour before bed and blackout your bedroom.
Use this time for your 30-60 min wind down routine.
7/ Regulate Your Bedroom Temperature:
+ Explore your ideal bedroom temperature 60-77°F (15-25°C).
+ Consider a temperature controlled mattress to regulate bed surface temp
+ Use breathable cotton or linen sheets and lightweight sleepwear
+ Consider taking a warm bath before bed.
Experiment and track your sleep patterns with a journal or sleep tracker.
8/ Curate a Peaceful Sleep Environment
+ Keep your room cool, dark, and quiet
+ Avoid working from your bed
+ The bed is for sleep and sex
Consider a noise machine or earplugs to offset environmental sounds.
9/ Get Sunlight Within 15 Min of Waking
Get outside within the first 15-30 minutes of waking to set your circadian rhythm and boost mood.
If you’re up before the sunrise, use a 10,000 lux light
10/ Track Your Sleep Metrics
Metrics to follow: HRV, body temp, respiration rate, REM & deep sleep.
I use Whoop and EightSleep. Other sleep trackers are fine too.
+ Experiment with bedtimes, routines, room temps & find what works
+ Track data across seasons and when traveling to troubleshoot
+ Use a sleep journal, tracker, or checklist.
You’ll improve what you measure.
11/ Improving sleep is a journey. Take it one step at a time and start by focusing on reshaping your relationship with sleep.
You've got this.
Sleep well.
If you want my free sleep checklist to track your progress:
12/ Many of our social activities currently take place late at night, usually after most people's bedtimes.
It's within our power to reset norms so that we can do fun things together, like music festivals, dinners and dance parties, and still get great sleep.
I stayed out late one night for a music festival and paid the price...
Skinny is not better.
Muscle will help you live longer.
A thread
1/ Why muscle matters
Muscle Strength Predicts Longevity: A study (Warbutron, et. al., 2006) of over 1 million men found that low muscular strength in adolescence was associated with up to a 35% increased risk of dying young.
2/ What you can do (men and women)
Men who engaged in both aerobic exercise and weight training of at least 150 min/week were 59% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes (Grontved et. al., 2012)
Women with low muscle strength had a 63% higher risk of premature death compared to those with high muscle strength (Li et. al., 2018).
At age 19, I could see far enough into the future to choose an area of study, select a career path and plan for retirement.
Now, my son, who is 19, has no idea how to think about or plan for the future. This is true for everyone.
What do we do?
A thread 🧵
Our ability to learn from the past and reasonably anticipate the future makes our intelligence unique. Planning is a superpower.
"Everyone has a plan until you get punched in the mouth." - Tyson.
Even if our prediction of the future is not exact, knowing and being accurate enough still allows for the strength of forethought and preparation and bridges to improvisation when things don't go as planned.
I received a cutting-edge therapy aimed at achieving age 18 joints, at a clinic owned by Tiger Woods & Justin Timberlake.
300 million young Swedish bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were injected into my shoulders, hips, joints.
🧵Here’s why…
Our joints, such as knees and hips, break down with age, resulting in pain, stiffness, and movement restriction. While I do not have any major joint problems, I do experience small aches and pains. We are exploring if we can repair normal age-related damage, restore vitality, and preventatively lessen future deterioration.
I had 300 million bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) injected into six joints over two days: knees, shoulders, and hips. This therapy was part of a Cellcolabs Clinical trial in the Bahamas, with the MSCs manufactured by Cellcolabs and the injections performed by Dr. Steven Sampson of Physical Longevity.
My six-month longevity gene therapy results are in...
In Sept 2023, I traveled to Roatan, an island off the coast of Honduras, to receive follistatin gene therapy.
Humans currently have a max lifespan of roughly 120 years. However gene therapies have the potential to help break through that barrier. Follistatin gene therapy ranks 7th among lifespan studies, extending mouse lifespan by over 30%.
My 71-year-old father also received the gene therapy. His life expectancy is 68 based on how he’s lived life. He’s awaiting his six month results. His ferocious want for life is energizing.
After 18 months and numerous interventions, my lungs still have not regained full capacity.
+ In 2021, my lung capacity was age 26.
+ By Nov 2022, after getting covid, my lung capacity was age 45.
+ Now 2024, my lung capacity is age 37.
My covid symptoms were very mild and lasted only 3 days. Lung therapies below.
Interventions I’ve done to regain lung capacity:
0. Bone marrow MSCs intravenously infused 1. Nebulized azithromycin (14 days) 2. Lung training (oumua and IMT) 3. Nurosym (HRV) used post covid to lessen damage and have used longer term. An indirect relationship and theoretical. 4. Starting Lumbrokinase this week (800,000 units 2x day)
If you want to test your lung capacity, MIR Smart ONE
We are exploring if we can restore my joints to that of an 18 year old.
Problem
Our joints (i.e. knees, hips, etc.) break down with age. Resulting in pain, stiffness and movement restriction. While I do not have any major joint problems, I do have small aches and pains. We are testing if we can repair normal age related damage, restore vitality, and preventatively lessen future deterioration.
Therapy
Last week, I had 300 million bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) injected into six joints over two days: both knees, shoulders, and hips as part of a clinical trial in the Bahamas. We may repeat this therapy as needed to achieve the outcome objectives.
MSC’s were manufactured by Cellcolabs. Injections were performed by Dr. Steven Sampson of Physical Longevity.
Measurement
Prior to the therapy, we completed comprehensive baseline analysis of each joint with MRI and musculoskeletal ultrasound. Here were the findings:
Joint & tendon diagnosis
+ Bilateral shoulder labral degenerative tears with paralabral cysts.
+ Tendinosis (degenerated tendons): bilateral supraspinatus rotator cuff (shoulder) with subacromial bursitis (chronic inflammation in R>L shoulders).
+ Bilateral knee chondromalacia patella (cartilage wear beneath the kneecap) with left knee mild to moderate effusion/bursitis. (fluid in knee).
+ Bilateral hip gluteus medius tendinosis (chronic degeneration). Bilateral Hip Cam impingement syndrome. (Can predispose to osteoarthritis)
What we hope we can achieve with this therapy
Improved function, mobility, and athletic performance. Elimination of aches and pains. Potential tissue regeneration and prevention of future degeneration.
Treatment plan
+ Intra Articular injection of bilateral shoulders, hips, and knees.
+ Bilateral supraspinatus rotator cuff and bursa injections.
+ Right shoulder anterior labrum injection.
Bilateral hip gluteus medius tendon injections.
What happened
The injections were completed in the Bahamas in collaboration with Cellcolabs Clinical Ltd. and Dr. Steven Sampson of Physical Longevity. Treatment was under a clinical trial approved by the national stem cell ethics committee in the Bahamas. Cellco Labs provided best-in-class, gold-standard cell manufacturing of allogeneic bone marrow-cultured mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). 50 million MSCs were injected into each of six joints, shoulders, knees, and hips, over two days. Cells were prepared and shipped from Sweden and were cryopreserved with liquid nitrogen. Cells were checked for viability at the point of care in the Bahamas and injected under ultrasound guidance by Dr Sampson for proper deployment under strict protocol.
Proforma for recording performed injections
Peer reviewed March 2024