Biohacking is everywhere. In Silicon Valley podcasts, in entrepreneurs' morning routines, in longevity research labs. But behind the buzzword lies a simple, powerful idea: use science to understand your body, then take concrete action to optimise it.
This isn't a trend. It's a proactive health philosophy that brings together intermittent fasting, quality sleep, functional supplements, stress management and intelligent movement. An approach that has existed for decades under other names (functional medicine, advanced naturopathy, orthomolecular nutrition), and which is now finding a new audience thanks to the wider availability of biological data and tracking tools.
At SuperKure, this has been our focus from day one. This guide gives you the fundamentals.
What exactly is biohacking?
The term "biohacking" comes from "biology" and "hacking" in the sense of intelligently modifying, optimising and tinkering. It refers to a set of practices aimed at improving physical and cognitive performance and longevity by drawing on scientific research.
There are several levels of biohacking:
Foundational biohacking (accessible to everyone): optimising sleep, nutrition and stress management, practising intermittent fasting, using targeted supplements.
Intermediate biohacking: tracking biomarkers (in-depth blood work, heart rate variability, sleep quality via a wearable ring), adjusting protocols based on the data.
Advanced biohacking: therapies such as photobiomodulation, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, peptides, genetic interventions. Reserved for advanced practitioners under medical supervision.
This guide focuses on the first two levels, the ones with the greatest impact for the greatest number of people.
Pillar 1: Nutrition as a performance tool
Intermittent fasting: biohacking's most powerful tool
Intermittent fasting is arguably the most scientifically documented biohacking practice. Its main mechanism: autophagy. When the body goes without food for long enough (generally at least 14 to 16 hours), it activates a "cellular clean-up" process that breaks down and recycles damaged cellular components. This is one of the most well-documented mechanisms linked to healthy ageing research to date, and the scientist who identified its core process was awarded the 2016 Nobel Prize in Medicine.
Effects of intermittent fasting studied in the research:
- Support for a healthy inflammatory response
- Support for healthy insulin sensitivity
- Stimulation of BDNF production (a brain growth factor)
- Reduction of oxidative stress
- Improved mental clarity in the hours following a fast
The most common protocols: 16:8 (16 hours fasting, 8-hour eating window), 5:2 (5 normal days, 2 days at around 500 calories), a 24-hour fast once a week.
During a fast, certain supplements are generally considered acceptable without breaking the fasted state: electrolytes (sodium, potassium, magnesium), quality broths for extended fasts, calorie-free vitamins.
→ Read our complete guide to fasting and supplements
Our picks to support your fast:
Functional nutrition: eating to perform, not just to survive
Biohacking through food isn't just about fasting. It's also about paying attention to food quality, its impact on the gut microbiome, and its nutritional density.
The core principles:
- Favouring nutrient-dense foods (cruciferous vegetables, oily fish, eggs, nuts, berries)
- Reducing ultra-processed foods and refined sugars, which are associated with chronic low-grade inflammation
- Supporting the gut microbiome with quality probiotics and prebiotics
- Maintaining a healthy acid-base balance
Cellular support: longevity-focused supplements
The biohacking approach includes targeted supplementation traditionally used to support the body's natural response to cellular ageing. The most studied molecules:
NMN (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide): a precursor to NAD+, a coenzyme that declines with age and is involved in DNA repair and cellular energy production. Popularised by Dr David Sinclair (Harvard).
Resveratrol: a polyphenol studied for its potential to activate sirtuins, sometimes called "longevity genes". Often paired with NMN.
Liposomal Glutathione: the body's main cellular antioxidant, produced naturally but at declining levels with age. Liposomal glutathione is one of the pillars of cellular detox support in biohacking circles: discover our complete guide.
Collagen: traditionally associated with supporting the structure of skin, joints and bones.
Collagen is one of the pillars of any serious longevity-focused routine: the complete guide to choosing the right one and adding it to your routine.
Our longevity picks:
Pillar 2: The body
Sleep: the foundation of everything
For David Sinclair, Matthew Walker (author of "Why We Sleep") and nearly every longevity researcher, sleep is the number one lever for health and healthy ageing. Not supplements, not fasting, not exercise. Sleep.
During deep sleep:
- The brain clears metabolic waste via the glymphatic system (including beta-amyloid proteins linked to Alzheimer's)
- Growth hormone (GH) production peaks
- Cellular and muscle repair takes place
- Memories are consolidated and learning is integrated
Biohacking your sleep doesn't mean sleeping more, it means sleeping better. Concrete levers:
Get natural light exposure within the first 30 minutes of waking to help calibrate your circadian rhythm. Avoid caffeine after 2pm (its half-life is 5 to 7 hours). Turn off screens or wear blue-light-blocking glasses 1 to 2 hours before bed. Keep your bedroom between 18 and 20°C. Go to bed and wake up at consistent times, even on weekends.
On the supplement side, the most studied options for sleep quality: magnesium bisglycinate (traditionally associated with muscle and nervous system relaxation), L-glycine (studied for its potential to lower core body temperature), low-dose melatonin (0.5 to 1 mg, not the 5 to 10 mg often sold), L-theanine (traditionally associated with gentle calm).
Our sleep picks:
→ Read our complete guide to sleep supplements
Movement: moving smart, not moving hard
Biohacking movement doesn't mean daily intense training. Research shows that prolonged inactivity is harmful, but so is overtraining. The goal is regular, varied movement.
The pillars of biohacked movement:
Zone 2: low-intensity aerobic exercise (brisk walking, easy cycling, light swimming) for 30 to 45 minutes, 3 to 5 times a week. This is the zone associated with the greatest mitochondrial biogenesis.
Resistance training: strength training or bodyweight exercises 2 to 3 times a week. Muscle mass is considered a strong, independent predictor of long-term health.
Mobility: yoga, stretching, joint mobility work. Often overlooked, but essential for maintaining quality of life as you age.
To support performance and recovery:
-
Liposomal Creatine - Cymbiotika: creatine contributes to an increase in physical performance during short-term, high-intensity, repeated exercise bouts, and is also studied for its potential cognitive benefits.
-
Cordyceps - Sun Potion: an adaptogen traditionally valued for supporting oxygen utilisation and energy production.
Pillar 3: The mind
Mental clarity: optimising the brain
The brain is the body's most energy-hungry organ. It uses around 20% of total energy despite making up about 2% of body weight. Cognitive biohacking aims to give it the best conditions to perform: good oxygenation, protection against oxidative stress, and support for neurotransmitter balance.
Non-supplement levers: natural light exposure (supports serotonin production), conscious breathing (activates the vagus nerve, associated with lower cortisol), meditation (associated with reduced amygdala reactivity and increased prefrontal cortex thickness in Harvard research), cold showers (a spike in noradrenaline and dopamine).
The most studied natural nootropics:
Lion's Mane: traditionally associated with supporting NGF (Nerve Growth Factor) production and neurogenesis. It's one of the few mushrooms whose effects on neuronal growth have been studied in a laboratory setting.
Bacopa Monnieri: traditionally used to support working memory and information retention, with effects generally building over 8 to 12 weeks.
L-Theanine: traditionally associated with a state of calm alertness, without sedation. Often paired with caffeine.
Rhodiola Rosea: a Scandinavian adaptogen traditionally used to help ease mental fatigue and support resistance to cognitive stress.
Our cognition picks:
→ Read our full experience with Lion's Mane
Stress management: longevity's silent enemy
Chronic stress may be the most underestimated threat to long-term health. It chronically raises cortisol, which is associated with accelerated cellular ageing (shortened telomeres), a weaker immune response, disrupted sex hormones and increased abdominal fat storage.
Biohacking stress relies on two angles: reducing sources of chronic stress (mental load, screen time, poor time management) and building physiological resilience to stress with adaptogens.
Adaptogens act on the HPA axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis), which regulates the stress response. They don't eliminate stress, they're traditionally used to help support your capacity to handle it without burning out.
The most studied: Ashwagandha (studied for its potential to help support healthy cortisol levels), Rhodiola (studied for mental fatigue and burnout-related exhaustion), Reishi (adaptogenic properties, traditionally valued for immune support), Schisandra (traditionally used to support adrenal function).
Our stress picks:
→ Read our complete guide to the best adaptogens for stress
Where to start: the beginner's biohacking protocol
If you're just getting started, don't try to do everything at once. Here's a priority order based on impact versus effort:
Week 1: sleep
Go to bed and wake up at the same time 7 days a week. Get natural light exposure within the first 30 minutes of waking. Cut screens 1 hour before bed. Add 200 mg of magnesium bisglycinate in the evening.
Week 2: intermittent fasting
Start with a 12:12 fast (no food between 8pm and 8am). Then gradually extend to 14:10, then 16:8 if you want to. Drink water, herbal tea and electrolytes during the fasting window.
Week 3: movement
30 minutes of brisk walking every day. 2 resistance sessions a week (even 20 minutes of push-ups, squats and core work is enough to start).
Week 4: targeted supplements
Pick ONE priority goal (energy, stress, sleep, cognition) and add a supplement suited to it. Not ten at once.
Month 2: biomarkers
Get a full blood panel done (vitamin D, ferritin, red blood cell magnesium, CRP, TSH, HbA1c). These are your baseline numbers, and they'll let you track your progress.
Biohacking for women: what's different
Biohacking has long been designed by and for men. Most clinical research on fasting, creatine or adaptogens has been carried out on male subjects. But female physiology is different, particularly when it comes to hormonal cycles.
Fasting in women: extended fasts (more than 16 hours daily) can disrupt the hormonal axis in women of reproductive age. A 12:12 or 14:10 approach is often better suited than a strict 16:8.
Adaptogens: certain adaptogens are particularly relevant for women's hormonal wellbeing. Sun Potion's Yin Power is specifically formulated to traditionally support feminine energy, libido and hormonal balance.
Creatine: some research suggests creatine's benefits for cognition and muscular strength may be proportionally greater in women, since their natural creatine stores tend to be lower.
Perimenopause and menopause: these are the periods when biohacking tends to be most transformative. Declining oestrogen affects sleep, cognition, body composition and energy. Adaptogens, collagen, vitamin D and magnesium become essential allies.
In summary
Biohacking isn't reserved for Silicon Valley billionaires with hyperbaric chambers in their villas. It's above all a philosophy of paying attention to your body, staying scientifically curious, and repeating simple practices over time.
Restorative sleep. Fasting suited to you. Regular movement. Stress management. Targeted supplements. These are the five pillars that, combined and maintained for at least 90 days, can transform vitality, mental clarity and long-term wellbeing.
That's exactly why SuperKure exists.
→ Discover our longevity and biohacking supplement selection
→ Which supplement fits your needs?
France
Biohacking: The Complete Beginner's Guide to Optimising Your Body and Mind
Biohacking is everywhere. In Silicon Valley podcasts, in entrepreneurs' morning routines, in longevity research labs. But behind the buzzword lies a simple, powerful idea: use science to understand your body, then take concrete action to optimise it.
This isn't a trend. It's a proactive health philosophy that brings together intermittent fasting, quality sleep, functional supplements, stress management and intelligent movement. An approach that has existed for decades under other names (functional medicine, advanced naturopathy, orthomolecular nutrition), and which is now finding a new audience thanks to the wider availability of biological data and tracking tools.
At SuperKure, this has been our focus from day one. This guide gives you the fundamentals.
What exactly is biohacking?
The term "biohacking" comes from "biology" and "hacking" in the sense of intelligently modifying, optimising and tinkering. It refers to a set of practices aimed at improving physical and cognitive performance and longevity by drawing on scientific research.
There are several levels of biohacking:
Foundational biohacking (accessible to everyone): optimising sleep, nutrition and stress management, practising intermittent fasting, using targeted supplements.
Intermediate biohacking: tracking biomarkers (in-depth blood work, heart rate variability, sleep quality via a wearable ring), adjusting protocols based on the data.
Advanced biohacking: therapies such as photobiomodulation, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, peptides, genetic interventions. Reserved for advanced practitioners under medical supervision.
This guide focuses on the first two levels, the ones with the greatest impact for the greatest number of people.
Pillar 1: Nutrition as a performance tool
Intermittent fasting: biohacking's most powerful tool
Intermittent fasting is arguably the most scientifically documented biohacking practice. Its main mechanism: autophagy. When the body goes without food for long enough (generally at least 14 to 16 hours), it activates a "cellular clean-up" process that breaks down and recycles damaged cellular components. This is one of the most well-documented mechanisms linked to healthy ageing research to date, and the scientist who identified its core process was awarded the 2016 Nobel Prize in Medicine.
Effects of intermittent fasting studied in the research:
The most common protocols: 16:8 (16 hours fasting, 8-hour eating window), 5:2 (5 normal days, 2 days at around 500 calories), a 24-hour fast once a week.
During a fast, certain supplements are generally considered acceptable without breaking the fasted state: electrolytes (sodium, potassium, magnesium), quality broths for extended fasts, calorie-free vitamins.
→ Read our complete guide to fasting and supplements
Our picks to support your fast:
Functional nutrition: eating to perform, not just to survive
Biohacking through food isn't just about fasting. It's also about paying attention to food quality, its impact on the gut microbiome, and its nutritional density.
The core principles:
Cellular support: longevity-focused supplements
The biohacking approach includes targeted supplementation traditionally used to support the body's natural response to cellular ageing. The most studied molecules:
NMN (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide): a precursor to NAD+, a coenzyme that declines with age and is involved in DNA repair and cellular energy production. Popularised by Dr David Sinclair (Harvard).
Resveratrol: a polyphenol studied for its potential to activate sirtuins, sometimes called "longevity genes". Often paired with NMN.
Liposomal Glutathione: the body's main cellular antioxidant, produced naturally but at declining levels with age. Liposomal glutathione is one of the pillars of cellular detox support in biohacking circles: discover our complete guide.
Collagen: traditionally associated with supporting the structure of skin, joints and bones.
Collagen is one of the pillars of any serious longevity-focused routine: the complete guide to choosing the right one and adding it to your routine.
Our longevity picks:
Pillar 2: The body
Sleep: the foundation of everything
For David Sinclair, Matthew Walker (author of "Why We Sleep") and nearly every longevity researcher, sleep is the number one lever for health and healthy ageing. Not supplements, not fasting, not exercise. Sleep.
During deep sleep:
Biohacking your sleep doesn't mean sleeping more, it means sleeping better. Concrete levers:
Get natural light exposure within the first 30 minutes of waking to help calibrate your circadian rhythm. Avoid caffeine after 2pm (its half-life is 5 to 7 hours). Turn off screens or wear blue-light-blocking glasses 1 to 2 hours before bed. Keep your bedroom between 18 and 20°C. Go to bed and wake up at consistent times, even on weekends.
On the supplement side, the most studied options for sleep quality: magnesium bisglycinate (traditionally associated with muscle and nervous system relaxation), L-glycine (studied for its potential to lower core body temperature), low-dose melatonin (0.5 to 1 mg, not the 5 to 10 mg often sold), L-theanine (traditionally associated with gentle calm).
Our sleep picks:
→ Read our complete guide to sleep supplements
Movement: moving smart, not moving hard
Biohacking movement doesn't mean daily intense training. Research shows that prolonged inactivity is harmful, but so is overtraining. The goal is regular, varied movement.
The pillars of biohacked movement:
Zone 2: low-intensity aerobic exercise (brisk walking, easy cycling, light swimming) for 30 to 45 minutes, 3 to 5 times a week. This is the zone associated with the greatest mitochondrial biogenesis.
Resistance training: strength training or bodyweight exercises 2 to 3 times a week. Muscle mass is considered a strong, independent predictor of long-term health.
Mobility: yoga, stretching, joint mobility work. Often overlooked, but essential for maintaining quality of life as you age.
To support performance and recovery:
Pillar 3: The mind
Mental clarity: optimising the brain
The brain is the body's most energy-hungry organ. It uses around 20% of total energy despite making up about 2% of body weight. Cognitive biohacking aims to give it the best conditions to perform: good oxygenation, protection against oxidative stress, and support for neurotransmitter balance.
Non-supplement levers: natural light exposure (supports serotonin production), conscious breathing (activates the vagus nerve, associated with lower cortisol), meditation (associated with reduced amygdala reactivity and increased prefrontal cortex thickness in Harvard research), cold showers (a spike in noradrenaline and dopamine).
The most studied natural nootropics:
Lion's Mane: traditionally associated with supporting NGF (Nerve Growth Factor) production and neurogenesis. It's one of the few mushrooms whose effects on neuronal growth have been studied in a laboratory setting.
Bacopa Monnieri: traditionally used to support working memory and information retention, with effects generally building over 8 to 12 weeks.
L-Theanine: traditionally associated with a state of calm alertness, without sedation. Often paired with caffeine.
Rhodiola Rosea: a Scandinavian adaptogen traditionally used to help ease mental fatigue and support resistance to cognitive stress.
Our cognition picks:
→ Read our full experience with Lion's Mane
Stress management: longevity's silent enemy
Chronic stress may be the most underestimated threat to long-term health. It chronically raises cortisol, which is associated with accelerated cellular ageing (shortened telomeres), a weaker immune response, disrupted sex hormones and increased abdominal fat storage.
Biohacking stress relies on two angles: reducing sources of chronic stress (mental load, screen time, poor time management) and building physiological resilience to stress with adaptogens.
Adaptogens act on the HPA axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis), which regulates the stress response. They don't eliminate stress, they're traditionally used to help support your capacity to handle it without burning out.
The most studied: Ashwagandha (studied for its potential to help support healthy cortisol levels), Rhodiola (studied for mental fatigue and burnout-related exhaustion), Reishi (adaptogenic properties, traditionally valued for immune support), Schisandra (traditionally used to support adrenal function).
Our stress picks:
→ Read our complete guide to the best adaptogens for stress
Where to start: the beginner's biohacking protocol
If you're just getting started, don't try to do everything at once. Here's a priority order based on impact versus effort:
Week 1: sleep
Go to bed and wake up at the same time 7 days a week. Get natural light exposure within the first 30 minutes of waking. Cut screens 1 hour before bed. Add 200 mg of magnesium bisglycinate in the evening.
Week 2: intermittent fasting
Start with a 12:12 fast (no food between 8pm and 8am). Then gradually extend to 14:10, then 16:8 if you want to. Drink water, herbal tea and electrolytes during the fasting window.
Week 3: movement
30 minutes of brisk walking every day. 2 resistance sessions a week (even 20 minutes of push-ups, squats and core work is enough to start).
Week 4: targeted supplements
Pick ONE priority goal (energy, stress, sleep, cognition) and add a supplement suited to it. Not ten at once.
Month 2: biomarkers
Get a full blood panel done (vitamin D, ferritin, red blood cell magnesium, CRP, TSH, HbA1c). These are your baseline numbers, and they'll let you track your progress.
Biohacking for women: what's different
Biohacking has long been designed by and for men. Most clinical research on fasting, creatine or adaptogens has been carried out on male subjects. But female physiology is different, particularly when it comes to hormonal cycles.
Fasting in women: extended fasts (more than 16 hours daily) can disrupt the hormonal axis in women of reproductive age. A 12:12 or 14:10 approach is often better suited than a strict 16:8.
Adaptogens: certain adaptogens are particularly relevant for women's hormonal wellbeing. Sun Potion's Yin Power is specifically formulated to traditionally support feminine energy, libido and hormonal balance.
Creatine: some research suggests creatine's benefits for cognition and muscular strength may be proportionally greater in women, since their natural creatine stores tend to be lower.
Perimenopause and menopause: these are the periods when biohacking tends to be most transformative. Declining oestrogen affects sleep, cognition, body composition and energy. Adaptogens, collagen, vitamin D and magnesium become essential allies.
In summary
Biohacking isn't reserved for Silicon Valley billionaires with hyperbaric chambers in their villas. It's above all a philosophy of paying attention to your body, staying scientifically curious, and repeating simple practices over time.
Restorative sleep. Fasting suited to you. Regular movement. Stress management. Targeted supplements. These are the five pillars that, combined and maintained for at least 90 days, can transform vitality, mental clarity and long-term wellbeing.
That's exactly why SuperKure exists.
→ Discover our longevity and biohacking supplement selection
→ Which supplement fits your needs?