All protocols

Use iodized table salt as a routine dietary source of iodine, and include iodine-rich foods like seaweed or kelp when needed. The goal is to keep iodine intake sufficient without overdoing it, since iodine is required for normal thyroid hormone production and helps prevent deficiency-related problems like goiter.

Eat in ways that nourish beneficial gut microbes, especially by emphasizing fiber-rich foods and fermented foods. The goal is to shift the microbiome toward producing helpful short-chain fatty acids and away from patterns that can damage the gut lining, which may support lower inflammation, better immune function, and broader metabolic health.

An eating pattern built around mostly whole, minimally processed foods while limiting fried, ultra-processed, and other inflammatory foods. It is commonly framed as Mediterranean- or Ayurvedic-style and emphasizes anti-inflammatory choices over packaged foods. The goal is to lower systemic inflammation and support better symptom control, including skin, fertility, and perimenopause-related concerns.

Use the largest safe, controlled range of motion for each joint during resistance training, and check that technique stays solid as depth or reach increases. Doing so across the week can improve strength and hypertrophy, help preserve mobility, and may reduce injury risk by keeping joints moving well.

A studied protocol of roughly 6 to 8 grams per day of vitamin C, usually taken with the goal of preventing or shortening colds and flu. The consensus here is that the evidence for meaningful benefit is weak, so it is generally not considered a high-value intervention despite the popularity of the approach.

After crossing time zones, shift your meals to the destination’s schedule as soon as you arrive, even if that means skipping or delaying breakfast to match local timing. Pairing food timing with the new day-night rhythm helps reset circadian cues faster and can reduce jet lag and gastrointestinal discomfort.

Rhodiola rosea is commonly used to reduce physical and perceived fatigue, with some early evidence suggesting it may also support memory and cognition. It’s often taken strategically rather than as a blanket cortisol-lowering supplement, since it appears to act more like a stress-response modulator and may be better suited for later-day use or fatigue-heavy periods than right before hard training.

Build in a planned deload after about 4 to 8 weeks of hard training by cutting volume and intensity to roughly 70% of normal, or taking a lighter week entirely. This periodic back-off helps you keep progressing while reducing accumulated fatigue, nagging aches, and the risk of getting beat up from continuous hard work.

Discuss hormone replacement therapy early in perimenopause or menopause rather than waiting until symptoms or hormone deficits have been present for a long time. The idea is to review whether estrogen and/or testosterone replacement is appropriate with a clinician while still in the treatment window, since earlier initiation may offer better symptom relief and stronger long-term protective benefits, including cardiovascular protection.

Keep non-caloric sweeteners to a minimum rather than using them as a default substitute for sugar. The common rationale is that they can still promote insulin release, cravings, and hunger, and in larger amounts may also disrupt the gut microbiome. Water or other unsweetened drinks are preferred when the goal is better appetite control and metabolic health.

Limit or stop cannabis use during preconception, especially if pregnancy is taking longer than expected. This includes smoking and vaping, since cannabis exposure has been linked to poorer sperm concentration, motility, and morphology, as well as reduced egg quality and fertility in some people.

A simple eye covering used during psychedelic-assisted sessions, especially psilocybin and MDMA therapy. The usual protocol is to put it on for most or all of the session so external visual input is minimized and attention can turn inward. This can reduce distraction from changing visuals and support a deeper, more introspective therapeutic experience.

An acetylated form of L-carnitine commonly taken in divided doses around 500 mg to 2 g per day. It’s favored because it crosses the blood-brain barrier more readily than standard L-carnitine, supporting mitochondrial energy production and potentially offering mood and cognitive benefits.

A structured, non-drug treatment for insomnia that uses cognitive and behavioral techniques to retrain sleep. It typically includes sleep restriction or bedtime rescheduling, along with sleep-hygiene and stimulus-control strategies, often guided by a clinician. It is valued because it is highly effective, with benefits that can match sleeping pills short term and last longer over time.

Increase intake of tyrosine-rich foods such as red meat, nuts, Parmesan, and other protein-containing foods to support dopamine and catecholamine production. The idea is that providing more dietary tyrosine can help maintain baseline dopamine levels and promote alertness and wakefulness, especially when mental energy is low.

An over-the-counter herbal source of L-DOPA, the direct precursor to dopamine. It’s used to produce a strong, short-lived dopamine boost, which is why people discuss it for Parkinson’s symptom support, lowering prolactin, and other dopamine-related effects.

Take at least one completely off day from training each week, with some people benefiting from two. The goal is to give muscles, joints, and the nervous system time to recover so you can adapt to training and reduce accumulated fatigue or overuse.

Use red or red-plus-near-infrared light early in the day for brief eye exposure, typically about 1–3 minutes per session from a comfortable distance, a few times per week or daily for short periods. The practice is aimed at adults over 40 with age-related vision decline, and is thought to help photoreceptor mitochondria function better, potentially supporting visual performance and slowing age-related loss.

A standardized hand- or palm-cooling method used during rest periods in training or endurance efforts. The usual protocol is to hold a cool object such as a mitt, gel pack, cold water bottles, or a chilled can in the palms long enough to feel cool but not ice-cold. The goal is to help manage heat stress and preserve performance by cooling blood passing through the hands without triggering the vasoconstriction that can come from very cold exposure.

If you wake up in the middle of the night, resist checking the time and keep visible clocks out of the bedroom, including phone screens used as clocks. The idea is that seeing the time can trigger anxiety, rumination, and a stronger sense of alertness, which makes it harder to fall back asleep and can even worsen how rested you feel the next day.

Learn to notice stress, label it as a normal response, and consciously reinterpret it as something that can help you rise to a challenge rather than harm you. The protocol is to bring the stress mindset into awareness, acknowledge and welcome the feeling, and connect it to what matters so you can keep pursuing the task or goal. This shift can reduce fear of stress and improve focus, energy, and performance under pressure.

Use wearables or sleep devices like Oura, Whoop, or Eight Sleep to monitor sleep patterns over time, including stages such as REM and slow-wave sleep. The main value is not chasing nightly scores, but comparing trends and averages against how you actually feel so you can spot meaningful changes without over-fixating on noisy data.

For muscle growth, most training should use a moderate rep range—roughly 6 to 15 reps per set, with a broad effective window extending from about 5 to 30 reps. The key is to choose a load that makes the last reps hard and bring sets close to muscular failure, since effort matters more than any single rep number for stimulating hypertrophy.

A meditation app that helps users build a consistent contemplative practice through short guided sessions. It includes brief explanations before meditations about what the practice is doing and what different techniques are meant to cultivate, which can make the sessions easier to understand and stick with. The main value is lowering the barrier to regular meditation while clarifying the purpose and effects of each practice.

Take brief, vigorous movement bouts throughout the day, either by turning everyday moments into activity or by deliberately inserting them into a sedentary routine. Each bout is typically at least 1 minute and up to about 3 minutes. These short bursts help raise total daily physical activity without needing a full workout, making it easier to break up long periods of sitting.

Keep social media apps on an old secondary phone instead of your main communication device. This creates a physical barrier and lets you add limits like a timer or shrinking daily allowance, which reduces impulsive checking and makes it easier to control total time spent on social platforms.

Choose non-plastic containers for drinking water and, when possible, avoid disposable plastic bottles—especially ones that may have been heated during storage or transport. The goal is to reduce exposure to BPA and other plastic-derived chemicals, including microplastics and nanoplastics.

At the early stage of feeling sick, use heat before sleep: a hot shower or very hot bath/shower as hot as comfortably tolerable without scalding; some may create a steam-filled bathroom. Avoid sauna if already running a fever because body temperature could rise to dangerous levels.

Keep nights dark as a foundational circadian practice before layering in peptides or other interventions.

Build each meal around a meaningful protein source and spread protein intake across breakfast, lunch, and dinner rather than saving most of it for later in the day. A practical target is roughly 30–50 g of high-quality protein per meal, using lean options like chicken, fish, or beef. This supports satiety and helps maintain or build lean muscle by keeping daily protein intake consistently high.