Biohacking Basics
Choose a goal, understand your starting point, and question the trade-offs. This short introduction reuses ideas from Better Than Natural and gives you a practical worksheet. I'm a lawyer, not a doctor.
1. Choose the goal before the tool
What are you trying to improve right now: muscle, fat loss, focus or sleep? Start with the outcome. A long list of tools is not a clear goal.
In Better Than Natural, I call these different priorities Human Modes. Use that idea to make the goal specific. For this lesson, it is a planning framework, not a promise that a particular compound will produce a result.
Compare “I want to optimize everything” with “I want to understand whether my training is becoming more consistent.” The second gives you something to observe. You can look at your training record rather than chasing every new idea.
Write down the priority, what progress would look like, and what you still need to learn. You do not need to buy anything or start a compound to complete this course.
Try it
Finish this sentence: My current priority is ____. I would recognize progress by ____. The question I need to answer is ____.
Quick check
Which is the clearer starting point?
Show answer
Choose a specific goal and decide what you would observe. A defined goal gives the next decision a purpose. A larger collection of tools does not define success.
2. Get a baseline before judging a change
Biohacking without a baseline is guessing. In Better Than Natural, the measurement principle is simple: know where you started before deciding what changed.
For this introductory exercise, use ordinary observations such as your training record, sleep schedule and how you feel. A baseline is a description of your starting point, not a diagnosis. A qualified clinician can decide whether any medical tests are appropriate.
Keep observation separate from explanation. “I completed my planned sessions” is an observation. “A new supplement caused my progress” is a conclusion that needs more support.
If training, meals, sleep and supplements all change together, a result does not tell you which change mattered. Even a careful personal log cannot by itself prove cause and effect.
The purpose of the log is to help you ask better questions. Do not change prescribed treatment to make a cleaner experiment.
Try it
Write one starting observation, one thing you could record consistently, and one other factor that could explain a change.
Quick check
Your routine and several supplements change together. You feel different. What can the log establish?
Show answer
What you observed, while the cause remains uncertain. The record can describe what happened. It does not isolate the cause when several things changed.
3. Weigh utility against risk
In Better Than Natural, I use a simple lens: utility versus toxicity. Before adding something, ask what benefit you want, what evidence supports it, and what risks or interactions come with it.
More compounds do not automatically make a better plan. A convincing story is not the same as a demonstrated benefit for you. Separate the claimed outcome from the evidence supporting it.
Supplements can change the effects of medicines and can interact in harmful ways. “Natural” does not automatically mean safe. Ask a qualified clinician or pharmacist about the products and medicines you use.
For this lesson, evaluate a claim rather than selecting a product. Write down the proposed benefit, the evidence you have actually seen, what remains unknown, and the question you would take to a professional.
A useful answer can be “I do not know enough yet.” Learning when to pause is part of making an informed decision.
Try it
Choose a claim you have encountered. Fill in: claimed benefit; evidence actually seen; important unknown; question for a clinician or pharmacist.
Quick check
Does a product being described as natural establish that it is safe with your medicines?
Show answer
No. Safety and possible interactions need their own assessment. Natural origin does not establish safety or rule out interactions.
Cheat Sheet Pivot
For another starting point, see the Miracle Molecules Cheat Sheet. Evaluate its claims using the questions in this course.
Further reading from Tony
Use the course questions while reading these research discussions: MK-677 and sleep-study interpretation and retatrutide and heart-rate research. These are optional reading, not instructions to use either compound.
Source notes
Adapted from Better Than Natural, v160, selected passages in chapters 5 and 8. Supplement safety context: NCCIH guidance and medication interactions.