In this article, you’ll learn what I mean by biohacking, how I got here, why it might be more familiar than you think. And why you should absolutely give it a try.
What I Mean by Biohacking
Biohacking? At first it sounds like tracking rings, Silicon Valley tech-bro charisma, and way too much money that has no idea where else to flow.
I came to it more through the back door. Not with enthusiasm but with exhaustion.
I don’t even remember exactly how it started. Too much brain fog.
But I do remember what I was searching for: answers. Hope. Something to help me reclaim my body. YouTube was my entry point. It was the least exhausting option.
I had already paid attention to nutrition for a long time. I exercised a lot and enthusiastically. I thought I was doing everything right. So it came as a shock when my body just… quit.
I felt betrayed and abandoned. Why me?
I stumbled across Dave Asprey, read a few pages on my Kindle (no idea how the book got there) but it didn’t really click. Especially that story where he went off into the desert to find himself right after becoming a father? I can’t roll my eyes hard enough.
Other voices were different: Mindy Pelz. Peter Attia. William Davis. Steven Gundry.
They gave me impulses that actually changed something. Especially Mindy Pelz. Her way of connecting nutrition and female biology sparked a lot for me.
And then there were books on mitochondria, EBV, aging and Sarah Myhill1
I had reached the fringe of conventional medicine but I decided to keep going.
What Exhaustion Really Feels Like
Imagine feeling hungover but it never goes away. Imagine standing in your kitchen and not remembering why. Your head feels like cotton. Every thought has to push through mud. Your body feels borrowed. There, but not yours.
And yet, you function. For a few hours. Again and again just because you have to. But you pay for it. Every single time. Functioning today means deeper exhaustion tomorrow. And if you push just a little too far, that crash might become your new, worse normal. You still have a battery but it only charges to 40%. And if you dare drain it, it blows up in your face. Meanwhile, everyday life at home demands 80% just to maintain the baseline.
If you know that feeling: I see you. Truly. If you don’t be grateful. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.
And the System?
I tried to go back to work again and again. Don’t let anyone down. Don’t be weak. Don’t drop out. Function. I had very little sympathy or tolerance for myself but a very strong sense of duty.
It wasn’t until my general practitioner and the psychologist I saw for neurofeedback gave me permission to stop forcing myself that something shifted. Both part of the system and yet also beyond it. Human.
We ran tests. And they showed something: my bloodwork was off. My brainwaves too.
And yet: from a conventional medical perspective, there was no recognized, proven treatment. No “standard procedure.” No roadmap. I was sick but not treatable. At least not by the book.
And maybe that was my first real biohack:
The permission to not function.
It’s still a bit hard for me to admit. As if it were a confession of guilt. But it’s not. And that permission isn’t a simple on-off switch. It’s a decision you make again and again.
Sometimes daily. Sometimes hourly. And sometimes you forget until your body gently, or not so gently, reminds you.
Maybe it was Perimenopause
I was told back then: maybe it’s the hormones. Perimenopause. Early forties. Welcome to the club.
And honestly? Maybe it was that too. Maybe it was everything at once. Chronic fatigue, long COVID, old wounds, high expectations and a body whispering: See me at last.
Not as a machine to be fixed. But as a companion that needs more love, not less, the older she gets. We need to honor our body more as time goes on, not less. It deserves respect, not control. Tenderness, not just discipline.
No Magic Pill but a Beginning
I didn’t expect biohacking to heal me in the conventional sense. No magic pill to straighten out my life.
I thought: Okay, maybe I can’t reach the illness directly. But I can do everything in my power to help my body help itself.
And honestly what else does a doctor do?
Ventilators? Temporary support until the lungs can work again.
CPR? A short-term bridge, hoping the heart restarts on its own.
Surgery for a complex fracture? Guidance so the body can rebuild the bones.
Even vaccines are ultimately nothing more than a catalyst for the immune system.
True healing comes from within. Always.
And that’s not esoteric but a fact.
Biohacking in a Nutshell
I didn’t set out looking for something called biohacking. I just wanted to feel like myself again.
But somewhere along the way, I realized: that’s exactly what it was.
Biohacking in short is the art (and science) of understanding your body and deliberately influencing it.
That might mean:
- tracking your sleep or cycle
- adapting your nutrition to your energy levels
- experimenting with cold exposure, matcha, magnesium, or medicinal mushrooms
- addressing known deficiencies (like my genetically high Lp(a) and MTHFR mutation)
- or simply asking: What actually feels good for me and how do I notice that?
It’s a mix of science and intuition. Of data and self-trust. And definitely not one-size-fits-all. You don’t need a €400 tracking ring to start. But if it excites you? Go for it.
Healthy living… on Speed
Isn’t this just “healthy and mindful living” taken to the extreme?
No.
Because biohacking is more than optimization. It gives you a starting point, motivation, and a system. What comes to your mind when you hear “healthy living”? I think: “Sure… once I finally have time.” Doesn’t exactly get you off the sofa.
And terms like Lp(a) or MTHFR (I will write about this in more detail)? Most of us think: “My doctor can deal with that.” But many doctors simply don’t have the time or the bandwidth. Not because they don’t care, but because the system often doesn’t allow them to.
Biohacking helps you understand the physical processes behind your wellbeing like hormones, neurotransmitters, micronutrients. And with that understanding, you can make better decisions about what might help you next.
That enables you to
- conduct small experiments: try, observe, adjust
- let go of what doesn’t work
- create your own plan for staying well without dogma or overwhelm
- value your individual data over generic advice
- make changes before you burn out and land at the doctor’s
- decide for yourself what feels right instead of following someone else’s rules
This isn’t about optimization. It’s about empowerment. About curiosity. About a respectful, attuned relationship with your wonderful body. Not about control but about connection.
My Personal Approach
Here’s what my personal version of biohacking looks like:
- Yoga Nidra, ideally daily
- Cycle tracking
- Intermittent fasting timed to my hormonal phases
- A craving log to understand my desire for chocolate (which I don’t really need anymore. I know it’s tied to the last week before my period, and I understand why: my body wants enough progesterone, and now I just let that craving be)
- As much daily movement as possible, and varied physical activity
- Regular forest walks
- A few supplements (Vitamin D, CoQ10, magnesium, methylated folate and B12)
- Homemade or store-bought probiotics (like kimchi, yogurt, sauerkraut)
- Not taking my phone to bed. Still working on that
- Self-coded mood trackers in Python (yep, I’m a bit of a nerd)
And no, I don’t do all of this at once. Because for me, it’s not ruthless optimization. It’s sustainable growth with system, and with ease. The little things.
Health Span vs Life Span
Biohacking is often associated with the wish to live as long as possible.
And sure, long life sounds tempting. But what really matters to me is not lifespan, but health span: the number of years you’re truly well. Energetic, clear, mobile and able to feel joy in thinking and doing.
What good is it to live to 90 if the last 25 years are spent in weakness, illness, or dependency?
And for women, it often starts earlier. By your late 40s, you’re in perimenopause and if you just keep going like before, chances are the body will eventually rebel.
So for me, biohacking means: more good years. Not just more years.
And honestly? I’m not trying to keep my ego alive for as long as possible, as if I were God’s gift to humanity. I just want to fully be here for as long as I can. For myself and for my family.
Why would we need a Word for It
If so much of this sounds familiar why do we even need a new word?
Because we’ve forgotten how to value small things.
Because we think that “just” sleeping better or “just” paying attention to our cycle is trivial.
Biohacking is more than a method. It’s permission. A different vocabulary for things that matter but are often not taken seriously. It gives you a framework where you can say:
“I’m paying attention to my body. I’m experimenting. And I take it seriously.”
Sometimes, naming something makes it real. Not to market it but to make it visible to yourself, and maybe to others.
So… Does it Even Work?
Can I really expect results without a comprehensive, expert-level plan?
Yes.
It’s the small, unspectacular things you do every day (or almost every day) that bring the biggest changes. And you can even give yourself a little fist bump: You’re doing this in the name of science!
Math has a beautiful metaphor for this: In integral calculus, infinitely many tiny areas can add up to something substantial. A single dramatic spike with no area underneath? That adds up to nothing. And your health is just like that.
What matters is what you do again and again.
Not what you pull off once in spectacular fashion.
Biohacking and Mindset
Biohacking isn’t an ideology. Because the scientific method doesn’t deal in dogma the outcome is always open.
When I was at my lowest, I was doing two things at once: Trying to help my body heal and realizing I needed to overhaul my entire relationship with life. My worldview needed a reboot and some serious debugging.
At first, I kept these two approaches completely separate. The second one: working through emotional patterns, I pursued almost in secret. Because in medicine, it’s called psychosomatic.
And while that term is technically correct (of course body and mind are connected in the most literal sense, the mind runs on the body’s hardware), it often gets misused. Unlike a computer, though, the mind can influence the system it’s running on.
But in practice, psychosomatic is too often code for: “Pull yourself together. Stop being so sensitive.”
Vitamin D, that was biohacking. Measurable, evidence-based and therefore respectable.
Taking responsibility for my internal state? That sounded suspiciously like woo. No citations for that. But you know what? My nervous system reacts more to one honest thought than to most supplements.
I was afraid I’d ruin my reputation as the “Guardian of Reason.” (I know, a little dramatic but hey, this is my blog, my space, and I promised myself I’d show up as unfiltered me.) Afraid I wouldn’t be taken seriously anymore. It felt like turning away from the identity I had cultivated for myself in the very male dominated field I worked and spent most of my life in. That I wasn’t allowed to be both: a critical thinker and an intuitive feeler.
But that’s exactly what I am.
I used to think that taking responsibility meant carrying all the guilt, shame and pain on my own. And honestly? Life had thrown things at me that truly weren’t my fault. So how could any of that be my responsibility?
Today, responsibility means something very different to me. Not: I’m to blame for everything. But: I don’t abandon myself, even when I can’t control what’s happening. It’s a kind of surrender not of responsibility, but of control.
Admittedly, my ego had its sights set on world domination back in high school. In hindsight, that wasn’t even ambitious enough. Only universe domination would suffice. But… that’s probably not going to happen.
So life keeps lifing and I stay curious. I try to learn what’s mine to learn, and find joy in the thrill of the ride. Sometimes more ghost train than roller coaster. I don’t get to choose what happens but I do get to choose my reaction. Always.
Gabor Maté puts it like this:
If something triggers you – who’s carrying the ammunition in that moment?
I can’t eat myself healthy while suppressing everything that hurts inside. I can’t just hack the light. I have to face my shadows too.
That’s why my thoughts, my patterns, my deepest questions are part of my biohacking.
Even if they don’t come with footnotes. Even if they’re not measurable. Especially then.
Biohacking is a mindset. It’s the decision to show up for myself. Even when I don’t understand everything. Even when it’s slow. Even when it hurts. And precisely for that reason: even when it starts to feel good.
Who is Biohacking for?
For anyone who has ever asked:
- “I want to feel better but where do I even start?”
- “All these health tips are overwhelming.”
- “I’d love to listen to my body but I don’t understand what it’s telling me.”
Biohacking helps by giving you a structure.
When you experiment: Just you, your body, and some curiosity you really can discover what actually works for you.
Start small. Listen in. You don’t have to be perfect just present. So no, this isn’t just for tech bros.
It’s for women in perimenopause who are wondering where their energy went.
For mothers who want to feel like themselves again. For men who have lost their mojo. For curious people who’ve tried everything except pausing long enough to ask:
“What do I really need right now?”
You don’t have to be extreme. You don’t have to be optimized. You just have to begin. Now, here and with you.
Welcome to the Experiment
Biohacking is observation. And experimentation.
It’s not about measuring everything.
It’s about noticing: What feels good? What drains me? What changes?
And then: trying things. Small steps. Not to fix yourself but to get to know yourself better.
Biohacking isn’t an ideology. It’s an invitation.
Want to try a tiny experiment?
If you’re alone right now, put on your favorite song.
Dance. Really dance. Just for a few minutes.
Forget what you look like.
And pay attention to how it feels.
That too is biohacking.
Welcome to the cockpit of your life.
Want more?
I’m planning a newsletter with small impulses around energy, food, self-care, the microbiome, neurotransmitters, and hormones, maybe a few cookie recipes: a colorful mix.
Leave a comment below or send me a message via the contact form, completely anonymously if you like and I’ll add you to the list as soon as my system is set up. And if you don’t need more stuff in your inbox: I’d still love it if you leave a comment.
- I haven’t read enough to form a fully informed opinion on Dr. Sarah Myhill’s ATP test. But I admire her commitment to supporting people with chronic fatigue especially when mainstream medicine still struggles to describe what they’re experiencing. The problem isn’t just knowing the facts, it’s also about understanding how blood tests work, how samples are preserved, how cellular processes behave outside the body. This is a gray zone. And gray zones require more energy than black-and-white answers. I still crave clarity sometimes. Who doesn’t? ↩︎