I was 21 stone with chronic issues including arthritis and fibromyalgia. Now, I’m 53 with the body of a 35-year-old and all my problems have disappeared. This is exactly how I lost 7 stone, boosted my IQ and changed my life

At just 23, Dave Asprey was already unhappy with the direction his life was taking.

‘I weighed more than 300lbs [21 stone], had chronic pain, pre-diabetes, high cholesterol and arthritis in both knees,’ he says.

‘I was a fat computer hacker in Silicon Valley. I had chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia, a high risk of stroke and heart attack and crippling brain fog. I was a wreck.’

So Asprey decided to overhaul his life – from top to bottom.

Today, Asprey – aged 53 – hardly recognises his younger self.

The American tech entrepreneur weighs just 195lb (14 stone), with a slim, toned physique that’s just six per cent body fat. His prediabetes is gone, along with his high cholesterol and even arthritis.

And weight loss is no longer his sole aspiration. In fact, Asprey has a much loftier goal: living to the ripe old age of 180.

‘Now, I have more energy than I’ve ever had in my life. I run circles around people half my age, and I’m astounded how it’s possible,’ he says.

Asprey is the self-proclaimed ‘father of biohacking’ – a movement that seeks to maximise human performance by hacking our biology.

Increasing one’s lifespan is at the centre of this mission. And it’s a pursuit that Asprey estimates has personally cost him more than $2.5 million (£1.9 million).

His age-defying treatments have included gene therapy – which cost roughly £25,000 per shot – injections of his own filtered urine as allergy therapy, and stem cell injections into his legs, arms, face, neck and penis to stop inflammation and heal injuries.

Day to day, Asprey’s routine also requires a specialised diet, rigorous exercise on AI-powered machines, more than 100 supplements, ice baths, a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, red light therapies and more.

Today, he says, his biological age puts him in his late 30s, while tests show his arteries are similar to those of a 23-year-old. 

Controversially, Asprey says these lifestyle changes – combined with brain-training exercises and meditation – have also raised his IQ by 12 points, though he refused to reveal what his intelligence score was prior to his life-changing regime.

But reversing one’s biological age isn’t just for the super rich, he says. There are steps that everyone – no matter their budget – can take today.

So, read on for Asprey’s top tips for turning back the clock – and keeping off the pounds – without spending a fortune. 

Eat more meat – and fewer carbs  

It’s primarily through changing his diet that Asprey claims to have reduced his biological age by almost half. 

‘When I first decided to lose weight, I immediately started on a low-fat, low-calorie diet, and went to the gym for 90 minutes, six times a week,’ he said.

‘But after a year, I still weighed the same amount as when I started. So I decided to pivot, and look into how my body makes energy in the first place.’

What he learned, he says, is that if you can make the body better at making energy in the mitochondria – the so-called powerhouse of the cell – you can lose weight and improve your health at the same time.

To do this, Asprey increased his saturated fat intake and protein while radically cutting carbohydrates from his diet.

This helped his body burn fat by inducing ketosis – a metabolic state where the body burns fat or fuel instead of carbohydrate-produced sugars. Only in this state, he argues, are the mitochondria able to heal.

To do this, Asprey eats a large amount of animal-based protein – usually grass-fed beef, as well as eggs – and avoids seed oils, a source of unsaturated fat which some research has linked to a greater risk of cognitive decline and inflammatory bowel disease.

He eats no ultra-processed foods and very little sugar.

This simple dietary change, he says, was enough to allow him to lose half the weight in just a year, with no other changes.

‘It makes people angry to hear, but cutting calories makes you fat,’ he said. ‘The reality is, when you eat less energy than your body needs, you’re chronically hungry all the time.

It’s a diet that the British Dietetic Association have branded a ‘fad’, and one that has been described by critics as simplistic, invalid and unscientific.

And it’s important to mention that Asprey has no medical degree or nutritional training.

Research suggests that general advice to avoid ultra-processed foods and eat more whole foods is good for weight loss, heart health and reducing risk of disease.

But weight loss diets that induce ketosis also carry risks – potentially causing kidney stones, digestive issues, dangerously low blood sugar, nutrient deficiencies and bone weakness.

Some studies suggests that high-fat, low-carb diets that focus on animal-based foods may lead to a higher risk of heart disease and cancer than those that emphasise vegetable sources of fats and proteins.

Intermittent fasting 

Another key to Asprey’s weight loss, he says, is only eating during a certain time window.  

Intermittent fasting – limiting eating to a certain slot of hours in the day – has been shown to lead to weight loss, improved heart health, better blood sugar control and enhanced brain function.

According to the NHS, those looking to start intermittent fasting should ensure they consult a healthcare professional about any medical conditions, and focus on a healthy diet during eating periods.

Two popular methods are the 5:2 diet – eating normally for five days and restricting to 500 to 850 calories on two non-consecutive days – and time-restricted eating like the 16:8 diet – fasting for 16 hours and eating within an eight-hour window.

On fasting days or periods, experts say patients should drink plenty of water, black coffee or tea, and during regular eating periods focus on a balanced diet of lean proteins, healthy fats, whole grains, fruits and vegetables.

‘What works for me is having a big piece of meat as a late breakfast, then an early dinner of more meat, with a green vegetable like arugula or zucchini and then I’ll be done for the day,’ says Asprey.

Try weight training, and lots of walking 

Exercise, says Asprey, is also vital – but much less important than diet.

‘My exercise totals 20 minutes per week,’ he explains. ‘Plus lots of walking.’

Asprey uses hi-tech exercise machines for his cardio and weight training – which are perfectly calibrated for his weight, and use different muscles simultaneously.

These machines, he claims, allow him to complete nearly two hours’ worth of exercise in a normal gym in just 20 minutes.

‘This, as well as a few push-ups every now and again keep me incredibly ripped,’ he said.

But among those for who AI-powered gym machinery is not available just going for a 20-minute walk after each meal can do wonders for weight loss, says Asprey.

‘Doing this, along with weights once a week, will be enough for the vast majority of people.’

Take a cold plunge 

To increase fat loss – and make the mitochondria work better – Asprey does have another trick, however, that he uses every day.

‘Turn your shower to cold for one minute. The first three days will be awful, but then by the fourth day it won’t hurt any more – it’ll just be invigorating,’ he said.

‘It signals to the mitochondria that they need to make heat quickly – and will help your body make energy faster without effort.’

Research suggests that cold showers can help reduce inflammation, improve mood, enhance exercise recovery, and potentially even strengthen the immune system. 

These effects are thought to result from the body’s physiological response to cold, which includes increased blood flow, stress hormone release and metabolic activation. 

In fact, one 2016 Dutch study found that people who switched to cold showers for 30, 60, or 90 seconds for 90 days called in sick for work nearly a third less than people who didn’t switch to cold showers.

Sleep better, not longer 

Sleep is also essential for weight loss and reducing biological age, according to the biohacker movement.

But it’s not about how much sleep you get, but the quality of it.

‘People who live the longest aren’t necessarily the ones who get the most sleep,’ says Asprey.

‘Eight hours is a made-up number – studies have shown that people who live the longest tend to get six-and-a-half hours of sleep on average.

‘Some people do need more, and if you’re one of them, then getting more sleep will be vital to reducing your chance of dying.

‘But actually what more of us need to do is simply set ourselves up so that the sleep we do get is of the best possible quality.’

To do this, says Asprey, light is incredibly important.

‘In the old days we just had candles – none of the bright LED lights we have now that can completely disrupt our bodies’ metabolic function.’

He may be on to something. A recent study from University College London found that being bombarded by blue-spectrum light – the type emitted by indoor lighting – all day can disrupt the body’s normal functions and puts blood-sugar levels out of balance.

To avoid this, Asprey advises, get dimmer bulbs and black out bedroom windows. And make sure to limit as much blue light exposure as possible – he wears a pair of special glasses for this very function.

Get daily sun in your face

One light source you’ll want to maximise exposure to, however, is sunlight.

‘The most important thing for anti-ageing is 20 minutes of direct sunlight in the morning – as well as complete darkness at night – to keep your body rhythm in sync,’ says Asprey.

He’s been doing red light therapy for nearly two decades – which he says is not just for wrinkles, but its mitochondrial enhancing functions.

Red light therapy – which uses focused beams of light of a certain wavelength to stimulate the body’s natural repair processes – has been shown to help reduce acne and signs of skin aging, lower inflammation and manage pain.

Treatments can be done by professionals, or through personal red light devices at home, which can be purchased on Amazon for as little as £100.

‘It’s improved my immune system dramatically – I very rarely get sick any more and my inflammation levels are remarkably low given my history of chronic inflammation,’ says Asprey.

He also takes a vast variety of supplements – more than 150 pills and tinctures each day, he says.

‘We’re all deficient in minerals and many of the more cutting edge supplements that I take aren’t necessary for most people,’ he said.

‘But things like Vitamins D, A, K and E will benefit everyone – and are essential for healthy aging.’

As for the future? Asprey is sure there’ll be many more treatments and cutting-edge therapies he’ll be adding to his routine.

He’s got 127 years, after all.