Bryan Johnson

Conquering death will be humanity’s greatest achievement.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

On @netflix Jan 1

2025 is the year of don’t die

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

never waste a good crisis

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@no_nation_ repeated jet lag is linked to memory-region shrinkage in flight crews

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

Here's a snapshot of the biological insult from international travel. It takes your body over two weeks to fully recover.

It's a big price tag.

One international trip per quarter is a reasonable balance.

Time to recover:
> sleep duration: 2 days
> grip strength: 5 days
> mood: 1 wk
> cortisol: 9 days
> sleep quality: 2 wks
> blood glucose: 2 wks

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@allvibesnoskill My objective is to price life and death. When something is priced, people make rationale decisions with their resources. If you're broke, you can't buy. Right now, we don't know the price of health things. For example, what does an international trip cost to your biology?

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

I experienced a huge spike in food noise when in Australia. The desire to eat continuously even though I wasn't hungry, and even full.

The seven time zone shift shocked my circadian rhythm which then altered my hunger hormones.

Leptin stopped signaling that I had enough stored energy. Ghrelin ran elevated all day instead of only before meals. Blood glucose spikes from bread and carbs (that I ate to be in family ritual) triggered emergency hunger signals in my brain

Sleep deprivation weakened my prefrontal cortex's ability to override the urge. Making me feel helpless and controlled by impulse.

That noise has been absent for years as I've dialed in habits of sleep, nutrition and exercise.

It reminded me how burdensome and debilitating the food rumination noise is. How it can feel like food is the only thing the brain can focus on, edging out all other life priorities.

I imagined traveling back in time to when I was helpless to control my eating and being presented with a miracle drug like a GLP-1 which simply flips the switch to turn off the noise.

This imagination also filled me with excitement about the future. If we can turn off food noise, what if we could turn off negative self talk, hedonism, jealously, status comparisons, catastrophizing and boredom.

What if we became effectively immune to companies hijacking our dopamine? Tricking us into self destructive habits while they profit.

I have unabashed excitement for the future because I think this is the inevitable frontier. That pessimism is being non-imaginative.

That is not to say that bad things won't happen or that we won't be challenged by the pace of change, but it is to say that conscious life is the most precious gift the galaxy has bestowed and it's our opportunity and duty to carry it forward.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

I've spent years and a small fortune engineering my body to not die. Then got murdered in Mafia.

[Founders Fund @foundersfund]

MAFIA EP 001

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@gorillapanics A flask of 40% alcohol was being passed around at her brother's wedding and it's tradition for everyone to take a drink. I was already up past my bedtime...they let me take a pass.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

I met Kate’s parents.

It was a nail bitter.

We landed after 24 hours of travel and immediately went to her mum’s house where the family congregated… her mum, dad, auntie, three cousins, sister, brother-in-law, a 3-wk old newborn, brother, and soon-to-be sister-in-law. There were 15 of us crammed into a living room.

Upon arriving, someone said “oh I know your content from X”.

Blood drained from my face. Nobody could tell though because my face is already pretty pale.

Her dad and I hit it off. We cracked macadamia nuts from his tree, used an electric saw to open a coconut, and spoke about being carried as a baby by his 14 year old brother in the Bosnian snow while a German shot at them with a machine gun.

Her mother, also from Bosnia, needed some time to warm up. That’s reasonable. I understand. I’m a bit unusual. She’s soft spoken, careful with her words, and protective of her daughter. A few days in and I began to worry that I may head home with an undecided verdict.

I decided to live in her mum’s world. I ate everything she prepared, including meat, bread, and pasta, and embraced the discomfort of being an introvert in a week-long marathon social interaction with the entire extended family.

We spent time in her garden and she fed me stevia leaves, peppers, celery, chives, peanut berry, grapefruit, and starfruit.

Growing up, my mother and I maintained a garden together. I loved tending to it daily and it felt good to be back in the soil. Spending time with Kate’s mum motivated me to grow a longevity garden.

Our shared love of gardening was the first big breakthrough.

What really sealed the deal was when I interviewed Kate’s mum for an hour on camera, covering her upbringing and life and learning more about Kate. Somehow that format allowed her to see me more clearly than a generic social setting.

I think she came to understand and trust my devotion to Kate.

In the final hours before my departure, she was radiating with warmth. The entire family had gathered for a meal and it was laughter and teasing all around.

My love and respect for Kate deepened. I spent time going through all of her childhood things, helping me see and understand her with greater depth. More on this later.

It feels nice to be part of the family.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

I’m meeting Kate’s parents for the first time.

Do you think they’ll like me?

I’m flying 17 hrs. She’s from Australia and international travel increases aging. But I really love her so it’s worth the cost.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@WR4NYGov the benefits of being a vampire

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@foundersfund Kudos to @micsolana for putting this together. Turns out dying is pretty fun.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@krishnanrohit @dwarkesh_sp knows

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@HunterBiden @SoundDobad Hunter your attention to detail is the kind character trait we need more of

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@mickeyhardy 207 HRV and 31 RHR is exceptional. To check for problems, any dizziness, fatigue, or lightheadedness? Have you had an ECG? If symptoms are absent and ECG is clean, you have an elite cardiovascular system.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@search_kaizen yes, even though it will bounce back in a few days, the biological cost of travel is not a price tag that people are aware of. We're still awaiting results on other things we measured, however the data on travel-related biological insult is much greater than most assume.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

Jet lag increased my biological age by ~13 years.

> as measured by grip strength
> pre-travel: 141 lbs, grip age 48, ~98th percentile
> post-travel: 125 lbs, grip age 61, ~98th percentile

Traveled across 7 time zones, Los Angeles to Australia.

Grip strength predicts mortality better than almost anything you can measure at home.

A published study of a comparable eastbound flight found the same pattern, about a 7% morning drop.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

Israetel argues that Don't Die is obvious, ahead of its time, and the rational strategy. That in the next 5-10 years, your probability of dying will be 100x lower, and that YOLO is sunsetting.

[MTS @MTSlive]

SITUATION EXPLAINED: What if Bryan Johnson's goal of not dying is actually rational?

We asked @misraetel his thoughts:

"Over the next five to 10 years, the vast majority of diseases and emergency things we couldn't treat, we will be able to. If you make it another 10 years, you could get to a point where we're reversing aging in the 2030s."

"If someone told you, 'If you make it another 10 years, your probability of not dying is 100 times lower,' it sure would feel awkward to do stuff that's gonna increase your probability of death right now."

"If Bryan Johnson was saying this in the 1940s, you'd be like, 'Dude, we all die, bro.' Nowadays, if you know there's gonna be hundreds and hundreds of years of your life after this, it can kinda change your perspective."

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@ElizabethHolmes I guess the good thing about your situation is that you have a structured routine but also probably harder to tell others in the room to be quiet to not disturb others while sleeping

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

Go to bed.
Same time every night.
Non-negotiable.
If kids, tell them they’re on their own.
You have a schedule to keep.
No kids, no excuses.

Best thing you can do for yourself.
And others.

Better mood.
More willpower.
Clearer mind.
Better human.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@craigstolarczyk I have three kids

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@benjamincowen tell them I said it with love

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

@KettlebellDan they will appreciate your confidence and their new level of responsibility