Bryan Johnson is an entrepreneur, health and longevity enthusiast, and the creator of the Project Blueprint lifestyle routine, which he uses to prolong his biological age. He recently made a lot of headlines for his "eccentric" way of life, which made its way to a new Netflix special called "Watch Don't Die: The Man Who Wants to Live Forever".
The thing we all want to know is does Bryan Johnson's routine really make a difference? Do all the procedures and strict rules Bryan follows have an effect on his health and age or not? We're bringing you a detailed analysis.
Bryan Johnson's Project Blueprint
Project Blueprint is the name of all activities, diet regimens and supplements that Bryan Johnson takes and performs on a daily basis. The anti-aging protocol of Bryan Johnson is quite extensive and consists of daily routines regarding sleeping and exercising etc, supplements he takes, and (mindful) practices he does.
You can find the full written out Project Blueprint routine in our previous article and Bryan's own website:
If you're more of a visual type, watch Bryan's YouTube video here:
My Morning Routine (Live to 120+)
However, we're not here to list all the things Bryan does, we're here to see whether these routines have any effect on his health and metabolical/biological age.
The effectiveness of Bryan Johnson's anti-aging routine
Let's start with what Bryan says about his results on his website:
"Hi friends - after having poor health habits as a kid, running myself into the ground from 20 years of building companies, and a decade of chronic depression, now, at the chronological age of 46, my health biomarkers are in the top 1%.
And not just the top 1% of 46 year olds, but on some of my markers, such as my cardiovascular fitness, I’m in the top 1% of 18 year olds.
Top 1%: Speed of aging
Top 1%: Muscle mass function
Top 1%: Fat mass
Top 1%: Inflammation
Top 1%: Cardiovascular
Top 1%: Bone mass
Top 1%: Sleep
Top 1%: Combined clinical markers
Top 1%: Nighttime erections"
How can we be sure that Bryan's measurements are accurate? Bryan will measure some parameters himself, and have blood and other health check-ups frequently. Every morning after waking up, he will measure his weight, muscle, fat, hydration, and arterial stiffness.
Here are the other routine measurements he does and lists on his website:
- Blood draw, every 3-6 months,
- Full body MRI, annually,
- Speed of aging 2x yr (DNA methylation),
- Mole check, annually,
- Dentist, every 6 months,
- Eye doctor, annually,
- Blood glucose.
How does Bryan Johnson's determine if he gets "younger"?
Bryan will measure and track his physical parameters regularly, and compare it to available databases from different age groups. For example, he claims that he is not even in his own age group regarding cardiovascular health, but that he is in the top 1% of 18-year-olds. That would mean that in the case of his cardiovascular health, he is much younger than his own age group (people in their 40s). Keep in mind that this doesn't mean that Bryan has physically make himself younger - he is still chronologically in his forties.
How reliable are these databases? For a database with limited clinical data, they are pretty reliable. Obviously, Bryan cannot compare himself to someone who has never had any of these tests done before, and hasn't been added to the national or worldly average. However, medical databases are already pretty sizable and they're frequently being updated.
Will you be younger if you follow Project Blueprint?
In chronological terms, no. For example, if you're 45, you will still be 45 or older when you start following Project Blueprint. However, in biological and health terms, you will probably start feeling younger and healthier. Your fitness levels, quality of sleep, and diet habits will be of better quality, which will result in you being healthier.
If you really follow Project Blueprint to its core, you will also go to regular health check-ups, and may be able to catch anything that can cause long-term harm. This is already more than the average person will do.
To further this point, your health parameters (weight, body fat percentage, cardiovascular health, dental health, DNA methylation patterns...) will score younger than most people in your age group. However, this is only a point of comparison that doesn't ensure you will live forever. It will, indeed, ensure that you'll be healthier longer than average people in your age group, and you'll probably avoid a lot of age-related diseases from developing for a longer period. If they're caused by genetics in your family, sadly, there's no Project Blueprint that can amend that (yet).
Project Blueprint - Experiences
Lots of people have already tried following Bryan Johnson's routine, fully or to an extent, and many of them saw positive health effects. Many of them also said that in this day and age, it was quite hard to follow all the steps and pay for all the supplements he takes. You can read a couple of examples here:
- Observations from 9 Months of (Modified) Blueprint
- I Tried Bryan Johnson’s Full Blueprint Stack
- I Tried Bryan Johnson’s Extreme ‘Age Reversing’ Diet
Many have also raised concerns about going too far and developing body dysmorphia or orthorexia nervosa (an obsession with healthy eating with associated restrictive behaviors) when trying to follow such an extensive health routine.
If you're concerned about your mental health or had a previous experience with eating disorders or orthorexia, please consult a (mental) healthcare provider before starting such a routine. The same goes for anyone who takes medication, suffers from a chronic disease, and is pregnant or breastfeeding.
Conclusion
All in all, Bryan Johnson's routine is a masterpiece of gathering everything we know about being healthy so far. It took almost 2 million dollars to test and develop it, and it's taking him about the same amount to keep it up per year (fancy skin treatments included). It's not made for the average person, but the average person can easily adapt it to their needs and capabilities. Just accepting healthy eating patterns, regular exercise and doctor appointments, as well as bettering your sleep quality, you can do so much for your health and your future.
Will Bryan Johnson live forever because of his routine? Chances say he won't.
Will Bryan Johnson live longer and have a better quality of life than the average person? Chances and his data show he most likely will, but only time can tell.
