5 years of biohacking didn't work. Here's what did.
Fixing my environment beat 5 years of diet, exercise, and supplements
I spent 5+ years biohacking. Exercise, supplements, ketogenic diet, sleep optimization. In the first year, I saw early results primarily from getting adequate sleep and eating fresher food. But for the next 4+ years, despite working out daily and eating clean, my weight loss halted, I continued to battle afternoon slumps, and there were days I didn’t feel high energy. I wasn’t unhealthy or overweight. But I was trying to optimize for peak energy and to lose that “stubborn last 10lbs” Famous last words.
Then, I gave birth to an angel in April 2025. Postpartum, I obviously couldn’t grind at the gym and go on a diet. I started living more naturally, more in tune with our environment, and how we evolved.
I got a lot more sun.
I learned about the impact of artificial lights on our metabolism and sleep, and switched to red incandescent only at night.
I threw out all the toxic everyday products from our house. I wanted our house to be as non-toxic as possible for our daughter.
I reduced our EMF exposure through hacks I’ll discuss later.
I spent more time in fresh air.
I started sleeping earlier and waking up with the sunrise.
In short, I fixed my environment to make it more in tune with nature. I noticed how great I felt.
What happened when I stopped grinding and fixed my environment
I lost the baby weight in 2.5 months and in the next 5 months after that, I lost that stubborn 10lbs that I’d been trying to lose for 4 years!
My deep sleep doubled to over 2 hours, despite waking up 2+ times a night to nurse my baby.
I felt higher energy and happier, with few to zero afternoon slumps.
Snack cravings and food thoughts throughout the day vanished. I didn’t need to use willpower.
I achieved better results in under 1 year than I did with grinding for 5+ years. This is why I keep saying: Environment over effort and Health on Easy Mode. Not because it sounds nice. But because I lived both ways.
What surprised me most
Along the way, a few things genuinely shocked me:
Avoiding the sun can be as bad as smoking (in terms of all‑cause mortality).
Artificial light isn’t just about eye strain - it impacts metabolism, stress, and sleep.
CO₂ buildup indoors impairs decision‑making, learning, and sleep.
Our clothing and furniture shed microplastics and chemicals onto our skin and air.
Non‑native EMF exposure is likely more important than mainstream messaging suggests (especially at night and near the head).
I realized: diet, exercise, and sleep matter, but your environment is the substrate all of that rests on.
Why I built Live Longer World
I’m not a “theory only” person.
I test things on myself first.
I talk to scientists directly (Live Longer World Podcast).
I dig through old papers and mechanisms.
Then I try to turn that into something you can actually use.
This newsletter, Live Longer World, is where I:
Share the protocols and experiments that actually moved the needle for me.
Explain the biophysics of health (light, air, toxins, environment) in plain English.
Help you avoid the years of “hard mode” I put myself through.
And because so many products are toxic:
I built Health on Easy Mode as my curated collection of low‑toxin, PFAS‑screened, lower‑plastic products I actually use at home (light, air, water, kitchen, diagnostics, etc.). Inclusion is 100% merit‑based. Brands don’t pay to place.
Health on Easy Mode is where I list the tools.
This newsletter Live Longer World is where I share the protocols and research.
What paid subscribers get (first time I’m sharing this)
Up to now, all my posts have been 100% free. That’s not changing.
The philosophy, the big levers, and a lot of tactics will stay free.
But the deep protocol breakdowns (step‑by‑step, with research) are going to live behind a light paywall for members.
Think of it like this:
Free: “Fix your evening light if you want better sleep. Here’s why it matters and what to aim for.”
Paid: “Here’s exactly how I set it up (room by room), more under-the-radar protocols, and deeper research.”
If you become a paid subscriber, here’s what you get:
Detailed playbooks on:
Light & circadian rhythm (day and night).
Sleep environment (light, air, bedding, EMF).
EMF basics and practical mitigation.
Non‑toxic living (materials, kitchen, water, personal care).
Deep‑dive research behind each tactic.
Early access to my Health on Easy Mode guides and experiments.
I’m not promising a $2M/year Bryan Johnson protocol. He spends millions and built a full‑time operation around his health.
My goal is the opposite:
Live Longer World through Environment over Effort
No grind. No $2M/year budget.
Simple, low‑cost environment tweaks that stack over time.
~$100 per year gets you the deep playbooks and research that took me years (and a lot of mistakes) to assemble.
Who this is (and isn’t) for
This is for you if:
You care about energy and healthspan, but don’t want to live in a lab.
You’re willing to change your environment, not just add another pill.
You like understanding the “why,” not just copying checklists.
You’d rather pay a little to save dozens of hours of your own research.
This is not for you if:
You want a $2M/year Bryan Johnson protocol.
You only care about macros and macros alone.
You’re hoping I’ll sell you a miracle supplement stack.
Thank you + what to do next
The best ways to support my work:
Share Live Longer World with someone who cares about health & longevity but doesn’t want to live on hard mode.
Become a paid subscriber if you want access to the deeper protocols and research.
This Friday, I’ll publish my first paid breakdown, where:
The first half (free) covers the philosophy and main levers
The second half (paid) walks through detailed protocols and supporting research
Thank you for following along as I parse through the snake‑oil in longevity and practice Health on Easy Mode.
Environment over effort,
Aastha
Follow me on X @aasthajs and Instagram @aasthajs.
Browse my Health on Easy Mode setup across 15+ categories (non-toxic kitchen, clean water, skincare, diagnostics, lighting).
