Myth busting Dave Asprey: is the Bulletproof diet good for you?

Myth busting Dave Asprey: is the Bulletproof diet good for you?

Dave Asprey is the guy behind Bulletproof coffee, but is his biohacking advice worth listening to?

Who is Dave Asprey? 

We all know someone who’s stirred butter into coffee and necked in the name of health. They’ve been listening to Dave Asprey. Asprey is an American entrepreneur and author who is possibly best known for his Bulletproof coffee concept, but there’s a lot more to him than that. 

Asprey is a huge name in biohacking, and has dedicated his work to finding weird and wonderful ways to boost human performance, physical wellbeing, and brain health using science and ancient traditions.

What is Dave Asprey famous for

Apart from Bulletproof coffee? Dave Asprey is the guy behind the Bulletproof Diet – a diet approach based on fats, protein, organic vegetables, and fasting. He’s a prolific speaker and writer, founder of Upgrade Labs, and the man behind the coffee and collagen products brand.

What is Dave Asprey’s lifestyle advice

Everything Asprey promotes is in the “biohacking” sphere – that is, designed to elevate human performance, health, and wellbeing. But what does he actually recommend we all do? Most of it is common sense, and easily applied. Here’s some of Dave Asprey’s best-known lifestyle advice.

Coffee – Asprey considers coffee a superfood (but avoid the milk and sugar)

Fasting – skip breakfast and eat your meals in a 6-hour window

Keto – eliminate processed carbs and eat more healthy fats

Vegetables – eat more of them, aim for a wide variety, and add butter

Meat – switch to grass fed and organic meat and don’t avoid red meat

Move – do more mobility, stretching, walking, and soft tissue work

Breathe – think of breathing as part of your exercise routine

Outdoors – walk, exercise and spend time in nature and sunlight

Exercise – lift weights and do HIIT, get the rest of your exercise outside

Brain – read, create, wind down, and listen to binaural beats to boost your brain

Supplements – nootropics, collagen, MCT oil (Asprey has a product for that)

Sleep – blackout your bedroom, remove electronics, and go to bed earlier

What is Bulletproof coffee and is it good for you

Dave Asprey originated Bulletproof coffee (or butter coffee). His recommended recipe is one cup of brewed coffee, 1-2 tsp MCT oil or coconut oil, and 1-2 tsp grass fed butter or ghee. What’s it supposed to do? Asprey says the combination of coffee and fats encourages your body and brain to run on fat rather than glucose which boosts cognitive performance and keeps you energised and full up (without needing carbohydrates). The idea is that you swap your breakfast for a cup of Bulletproof coffee, then eat food for the rest of your 6-hour eating window.

Is it good for you? It’s very high in saturated fat, which may not be the best thing for the long-term health of some people. And it’s not going to give you any protein, fibre, or micronutrients. If you drink it as part of a balanced diet (and don’t have high cholesterol), it’s probably OK. But optimal? That’s another discussion altogether.

What does Dave Asprey say about biohacking

Asprey’s career has been dedicated to helping people optimise brain health and physical performance through biohacking. This includes lifestyle advice, sleep, stress, exercise, and nutrition.

Best biohacking techniques for health

Here are Dave Asprey’s main biohacking techniques for health, wellbeing, and human performance. 

Nervous system: “hack” your nervous system through controlling stress, using breathing exercises. meditating, sleep, spending time in nature, and hugging loved ones or pets.

Diet: adopt the Bulletproof diet by fasting, eating in a 6-hour window, and going keto by eliminating processed carbs, eating more healthy fats, and eating grass-fed protein and organic vegetables.

Limit histamines: according to Asprey, histamines from diet can cause stress, headaches, and sleep issues, so stick to fresh meat, eggs, and organic vegetables. 

Fasting: eating in a 6-hour window will help you stay in ketosis and will encourage mental sharpness.

Neurofeedback: work on re-programming how your brain responds to emotions. Not sure how? Asprey has a course and workshops for that.

Circadian rhythm: hack your body clock by getting outside in the sunlight first thing in the morning, or use a good Vitamin D supplement instead. Yes, you guessed it, you can buy one from Bulletproof.

Sleep: aim for 8 hours of good sleep, make your bedroom as dark and quiet as possible, and remove all electronics and devices from the bedroom.

Nootropics: apart from Bulletproof coffee, Asprey also recommends exploring nootropics smart drug supplements. 

Inversion: Asprey recommends hanging upside down as a way to hack your brain power, helping get more oxygen into your brain and building stronger capillaries.

Light: avoid blue light from screens (wear blue light blocking glasses) and make use of red LED lights to boost mitochondrial function.

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