Heart Hacks

Biohacker Review: What I've learned from +300 HRV sessions...

Having used Heartmath's emWave for a while, I decided to take my optimization of heart rate variability to the next level and got the Inner Balance Bluetooth sensor.

In this review, I'll honestly discuss the pros vs cons, share how I saved nearly 50% on both mindfulness-enhancing devices, compare them to other Biohacking tech I've used, and summarize the state-of-the-art science and studies done evaluating Heartmath's HRV technology.

Biohacker Review: Mindset tech for Biohackers, mindfulness practitioners, stress hackers, and flow state junkies

The emWave, a screen-LESS, minimalist Biohacking tech for mood and energy, that I've had an on-again/off-again relationship with...

One night, after completing 92 days of intermittent sobriety, I smoked a joint with friends in a lovely park overlooking the city. In between laughing, coughing, and making plans to get snacks, I started wondering if - high on Marijuana - I was in a state of Coherence?

Flow state may save us from ourselves…

Book Review of “Stealing Fire” an ecstatic manifesto

This is the 3rd book I’ve read authored by wordsmith and ecstatic practitioner Steven Kotler. When I think critically about the future of our species I oscillate between being a black-pilled accelerationist and a cheerful optimist who thinks we will one day salsa dance on Olympus Mons — when I read Kotler’s books I lean more towards the latter than the former.

From How to Be Cross Eyed: Thriving Despite Your Physical Imperfection — a mémoire and lifehacking manifesto

Those of us who want to be as happy, healthy, and productive as possible should strive to habituate flowstate. Flow is a peak state of consciousness that is increasingly rare in modern life for two reasons…

• Lack of focus — In the past, people could literally focus on just one thing for many hours or even days with the exception of taking breaks for sustenance and sleep. They weren’t distracted constantly by cell phones, computers, television, and 4,000 advertisements a day. Focused attention is crucial to flow. No focus. No flow.
• Disinterest in religion — Historically, the way that even the most common of people reached flow, was through the practice of religion. Religious worship in its myriad forms is conducive to flowstate. Modern folks are increasingly secular or marginally religious.

I’d urge you to rediscover flow, it’s a powerful tool at our disposal but there are subtleties to yielding it.

Written by Steven Sanders

A Nootropic mushroom for risk-averse Biohackers with a wide range of cognition-enhancing effects.

Hericium Erinaceus, or the Lion’s Mane mushroom, is a unique member of the mushroom family that shows nootropic properties. The mushroom gets its name from its appearance when it reaches maturity, which looks like a Lion's Mane. This article aims to take a closer look at the Lion’s Mane mushroom. This includes what it might help with and what the science behind it says. It will also take a look at what users have to say about Lion’s Mane.

This natural Nutraceutical Nootropic from Brazil is dope!

This traditional medicinal Nutraceutical, also known as Trichilia Catigua, is native to the rainforests of northern Brazil, where it has been used since time immemorial as a natural herbal libido enhancer. It's pronounced properly with a bit of South American flourish, Cat-ooh-ahh-bah. It's a full-spectrum Dopaminergic Nootropic that's especially enhancing when stacked with the cofactor Muira Puama.

My first session with the EmWave2 was a little awkward, at first, the Coherence indicator was a major distractor, so it added to the consummate compartmentalization challenge that is Dual N-Back training.

I used EQPro, a version of the leading Dual N-Back software from IQ Mindware and my friend Dr. Mark Ashton Smith, which trains emotional regulation simultaneously. EQPro is the Dual N-Back task with emotional data that you have to either ignore or remember.

Book Review: An HRV-Hackers Guide to Living Fully for Every Beat

HRV is a topic I've been interested in for a while as a Biohacker. I've completed over 300 HRV training sessions with HeartMath's devices; which has made me a better meditator and generally, a cooler cat. HRV is a particularly pragmatic metric for the Biohacker thanks to the abundance of science done on the topic and the advent of consumer-grade devices you can use to track yours.

The Pulse Cure, by Dr. Torkil Færø, is the most recent (and, in my opinion, approachable and actionable) book on the topic. The book is the result of a study group of 198 Norwegian volunteers that Dr. Torkil (as he refers to himself on his popular Instagram account) led in using HRV wearables. It is punctuated by a number of anecdotes from Dr. Torkil's Garmin watch study group. For example: Melina, 41, adds

Don’t get stressed out thinking that you have to follow all of the scores and data every single day. Go at your own pace! Eventually you won’t need to track all the data. You will learn when it is the right time to check your status. (p. 94)

Tusen takk (Norwegian for “a thousand thank-yous”), Melina!

If you don't suffer from even a bit of "toxic comparison" good for you, but almost all of us do nowadays.

In case you're unfamiliar with the phrase (not sure if I invented it), this refers to the all-too-human tendency to compare ourselves to others and fixate on our failings and where we come up short. Your buddy has a hot girlfriend and you're single and can't seem to get a date. Your sister has a seemingly happy, growing family and you're childless. Your ex-business partner sold a business and is enjoying the windfall profit. Your gym buddy is making greater gains there in the realm of metal than you. Or a guy you went to high school with and stayed connected with on social media now has this fabulous life of traveling the world - posting photos almost every day of them doing fun things in exotic places - and your life in the town you both grew up in now seems terribly mundane.

Comparing yourself to others, you'll often end up feeling like a loser. This is toxic and self-sabotages you in ways subtle and not-so-subtle...