"If you hear the word “biohack,” and your head is immediately filled with images of jacked-up gym bros who are obsessed with putting butter in their coffees, you’re not alone. Not to shade said gym bros too heavily, but they’ve given biohacking a bit of a rep—one that is distinctly unwelcoming to gals who might just want to improve their overall health and wellness without making super dramatic lifestyle changes.
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Luckily, the world of biohacking has changed quite a bit since the butter coffee craze, and more women are filling the space—including “the internet’s biohacking bestie,” Aggie Lal, who shared tons of biohacking tips on her recent episode of The Everygirl Podcast. Lal is committed to making biohacking a more accessible place for women, as well as for all people who want to improve their health without making their health their only hobby. In her episode, she reveals the big secret about biohacking: It’s not rocket science, and it doesn’t have to cost a ton of money. Here, we’re breaking down seven of the most life-changing biohacks that you can do for under $20, according to Aggie Lal—because optimizing your health doesn’t have to be overwhelming or expensive.
Try mouth-taping while you sleep
Mouth-taping has been taking over the internet in a big way, but if you still find it intimidating (or a little strange), allow us to break it down for you. “When you mouth tape, you get a much deeper sleep because you’re forcing yourself to breathe through your nose,” Lal said on The Everygirl Podcast. Why does breathing through your nose help you sleep? When you’re breathing through your nose, you’re breathing more deeply, increasing oxygen intake throughout the night while you sleep. This has a range of health benefits, including reduced inflammation, increased immunity, and higher energy levels. There are options for mouth tape that are only a few dollars more per pack than your morning latte.
Increase your mineral intake
According to Lal, most of us aren’t getting the minerals we need in a day. We talk a lot about vitamins and supplements, but the wellness conversation rarely includes mineral intake. “Minerals are a super easy biohack to have more energy,” Lal said. “Your body is a house, and the bricks are vitamins, and to connect the bricks, you need minerals.”
If you’re curious about how to boost your mineral intake, there are plenty of mineral supplements on the market that can help you do so without breaking the bank. Lal also recommends researching your coffee and making sure that you’re only consuming high-quality caffeine if you choose to drink coffee at all. She says that poor-quality coffee can strip your body of crucial minerals, so ensuring that you have the appropriate supplements on hand to combat is a great way to bio-hack.
Sync your lifestyle to your reproductive cycle
If you haven’t hopped on the cycle syncing train yet and are looking to improve your health and wellness, the method is a way of life, not an expensive product or temporary diet. If you want to learn more about cycle syncing, you can listen to our interview with functional nutritionist and author Alisa Vitti on The Everygirl Podcast. Lal said that when she learned how to adjust her diet, exercise, sleep, and work routines according to the phase of her cycle, her life completely changed.
“No one ever teaches you to celebrate your menstrual cycle, but ovulation is your superpower,” she said. “When you ovulate, your bones get stronger, you have better insulin management, your metabolism is boosted, and you’re considered more attractive.” Aligning your workouts and eating habits with your cycle can boost your energy and help you feel better during all times of the month. These lifestyle changes, according to your cycle, don’t have to be costly or even super dramatic. Cycle syncing simply means being aware of the four phases of your reproductive cycle, paying attention to when you are in those phases, and listening to cues from your body.
Manage your light exposure before bed
One of Lal’s favorite biohacks for optimizing sleep? Managing her light exposure before bed to adjust her circadian rhythm accordingly. “It’s crazy how many women I have been able to help just by reducing artificial light because it’s linked to circadian rhythm, melatonin, and it’s linked to our infradian rhythm,” Lal said. If you want to make winding down in the evenings easier, turn off all overhead lighting around sunset to adjust your internal clock. In fact, this might just be a biohack that actually saves you money—if you’re turning your lights down or off earlier, you’re saving electricity in addition to catering to your circadian rhythm.
Let your digestive system rest between meals
Intermittent fasting is one of those biohacks that has circulated and been debunked and then circulated again, so always check in with your own body and your doctor before choosing to mess with the timing of your meals. However, if you are interested in biohacking your digestion by taking breaks between meals, particularly overnight, Lal says that this can be an extremely easy biohack to add to your routine.
To give your body time to rest and digest between meals, Lal recommends having three meals per day with about a three-hour break in between. She also says that having at least a 12-hour fast at night between dinner and breakfast is ideal for most women. “I don’t think fasting is right for everyone, but 12 hours is the perfect amount for giving your body and digestion a rest,” she said on The Everygirl Podcast. Lal notes that you can align your fasting schedule with your cycle to ensure that you’re getting the nutrients you need before and on your period (such as not intermittent fasting during your luteal phase or the week before your period).
Stabilize your glucose levels with apple cider vinegar
According to Lal, maintaining stable glucose levels is essential for having consistent energy throughout the day, especially in a world where we constantly find ourselves consuming highly processed foods. She said that stabilizing your glucose can help you prevent energy crashes, manage your weight, and potentially combat PCOS symptoms. Lal has several biohacks for stabilizing your glucose levels throughout the day—including having a high-protein breakfast, saving high-glucose foods like fruits and desserts for later in the day, and eating a vegetable with every meal—but she pinpoints apple cider vinegar as a simple biohack to add to your routine. She recommended having a single shot of apple cider vinegar before eating a meal that is high in carbs or is quite sugary to maintain a stable glucose level throughout the rest of the day.
Incorporate high-intensity workouts
The Pilates princess era is in full swing, and if slower, low-intensity workouts feel best for your body, definitely stick with what you know your body loves. However, Lal said that a great way to biohack our bodies is to push them physically, and sometimes that can mean incorporating high-intensity workouts into your routine. She specifically recommended doing high-intensity workouts during your follicular and ovulatory phases and syncing your workouts to your cycle as much as possible. “The body is meant to be stressed,” she explained. However, be mindful of when you’re opting for high-intensity, and don’t overdo it. “Stressors for the body can be good sometimes, but too much of them can be a negative thing.” Moral of the story? Perhaps the greatest (and cheapest) biohack of all is learning how to listen to your body and gauge what you need at any given moment.
