4 tips on how to regenerate in spring like a biohacker
Spring is the time for cleansing, as we all know. Apart from the traditional fasting, there are also other ways to kickstart the body after the long winter. If you want to take spring cleansing to the next level, we have tips for you on what to focus on besides a lighter diet. Fasting or cold exposure can help with cleansing. You can reboot your mind through meditation. And let's not forget the best regenerative tool - sleep.
Intermittent fasting helps with cell regeneration
Time-restricted eating helps with fat burning. A low level of insulin in the blood triggers a mechanism whereby the body begins to utilize fat as an energy source. This typically occurs approximately 12 hours after the last meal. Fasting begins and the body switches into fat-burning mode. Fasting also improves insulin resistance and optimizes post-meal hormones. A significant advantage of fasting is the initiation of autophagy. This is a process that helps cells rid themselves of cellular waste generated during all physiological reactions, and during the standard regime, cells don't have time for such cleanup because they're focused on growth and building. A similar principle works to alleviate oxidative stress and reduce inflammation in the body. Intermittent fasting increases endogenous antioxidant activity, which reduces oxidative damage to cellular proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids.
Another area affected by fasting is energy. And it's positively affected! You may feel a greater influx of energy and better concentration. This is because the body has enough energy from its own stores and doesn't have to expend effort on digestion.
And how to start?
It's best to start gradually to give the body time to adjust to fasting. Ideally, you should start intermittent fasting with a 12:12 ratio. Twelve hours of not eating and twelve hours of eating. For example, starting intermittent fasting at 7:00 p.m. means you can have breakfast at 7:00 a.m.
TIP : Don't start fasting after breakfast, but after dinner. Going to bed on an empty stomach is much better than going through the entire day without food. During fasting windows, it is recommended to drink plain water, possibly coffee without milk and sugar, or green and herbal teas. It's important not to send any calories to the body during this time so it can fully reap the benefits of fasting.
Meditation supports brain neuroplasticity
Meditation changes brain structures at a physiological level. Neuroplasticity is a property of the brain that describes changes that occur in response to experiences, mental training, and new skills. From this perspective, we can consider meditation as one of the best neurohacking techniques.
Studies show that meditation is capable of influencing one of the most important areas of the brain, the prefrontal cortex. This part is responsible for decision-making, planning, concentration, memory, and influences social behavior. However, with age, the prefrontal cortex tends to decline. Brain scans of people who meditate and those who don't show that long-term meditation can keep the brain on average 7.5 years younger. Another area affected by meditation is the hippocampus. It is the center of learning, memory, and enables the storage of information from short-term to long-term memory. The size of the hippocampus is negatively affected by stress and increased levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Long-term meditation can thus protect your hippocampus.
TIP: Although when we think of meditation, we usually imagine a serene yogi on a mat, meditation in motion is also increasingly talked about. So, if you can't sit calmly and repeat mantras, try activities like running. Using mindfulness techniques during such activities fulfills the same purpose as traditional meditation.
Cold exposure boosts immunity and digestion.
The cold shuts down your mind! Completely. When you immerse yourself, you don't think about anything for a while. Thanks to sympathetic activity, adrenaline and noradrenaline begin to be released into the blood. The stress response activates the hypothalamus, which releases corticotropin-releasing hormone. This increases the production of certain neurotransmitters. For example, acetylcholine increases the ability to concentrate. Dopamine speeds up decision-making, and serotonin relieves fear.
In addition to mental resilience and stress reduction, regular cold exposure helps with immunity. Cold affects the intestinal microbiome and its composition. A microbiome activated by cold encourages the body to increase the number of immune cells. Cold exposure also helps with a weight loss process called non-shivering thermogenesis. When the body is briefly exposed to cold, metabolism speeds up, and the released noradrenaline kicks off the fat-burning process. Free fatty acids and other substances then serve as fuel for heat production, thanks to brown adipose tissue, where this entire process takes place.
Increased blood flow to the brain improves cognitive functions such as concentration, memory, and enhances the quality and health of the blood-brain barrier, which is the passage between brain blood capillaries and brain tissue. It has a close connection with intestinal permeability and the intestinal microbiome. These two things influence each other. The vagus nerve, which is involved in communication between the intestine and the brain through the gut-brain axis, is activated by cold receptors.
TIP: How to start cold exposure? Take a classic warm shower, finishing with a cold one. For starters, even fifteen seconds will do. It won't be pleasant, but your body will get used to it over time.
A simple technique called Box Breathing can help. This technique is also used by Navy SEALs. Inhale through your nose with your mouth closed for 4 seconds. Hold your breath for 4 seconds, exhale through your mouth for 4 seconds, and then hold your breath for 4 seconds.
Optimal sleep lasts 8 hours
Sleep is perhaps the best regenerative tool for the body and mind. There is no process in the body that is not influenced by sleep. Many studies confirm that poor and inadequate sleep negatively affects a person's psychological well-being. It affects mood and emotional stability and is also associated with mental health disorders.
One sleep cycle can be divided into 5 stages: 4 stages fall under NREM and 1 stage under REM. We should go through 4-5 sleep cycles during sleep. Ideally, sleep cycles should alternate 5 times. One cycle averages 90 minutes. When multiplied by five, it equals 7.5 hours. However, the REM phase lengthens with each repetition of the cycle, so rounding up to 8 hours came from there. Although it may not seem like it, sleep is a great "medicine" for everything.
What to try if you have trouble sleeping?
Limit caffeine in the afternoon, avoid alcohol as it worsens the quality of the REM phase, wear red glasses to block blue light in the evening, which affects melatonin production, go to bed and wake up at the same time, darken the room, or wear a sleep mask.
TIP: In addition to proven herbs such as valerian, lemon balm, or chamomile, there is also the less traditional gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). It promotes calm, relaxation, and reduces stress. L-Theanine has relaxing and anti-stress properties, increasing the amount of alpha waves in the brain. Magnesium bisglycinate combines magnesium with glycine, which penetrates the brain well and calms the nervous system.
Also take a look below at Flow helpers for spring regeneration. 👇
