Biohack Like a Woman with Aggie Lal | 1126 | Dave Asprey

Big part of what I do is teaching women about their cycle. And the number one feedback from men is like, but what about men? I'm like, why can't you learn about your woman's cycle? You're most likely going to be with a woman in a relationship. Wouldn't be your superpower to know what, like, you know, there are only four phases. Not that complicated. Nothing harder than a guy educating a woman about her cycle. I'm like, hey, babe, is that day 21? Oh, how about we just slow down today?

You know, I thought I was supposed to. How about I hide today?

But okay, no, that's like day 26.

You're listening to the Human Upgrade with Dave Asprey.

Formerly.

You're listening to the Human Upgrade with Dave Asprey. Today we're going to talk about how to biohack like a girl. I mean, like a woman. Wait, what's the title? I'm kidding. It's how to Biohack Like a Woman. And I said that on purpose to trigger some of you out there, because if you can be triggered, it's a new year, and it's a new year where if you can be triggered, you're carrying around a loaded gun. And that's rude and illegal in some places. So you probably should see your therapist already. But here's the deal. I have a guest for you today who I've worked with for several years. Her name is Aggie Lal. She's a public figure, best selling author, health coach. You might have seen her on TV, TEDx speaker. And she started the TravelHerShoes blog more than 10 years ago and got sick from all that travel. Who would have thought? Because it turns out airplanes are horrible environments and so are hotel rooms. Any business traveler, man or woman, understands that kind of life. Yes, you see a lot of places, but man, the circadian disruption, the constantly changing foods, it'll trash you. So she turned to biohacking and had great results. Started the Higher Self Academy, which teaches women with courses on health, personal development, and she hosts the Biohacking Bestie podcast. And I love what she's doing so much that, that I wrote the forward for her new book which is called Biohack Like a Woman.

Yes. Thank you, thank you.

Welcome, Aggie. I'm so happy to have you here.

Thank you for having me, Dave. I've been a fan of the podcast and yourself, so this is a great honor. Thank you for having me.

Now, let's see. I was on your show a couple times and we had a couple clips that went really viral where you would ask challenging questions about kale and things and people would become outraged at straight talk about kale. So it's always, it's always fun and I love it.

I love that you have no filter. And I love that you started with this whole like title. Because it was a, it was a big discussion whether we say biohack like a woman or biohack like a girl. And I think I really wanted to own the word woman. I think it's this big pressure to be a girl and be.

Hold on, you can't own the word woman. That, that's not for any one person to own. It's much greater than all of us.

That's true. But like own it isn't like own that. Like that I am one. Because I think up until this point I'm, I'm not super young, let's be honest. I'm 36. I kind of felt like, oh, a woman sounds old, right? Because there's this pressure for all of us females to be girls, you know, because we're, it's cute and innocent, whatever. And so when I ask my audience, what do you think of biohack like a woman? It's like, oh, it sounds really old, like we're going through menopause. I'm like, that's so funny. But if you ask a 25 year old man if he's a man or a boy, he would get offended by the word boy. He would want to be asked, called a man.

And so ask him. He wants to find a good girl or he wants to find a good woman.

Very true. Right? Yes. And so I realized that part of this title is me healing the word woman for myself.

Oh, Aggie, that's so cool. I've watched your personal development path for a while and we've sat down and chatted about this stuff off camera. And like you're, you're doing something publicly that a lot of people are struggling with, to do privately or with a therapist or something like that. Where you're claiming your space in the world.

Right.

And acknowledging, you know, the full extent of, of your power. And it's something that men and women go through and it's, it's something certain that I've gone through in, in the course of my career, in my life. The, the thing that I found was holding me back was I felt like shit all the time. It's hard to like step into the bigness of your future. Like, I can't even step out of bed today. Cause I'm Just so freaking tired. And it sounds like you really got there.

And it's funny cuz I heard you say that about danger coffee in the past, but it didn't land until recently, which was like I, you know, I was into travel and like, become the best version of yourself. And I thought it would be so easy for everyone to just go after their dreams. And then I got really sick and I was like, wow, without the biology, we're not going after any dreams because we can't even think outside of our body. And so that was like a big realization that people aren't really lazy or it's not like they're not motivated, they just sick on so many levels. And that was what got me really into like spreading, trying to spread biohacking with the mainstream because I realized a lot of people are intimidated by it, but it's the mainstream that needs it the most, you know, not the people that go to Erwin already.

It's funny, since the early days of, of biohacking, 60% of biohackers have been women. And I've, I've said this for a long time, like women are actually better biohackers than men on average. And I believe every. And you might, you know, fault me for saying this or something, but as a guy, most of us are sort of conditioned, especially by, you know, high school coaches and whatever. Like if it's not bleeding and you can still walk, you're probably fine. And that's like a guy thing. And like, okay, like no bones are sticking out. Like, let's just push. And of course that's why a lot of guys are, you know, I pushed hard and then now I'm, you know, 45 and I have serious injuries that won't heal and my shoulders are trashed and I need a new hip and I wish I'd have been nicer to my body later. So I think with women though, you are more in tune with your bodies because they change more than guys do. You have cycles that we don't. And so that means that you grew up with an awareness that some days you're more focused than others.

Right.

And I don't think we teach young men that even though we also have our days where we're stronger and weaker. So just there's an awareness of the state of the body that a typical woman is more likely to have than a typical man.

100%.

Do you think there's some truthfulness to that?

100%. And I think, you know, I live between LA and Bali, and so us in general, has a very strong masculine energy, which is power through, shut up, keep going. You know, it's kind of like, achieve, go for it. Which is very strong masculine energy. And so it's very different to the energy that I have in Bali, which is young people do things very slowly and they're very patient. And it's like, oh, it just doesn't align today. So we're going to do it in the future one day. And so at the beginning, I was really annoyed by all the locals in Bali. I'm like, they're just so. You're not doing anything. And, you know, they taught me the beauty of being, you know, the beautiful feminine energy of just, like, let things happen sometimes, you know, you don't have to really fight for everything. And so I think bringing that feminine energy into biohacking would be super beautiful, which is not always pushing through, you know, the pain or, you know, 40 minutes in the cold plunge or whatever it is that, you know, men love to push themselves to.

It's like three to six minutes is ideal.

But, like, there are so many crazy people that I feel like the harder, the better, the more pain. I mean, I've been there. I felt like, oh, if I'm doing a workout and, you know, it doesn't feel like I'm dying, then it's probably not working. Or, you know, it's.

It's true. And it's funny what biohacking does. It gives you more energy, more power, more capacity. Um, but you can still hit the wall. It just means that you've moved the wall out a long distance. You can get a lot of speed before you hit the wall. And women will typically hit the wall. When it comes to over fasting, over ketoing, over training, you know, you're going to feel differences. If you go zero carb for a month or start over fasting four to six weeks, you're going to start feeling something's not right. My cycle isn't where it was. Your body will give you feedback sooner. Guys. It's more like six, eight, ten weeks, and we don't feel it the same way you do. But first, for both men and women, it's my sleep quality just went to hell, my heart rate variability dropped. And if we don't have that data or we ignore it, then we're like, well, it's probably because I didn't exercise enough. I'll work out even more. Or I'll be even more keto, right? Or I'll be even more vegan, right? Yes, you can Just, oh, the honey might not be vegan enough. So you have to go one step further down. So all of that happens. But then for, for you, you kind of know what your body does in a typical month, right?

I mean, we have the fifth vital sign, which you guys don't, you know, and so I see so many fitness experts saying, you know, this is the best workout plan on the planet. Oh, by the way, I haven't had my period in 10 years, but, you know, this is really good for you. And I'm like, well, hang on a second.

No.

Yeah, like, it's not a big, like, warning sign. So I realized that it's like, it's the best feedback if you're period is late or painful or, you know, you're not thriving. You know, your diet isn't good for you, which you guys don't have that feedback. It's going to take much longer for you to actually see.

Our feedback is, is one that we don't really talk about it. It's. You wake up and you don't have a kickstand.

Right.

Your cortisol is high, your testosterone is dropping, and it's, it's so predictable. Like, you can tell what someone's labs are going to be based on what their practices are and if they describe, as a woman, here's how I'm feeling. Oh, let's see. How's your sleep? How's your exercise? Oh, you're not eating enough calories. When's the last me on some protein? And so it's funny, we have these, like, best practices are getting adequate animal protein. But adequate is different for a woman versus a man.

Right.

And the amount of stimulus it takes to get your system stressed is different than a man. But we both need stressful stimulus and we both need recovery. You probably need more recovery than an average man.

Yeah. Especially that women live in our heads. And, you know, we like, you know, we 80% of autoimmune diseases are women because we're just like, hyper vigilant and super worried about everyone around us. And, you know, we're, I mean, I'm polished. I was brought up by my mom up until this point. We go for Christmas and I was like, you know, make a plate for Jacob and do this and do that. You know, it's like, I'm like, no, he's an adult, he's gonna be okay. But it is a big focus on, like, serve the men and put everyone else needs in front of your own. And it's instilled the culture in a Lot of countries. So that makes us just forget how to connect with our body and just ask ourselves, like, how do I actually feel?

You know, you already know that sleep is important. But not just any sleep will do. In fact, there's one particular sleep phase that's responsible for most of your body's daily repair. For hunger and for weight loss, hormones, even how you manage your energy and a lot of other things. And if you don't get enough of that phased up sleep, you'll probably always struggle with cravings, slow metabolism, premature aging, or even worse. All the stuff that I dealt with as a young man before I figured out biohacking. That phase of sleep is called deep sleep. And barely any of us are getting the amount that you really want. One big reason for that is because 80% of human beings today are magnesium deficient. That's a big problem because magnesium cranks up gaba in your body. It helps you relax at a cellular level and it enables deeper sleep. Plus it keeps stress and anxiety in check. And those are things that can ruin your sleep. Now, before you grab just any magnesium supplement, here's a tip. You need all seven forms of magnesium. Most supplements out there will give you one or maybe two forms. That's why I take Magnesium Breakthrough from Bioptimizers every morning and actually every night. It's got all seven forms of magnesium you need for less stress and for better sleep.

And it's all in one bottle.

And it's the most bioavailable form I've found. You can notice a huge change in stress levels and sleep quality and how refreshed you feel during the day. I certainly do. The difference is massive.

So check it out for yourself.

Go to magbreakthrough.com Dave use code DAVE10 and they'll give you 10% off.

So let's start there in specific advice for women. So self care. How does a woman learn to put recovery and rest first instead of last?

That is a very good question. It's so tricky because I think what we understand as recovery is not exactly what mainstream understand as recovery. Sure, like being watching Netflix on a couch, it's great. But at the same time, like actual active recovery, which could be still going for a walk. It doesn't need you have to veg out on the couch. For me that just means sauna, going for a long walk, playing with Peanut, my self, Pleasure practice as well. These are all the things tell me.

Peanuts, your dog, not the name of your self Pleasure practice.

Yes, Peanut is my dog. So like things go viral and you're like, okay, what is she talking about? She has pleasure with peanuts. No, Peanut is the name of my dog. So, yeah, so, like, all of the things that just make you feel, like, good, you know, and, yeah, I think as long as it feels good and it's just, you know, not another piece of cake. I think whatever that means to you. You know, for me, even, like, writing the book was a part of a recovery. You know, I would wake up in the morning and connect with that creative energy. Like, I, I, I'm so glad I'm done. But then on the other hand, I'm like, oh, dang, I missed those mornings waking up at 5 and just writing.

What's the difference in your recommendations for cold exposure for women versus men?

Okay, so this is a really good one. I think it, it's really tough because obviously, when I first got into biohacking, I did everything you did, and, you know, you always said, like, you always did say, you know, fasting, you know, fastest way. You know, women, it's different. I'm like, yeah, no, I'm just gonna go. You know, I want. I don't have to, like, listen to that part. So I was, like, the worst. You know, I was a vegan biohacker. Oh, well, I still accept you. Yes. And so I was like, you know, I'm just going to do everything he says, but, like, I'll just adjust it to my part. It didn't quite work. So fasting was, like, one of great examples. I would fast every day, like, completely wrong. I would also do cold exposure. We have a, we have a cold plunge at home. We have one in, in Bali. So I would do it every day because, you know, I like to push myself. I have that, like, in me to, like, don't be weak. Um, now I don't do it before my. About eight days before my period and usually just tend to do it around my ovulation, which is day 14 or right before. So, like, day 8 till 10 to 14.

Got it. So you don't do it in about the week or so before your period.

Yeah, so I basically, I cut down on fasting. I cut down on, on cold exposure, and I cut down on pushing myself, and I just kind of focus on, like, a recovery. Right. So we're more lunar as women, so this is, like, a time for me to just step into that, like, softer.

So be kind to your body when your body's under more stress than normal.

Yeah.

Who would have thought, right? And it's the same thing for guys. We don't have that kind of stress. But if you're recovering from a cold or on the edge of getting one, or you flew around the world twice in a week and you get home, maybe you don't need to do an extended CrossFit workout and two hours of cold therapy or whatever you thought was going to make you stronger. That's actually when anyone, man or woman, needs to recover. And so are you in a state to receive a strong stimulus so that you can recover? Well, it turns out all of us can have times where we want to be in the state, but we're not. It's just you can predict it more easily because you have that window. And when you're not in that window before your period, if you're feeling like crap, are you going to go do a cold plunge and a heavy workout or are you going to recover?

No, I'm going to recover. And you know, you did say that in all of your books, so. But like, it just, people don't want. No, it's like, you know, like you're not quite ready to like receive it until actually it, it lands. And then it's like, holy shit, I'm like, oh no, he knows that already. Never mind. But yeah, it's really, really important.

I mean, I, I might know it, but there's, you know, there's things I don't experience, at least not in this life because I am a man. So having your perspective on it is, is really important. And there's less research. I mean, let's face it, most research, if you take all of the research since 1900 or so that we pay attention to, there's a lot of 21 year old white college students who are men, who were the test dummies until probably the early 90s where we started including women in different races and things so we would understand. Oh my gosh, women are not little men. So medically we have all sorts of biases. And in the world of biohacking, especially with the later stuff, the best practices are out there because more than half of biohackers are women. And we talk, right? And men talk with women, women talk with men and women. And you know, I'm here at my house, I have all the stuff that said upgrade labs, like I can't afford the full on cryo giant walk in chamber that does your face. So I have a cheap cold plunge which is not as good, but it's good enough for home use. But when I'm in it with my girlfriend, I stand longer and it's okay.

Right.

And so what do you mean you.

Stay longer in the, in the cold plunge in.

Yeah, I'll stay longer in the cold plunge.

Right.

So she might get after 90 seconds and I'll stay in for three or four minutes.

Oh, I say. See? Okay, cool. I was like, I thought he was gonna. Got it.

Yeah. And. And then, of course, if she tries to get out early, I just make fun of her. I'm kidding. Uh, you know, you don't do that because there is a part of all of us when you get in that's like, jump out. This is bad.

Right.

But all of us want to have the strength to overcome that. But it literally could be you just needed 30 seconds.

Right.

So just, you know, pushing yourself to, to keep up with. With your partner is probably not a good idea. Likewise, if you're a guy, you know, hopping out before you got the stimulus you needed might not be a good plan. But you both needed to be in the cold plunge.

Right.

You both needed to be in the sauna, you both needed to go exercise. But the same number of plates on, on the, the barbell. If you're still using concentrated rocks and barbells and you haven't gone to upgrade labs, fine, whatever. But like, we're just not the same. But, but the idea that we need to do about the same stuff at different volumes and sometimes on different days, I feel like there's so much in common. From a mitochondrial perspective, but from a stress hormone perspective, men and women are a little different. Can you walk me through why that is?

So, first of all, I just want to say I love that you brought that up, because there is this another school of women out there that just say, like, you know, never drink a sip of coffee because it's too bad, you know, as a woman, it's too much for your adrenals. You know, don't do any exercises. And it's just kind of like, no, I want to enjoy the benefits of fasting. I want to enjoy the benefits of coffee. Cheers.

Yeah, I'm sorry if. If you can't have a cup of coffee, something's wrong with your adrenals. Unless you have a problem with metabolism. Caffeine, like a genetic thing in your liver.

Yeah.

Other than that, a cup of coffee for women. If you look at all of the studies that look at reduction in all cause mortality, women need polyphenols too. And caffeine is good for men and women.

Exactly. So I think it's just like, been like there is like, you know, there's the school that kind of tells women that we need to do the exact same thing as men. There's another school that says, you know, basically don't leave your couch and just be super gentle. And I think just like kind of like meeting in the middle and realizing like literally what you just said, we do need to cold plunge, we do need caffeine, we do need sauna, we do need to lift weights and heavy weights to the point of like, okay, this is, you know, I'm about to break so I can get stronger. I just don't want it to, you know, you just have to do it at the right time, watch your HRV, do it at the right time of your cycle, etc. Etc. Right? And don't do a fasted workout if you're lifting weights. Like the, the basics that a lot of people overlook. It's a more interesting question that you ask about, like, why is it that we have to be more careful as women, right? We, you know, we're the carriers of the species. Obviously for us any sort of food restriction means okay, it's not safe to have a baby and we immediately lose our period. But I think it's, there's this deeper level of emotional and spiritual and psychological level why women tend to have all the autoimmune diseases. And why is it that we, we don't almost like metabolize stress as, as well. Like we hold on to things. You know, it's like I can see in my relationship with my fiance, you know, I say something and just like three days later I'm like, babe, you know that? He's like, yeah, he already forgot, like it's not in his body. And I think this is all correlated to like holding on to things and just not letting go.

There's definitely some psychological and emotional and spiritual components to it. And there's also just a question of where does your DHEA come from?

Right.

And men can make stress hormones in our gonads and women don't, especially post menopause. It can be very, very different. And I mean you're now a middle aged woman and so am I.

Thanks Dave.

I was hoping to get you spitting right when I said that, but you're, you're not. Well, you are facing at some point, most likely, unless we biohack this menopause at some point. And I, I've done so much work with paramenopause women over the years on tuning biohacks for that. And it's rough because they change on a monthly basis, but if you have the practices that are in your book. You've already established what your body feels like at different times. So if your cycle is late or early, you can still adjust what you're doing. But there's a huge number of women you know that are, I'm going to call them, with great respect, our wise women. You might also call them elders, but literally we need our elders. I learned all of biohacking from people in their 70s when I was in my 20s. That's why I can do what I do. So, women in menopause, how much of your book talks about them?

I. I didn't actually focus much on menopause because I. When I originally wrote the book, it was 600 pages because I wanted to include everything. And then I got a little hint of like, this is not a textbook. And I think a big part of we talked about in my podcast and you made me cry when I said that because I'm not a doctor. And I think this have this deeper to believe that my sister was the smart one. I was trying so hard to make this book like I know my shit. So I wrote zero.