Bio-Hacking

Bio-hacking is such a broad topic. It will be difficult for me to explain all the various elements here but, I will do my best to try and give a small introduction, why I enjoy it, and my own personal experiences.

To start, bio-hacking can mean several different things. Likely the most common these days, is using modern understanding of nutrition, exercise, sleep, and general biology to maximize efficiency and performance. Alternatively, bio-hacking can refer to the actual implementation of electronics and technology in tandem with the human body to enhance performance, restore a lot ability, or implement something new.

I actually have experience with both forms of bio-hacking. In my day to day life, I do use very strict nutrition in concert with a Garmin watch to monitor my body and plan my exercise and sleep. The time spent learning about nutrition, exercise, and sleep hygiene has been incredibly interesting Over the last year, the changes I have made to my body through these methods have been truly astounding. I have lost a substantial amount of weight, gone from not being able to do a single push-up to well over twenty consecutively, and I even do a new annual road bike ride where I ride my age in miles. I can say with certainty that I never thought I would be able to sit down and ride more than thirty miles consecutively at all, let alone with some amount of ease. Feeling my energy levels grow so dramatically, and seeing both the growth of muscle and loss of fat has been very unique experiences.

When it comes to the alternative form of bio-hacking, I have recently begun dipping my toes into this world! I have been very interested for a long time but, have recently purchased two different implantable chips and have them in the webbing between forefinger and thumb of each hand. One chip contains a basically high frequency near field communication (NFC) chip and a low frequency RFID chip commonly used for scanning into places or locking and unlocking doors. And the other contains a similar RFID known as an SIID, commonly used in animals to store identification. Both chips also contain green LEDs that flash when being read/used and can be seen through the skin. The chips are contained within medical grade glass ampoules. These are incredibly strong and durable and keep the electronics safe yet accessible through the skin.

The main question for most people becomes, “why”. And, I can understand and appreciate that curiosity. For me, the why is simple. It’s because we can! To me, modifying things is one of the great joys a person can have in life and in some ways is part of the human experience. To take an item, and change it to perfectly suit our needs or desires is such a wonderful form of expression. And to modify ones body with tattoos, silicone/metal implants, gender affirming cares, electronic implants, or even gaining/losing weight or muscle is potentially the most meaningful and powerful form of self expression a person can have. It speaks to me in a way that nothing else does. I have spent many years in the body modification community, primarily with tattoos and piercings but, knowing many who experienced and taught me about other forms such as scarification, branding, and more. And I have the most love and respect for every persons inherent right to have their body any way that they want it.

Anyway, this is more or less a short explanation on the basics of bio-hacking, my own experience with it, and a little as to why I like it. Below, you will find a link to my page on Tattoos if you want to read more about body modification as well as a link to the Dangerous Things website where you can find more wonderful information about electronic implants and bio-hacking! Thank you for reading and if you have questions please feel free to email me or if you want to share your modification experiences you can email me as well!