Decoding Project Blueprint: What does Bryan Johnson do for anti-aging?

Spending millions annually on his regimen, Bryan Johnson is on a quest to reverse aging, garnering significant media attention for his highly measured, data-driven approach. This has led many to wonder: what does Bryan Johnson do for anti-aging, and how does his Project Blueprint differ from conventional healthy living?

Quick Summary

Bryan Johnson follows an extreme, data-driven "Project Blueprint" protocol to reverse his biological age. His regimen includes a strict vegan diet, an hour of daily exercise, optimized sleep hygiene, and a complex daily stack of supplements and medications, alongside advanced therapies and constant biological monitoring.

Key Points

• Project Blueprint: Bryan Johnson’s comprehensive, multi-million dollar regimen is driven by data to reverse his biological age.

• Diet & Fasting: He follows a strict vegan, calorie-restricted diet with an early eating window to promote cellular health.

• Exercise & Sleep: Daily workouts and meticulously optimized sleep are fundamental pillars of his protocol.

• Supplements: He takes a vast, medically supervised stack of supplements and some prescription drugs for organ health and longevity.

• Advanced Therapies: His methods include red light therapy, gene therapy, and cosmetic procedures, though some are controversial and were discontinued.

• Accessible Takeaways: While extreme, his regimen reinforces the importance of foundational health habits like diet, exercise, and sleep.

The Data-Driven Philosophy Behind Project Blueprint

Bryan Johnson's entire anti-aging project, known as Blueprint, is founded on a single, unwavering principle: optimize every bodily function for peak performance and longevity using measurable data. He relies on a dedicated team of over 30 medical experts, including doctors and scientists, to analyze his biomarkers and guide his protocols. Johnson's metrics go far beyond typical health markers, including extensive tests like daily body fat scans, MRIs, and assessments of organ function to determine his biological age. His goal is to achieve the lowest possible biological age, and his approach is more about satisfying what his body's data requires than his mind's cravings.

The Foundational Pillars of His Regimen

While some of Johnson's methods are extreme and expensive, the foundation of his protocol rests on three core, widely-recognized pillars of health: diet, exercise, and sleep. He has simply elevated them to an unprecedented level of precision and adherence.

Diet: A Hyper-Calibrated Vegan Approach

Johnson's dietary protocol is a cornerstone of Blueprint. He consumes a carefully controlled vegan diet, targeting around 2,250 calories per day to maintain a slight caloric deficit for optimal cellular function. He eats all his meals within a specific eating window, practicing a form of intermittent fasting to promote autophagy, the body's cellular recycling process. His meals are precisely planned and nutritionally dense, featuring staple dishes like:

• The "Green Giant" Smoothie: A morning concoction packed with algae (Chlorella), creatine, spermidine, and collagen peptides, among other ingredients.
• "Super Veggie": A large, nutrient-rich lunch comprising broccoli, cauliflower, black lentils, mushrooms, garlic, and ginger.
• "Nutty Pudding": A second meal containing a blend of macadamia nuts, walnuts, flax seeds, and berries, providing healthy fats and fiber.

Exercise: Rigorous and Varied Daily Movement

Johnson's commitment to physical fitness is unwavering. He dedicates 60 to 90 minutes each day to a comprehensive workout that includes a mix of strength training, cardio, flexibility, and balance exercises. His regimen incorporates a wide range of movements, from reverse push-ups to intense HIIT sessions, ensuring he trains his body across multiple disciplines. He also incorporates light physical activity, like short walks, throughout the day.

Sleep: The Master Regulator of Longevity

Johnson refers to himself as a "professional sleeper," prioritizing sleep quality above nearly all else. His evening routine is meticulously designed to ensure he gets consistent, high-quality rest, including:

• A consistent bedtime, usually around 8:30 p.m..
• A 30-60 minute wind-down routine without artificial light.
• Maintaining a cool, dark, and quiet bedroom environment.
• Using a temperature-controlled mattress.
• Tracking sleep metrics with a wearable device like the WHOOP band.

The Advanced Therapies and Cutting-Edge Biohacks

Beyond the fundamentals, Johnson employs a suite of high-tech and experimental interventions, many of which are controversial or lack robust human evidence.

Pharmaceuticals and Extensive Supplementation

Johnson's supplement and medication stack is one of the most complex aspects of his regimen. He takes dozens of pills and powders daily, guided by his team of specialists. Key components include:

• Blueprint Stack: His own line of supplements, designed to streamline his protocol and provide essential compounds.
• NAD+ Precursors: Like Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) or Nicotinamide Riboside (NR), to boost cellular energy.
• Prescription Drugs: Including Metformin and Acarbose, used to regulate blood sugar levels, though their longevity benefits in non-diabetics are debated.
• Rapamycin: An immunosuppressant he once took, though he later discontinued it due to side effects.

High-Tech Device and Cosmetic Treatments

• Red Light Therapy (RLT): Uses RLT caps for hair growth and full-body panels for skin health, inflammation reduction, and overall recovery.
• Microneedling: A skin-rejuvenation procedure using fine needles to stimulate collagen production.
• Laser Therapies and Peels: Regular treatments to address sun damage and improve skin texture.
• Fat Injections: Has undergone a procedure to inject donor fat into his face to stimulate collagen production.

Controversial and Experimental Procedures

• Follistatin Gene Therapy: Johnson traveled abroad for this experimental therapy to boost muscle growth, a procedure that is not widely available or approved.
• Blood Plasma Exchange: Famously performed a multi-generational plasma exchange involving his son, though he later reported no benefits for himself and discontinued the practice.

A Comparison of Bryan Johnson's Blueprint vs. Conventional Healthy Aging

Feature	Bryan Johnson's Blueprint Approach	Conventional Healthy Aging
Diet	Strictly controlled vegan diet, precise calorie count (e.g., 2,250 kcal), narrow eating window.	Balanced diet (e.g., Mediterranean), focus on whole foods, moderation, and intuitive eating.
Exercise	Daily 60-90 min routine (HIIT, strength, cardio) with specific exercise selection.	Regular physical activity, aiming for 150 min moderate or 75 min vigorous weekly, plus strength training.
Sleep	Highly controlled environment (temp, light), consistent bedtime tracked via devices.	Consistent bedtime, dark/cool room, avoiding caffeine/screens before bed.
Supplementation	Daily protocol of dozens of supplements and medications, curated by experts.	Targeted supplementation based on specific deficiencies or needs (e.g., Vitamin D, Omega-3s).
Technology	Use of advanced devices like RLT panels, WHOOP bands, gene therapy.	Everyday wearables (e.g., fitness trackers) and access to standard medical tests.
Cost & Accessibility	Multi-million dollar annual budget, requires expert oversight.	Accessible and affordable for most people with good habits and regular checkups.

The Evolving Nature of Longevity Science

Johnson's journey with Blueprint highlights the rapid evolution of longevity science. His public sharing of data, including which protocols prove effective and which are discontinued (like the plasma exchange), provides valuable, if highly individualized, insight. While many of his extreme measures are financially and logistically out of reach for the average person, his experiment underscores the immense potential of a data-driven, holistic approach to health. Critically, his success in lowering biological age metrics points to the power of optimizing foundational health behaviors.

Conclusion: Lessons from the Blueprint

Ultimately, what does Bryan Johnson do for anti-aging is not a simple question with a single answer; it's a testament to extreme dedication and a comprehensive, data-driven philosophy. While the majority of people cannot—and likely should not—replicate his multi-million-dollar, highly restrictive regimen, his experiment offers valuable lessons. The core pillars of his success—a healthy diet, consistent exercise, and dedicated sleep hygiene—are accessible to all. The most compelling takeaway from Project Blueprint is that optimizing these fundamentals, rather than relying solely on experimental hacks, is the most powerful and evidence-based path to healthy aging. The National Institute on Aging (NIA) offers science-backed resources on maintaining health as you age, affirming the importance of these basic principles.

Visit the National Institute on Aging for evidence-based healthy living advice

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the core components of Bryan Johnson's anti-aging routine?

The core components of Bryan Johnson's Project Blueprint include a strict vegan diet with calorie restriction, daily exercise, a complex daily stack of supplements and medications, meticulous sleep optimization, and the use of advanced therapies like red light therapy.

Is Bryan Johnson's anti-aging regimen scientifically proven?

While Johnson's regimen is based on data and uses some scientifically-backed components, it is largely a self-experiment. Many of the more advanced and controversial therapies lack robust evidence in humans and are not widely accepted by the medical community for anti-aging purposes.

What is Project Blueprint?

Project Blueprint is the name of Bryan Johnson's anti-aging and longevity experiment. It is a comprehensive protocol based on measuring over 70 biomarkers to optimize every aspect of his health and, according to his claims, lower his biological age.

Does Bryan Johnson still do the blood plasma exchange?

No, Bryan Johnson discontinued the blood plasma exchange. After conducting the procedure and analyzing the data, he found no detectable benefits for himself and publicly stated that the therapy did not add any value on top of his existing interventions.

Can the average person follow Bryan Johnson's diet?

While a vegan, whole-food diet is healthy, replicating Bryan Johnson's specific, highly restrictive, and calorie-controlled diet would be difficult and is not recommended without medical supervision. The core takeaway—eating whole, unprocessed foods—is accessible to everyone.

How does Bryan Johnson use technology for anti-aging?

Bryan Johnson uses a wide range of technology, from wearable trackers like the WHOOP band for sleep and heart rate variability to more advanced devices. These include red light therapy panels, gene therapy procedures, and constant diagnostic monitoring like MRIs and blood tests.

What does Bryan Johnson do for anti-aging besides diet and exercise?

Beyond diet and exercise, Bryan Johnson's anti-aging efforts include a large stack of daily supplements, a strictly controlled sleep schedule, advanced skin and cosmetic treatments, and experimental procedures such as gene therapy and formerly, blood plasma exchanges.