The opposite of a mega-stack. Strip everything down to the handful of inputs with the highest return per unit of effort, and ignore the rest until these are automatic. Five foundations and exactly one supplement. This alone outperforms almost any elaborate protocol built on a shaky base.
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Protect a consistent wake time and enough time in bed before you touch a supplement. Move caffeine earlier, keep alcohol out of your sleep experiments, and screen for apnea if you snore, gasp, or wake unrefreshed. The pills are the last 10%, not the first.
In this stack7+ hours, consistent wake time. The single highest-yield habit here.
Read the full guide on Sleep →Accumulate easy aerobic minutes most weeks — conversational-pace Zone 2 — and add one or two harder sessions once the base is there. Going from low to even moderate fitness is the biggest mortality dividend in this entire guide, and it's mostly boring, repeatable volume.
In this stackMove most days; walking counts. The biggest changeable predictor of a long life.
Read the full guide on Aerobic base →Two sessions a week covering the major movement patterns is enough to bend the curve. Muscle-strengthening activity tracks with 10–17% lower mortality, and the dose-response peaks early — around 30–60 minutes a week — so you do not need to live in the gym.
In this stackTwo short strength sessions a week. Guards muscle, bone, and metabolism.
Read the full guide on Strength →Eat mostly minimally-processed food, get enough protein and fiber, and let total energy intake match whether you want to lose, hold, or gain. The specific named diet matters far less than sticking to a decent pattern — adherence beats ideology, every time.
In this stackMostly whole food, enough protein and fiber, portions matched to your goal.
Read the full guide on Nutrition →The RDA of 0.8 g/kg prevents deficiency, not the same as optimal. If you resistance-train, benefits from added protein plateau around 1.6 g/kg per day. Hit a reasonable target across a few meals and stop optimizing the decimal places.
In this stackRoughly 1.6 g/kg/day — the one macronutrient worth counting.
Read the full guide on Protein →3–5 g/day of plain creatine monohydrate, taken any time, forever. It reliably improves high-intensity performance and lean mass alongside training, costs pennies, and has a deep safety record. Skip the fancy branded forms — monohydrate is the one that's actually studied.
In this stack3–5 g/day. The only supplement that makes this list.
Read the full guide on Creatine →