The 4:30 AM Biohacked Morning Routine
How aligning mind, muscle, and microbiome fuels my writing before the workday begins
Deep house music is slowly playing out through the white, dusty stereo speakers above me as I sit in a specialty brewery-coffeehouse fusion. I have my journal to my left, having already written down my Gratitude List, my Get-To-Do List, and my Accomplished List. My idea bank is already brimming.
I was up sharply at 4:38 this morning. I washed my face with pearl powder, washed my body with probiotic soap, did breathwork to activate my inner chi, did some red-light therapy, and then did a light full-body workout.
It’s 7:42 AM.
This morning routine has created some of the best days of my life.
It allows me to start my day bursting with energy, purpose, compassion, and yes, some amazing writing ideas.
In fact, a lot of what I do in the morning relates to better writing.
Because I truly believe when you become healthier you become a better writer.
And a better human.
This is not about becoming “tough” or winning the day while people sleep.
This is about true self care, optimizing mind body and spirit and becoming your best self.
Let’s dive in.
1. Mind
What are the thoughts entering your mind in the morning?
Over the years, I have learned that the thoughts that begin my day are the thoughts that will stay with me during the day.
So if I wake up thinking, “I am so exhausted,” or “Man, this day is going to suck,” or “Man, I’ve got to go to this bullshit job now,” I typically experience those emotions the whole day.
On the other hand, waking up and saying, “Wow, I am happy to be alive and I feel great and ready for an amazing day,” or “I am an ethereal being who is jumping with mitochondrial energy and the short-chain fatty acids are firing on all cylinders”—these thoughts prime your mind for looking for these patterns throughout the day.
So the very first thing I do when I wake up is just try and think positive thoughts.
Not every day is the best day ever, but we can always control how we are thinking about our situation, no matter the circumstance.
A few positive thoughts to steal for your morning: ☀️
Okay, another day. Let’s do something amazing today.
I am happy I get to wake up and drink another coffee.
I feel well rested and happy I got to sleep in a warm and safe bed.
Oh, this day is going to be lit, I get to see my friends today. Stuff like that.
After this, I go into my bathroom where I focus on some biohacked TLC.
2. Muscle (and the Morning Spa)
Now it’s spa time.
Time to feel like I am going into a retreat center mixed with a med spa.
This is when I brush my teeth, floss, and do tongue scraping and oil pulling.
I go in the shower and do the oil pulling while I wash my face gently as well as wash my body lightly.
This self-care act allows me to start the day fresh, refresh my skin microbiome, and focus on my oral microbiome—which is incredibly important and directly correlates with not only your gut microbiome but your heart health as well! Believe it or not.
As you know, cosmetics contain lots of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, so I focus on non-toxic and holistic products.
Note: I’ve dropped the full list of my favorite gear and the links to these products at the bottom of this post! 👇
The Morning Spa Lineup:
Toothpaste: Dr. Bronner’s or Living Libations
Toothbrush: PRIMALS or Feno toothbrush
Floss: Dr. Tung’s
Tongue Scraper: Dr. Tung’s
Oil Pull: Living Libations
Shower Filter: AquaTru
Hair Care: Living Libations
Skin Care: Alitura
From there, I turn on the red-light panel in my bathroom. I hop out of the shower and apply my moisturizer. I use Alitura’s Gold Serum. It’s my absolute favorite. It has copper tripeptide and sea marine collagen which help boost skin production.
💡 Biohack with Jack Tip: While standing in front of the red-light panel, close your eyes and massage your face and hair with this oil. It brings blood flow everywhere, improving elasticity and making sure you don’t get wrinkles.
3. Clean Like a Monk 🧘♂️
I head up to the kitchen where I wash dishes and scrub. I scrub the crap out of everything. The kitchen is my domain. I call myself the Kitchen Captain.
I heard a video somewhere of a girl explaining how the monks wake up and the first thing they do is clean. They believe it primes inner focus and gratitude for the day. So I like to activate my inner monk. I scrub the grill and all the surfaces with essential oils and Dr. Bronner’s—these have profound anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties.
Favorite cleaning products: Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds and Organic Thieves Oil.
Boom. Kitchen clean, body clean, feeling goooood.
4. Movement🏃♂️
I figured out this profound realization when I was in my freshman year of college back.
If you stretch and move, you feel a whole lot better as the day goes on.
Before that, I literally thought stretching and doing anything of the “touch your toes” nature was bizarre and irrelevant, and dare I say, feminine.
But now I don’t go a day without it.
The Goal: Prioritize at least 15 minutes of stretching, mobility, and foam rolling.
The Result: When you open up your body, you really open up your mind and your heart.
Favorite Yoga Channel: Breathe and Flow.
5. Breathwork 🌬️
Okay, my fellow guru holistic hackers. The body is open, the mind is in a positive place, the place is clean, and the body is clean. I mean dang, we already won the day, but there is much more fun to be done!
Now is a quick 10-minute breathwork routine. Remember, this is all fun to me. If this is not fun to you, do not force yourself. I am in the camp of pro-self-care, not pro-optimization.
Breathwork for me is the most profound way to clear the mind and feel really, really good.
There is a ton of amazing science on what happens when you breathe in these rhythmic patterns for a couple minutes a day.
Breathwork yields amazing benefits like:
Reduced cortisol
Improved mood
Increased dopamine and serotonin
Releasing stress and trauma
It sets my mind for total connection with myself and life. I do it every single day. I will never look back!
Biohack with Jack Tip: Try one video in the AM, see how you feel. YOU PICK! I love the Breathe with Sandy videos.
6. Microbiome
Time for self-care for the gut bugs. They need a little TLC too!
Quick 101: The gut microbiome means all the bacteria that make up your stomach. We have trillions of species in our body and the good guys—the good bacteria—live in a symbiotic relationship with us and do a bunch of useful things for us.
As we give them hospitality inside of us, they produce neurotransmitters for us, help us poop, carry 70% of our immune system, talk to our nervous system, keep us calm and cool and collected, and so much more. I talk about so much of this in my blog, so subscribe for more!
But yes, one of the ways to take care of these bacteria is by feeding them with fiber. Fiber is their main fuel source, so I use prebiotic fiber as well as psyllium husk, which helps clear toxins and cleanse the internal system.
I’ve been using Bio.me products and they have been an absolute game-changer.
7. Nootropics 🧠
During this time I also take some yummy cognitive enhancers which feed my brain! I take some right before I head out in the morning, either their Upbeat or Dopa Drops.
The Brand: Nootopia (The nootropic OGs).
One Last Ritual: One Set of Iron
From there, I get on the gym bro, toxic masculine attire and go bench press while I stare down dudes and hit on girls.
Just kidding, to all of that.
I literally just hit a couple of weights to warm up my metabolism, warm up the muscles, and get blood flow to my brain. It consists of:
Hitting a couple of rows
Maybe hitting the chest press a couple of times
Getting on the bike
Stretching a bit more
Done. It takes five minutes—just some nice self-care for the muscles and metabolism. Now I go in my car and head over to the coffee shop.
The Payoff
I mean, wow.
We’re in the car driving to the coffee shop for my two-hour writing block, and you could say I am peaking on life. But in this case, I really am just taking care of my mind, body, and spirit—all of which allows me to become a better writer.
This routine has allowed me to build my dream life, and it’s something I love doing every day. I wonder, what do you think about it? Anything mind-blowing to you?
Maybe try one or two of these things, or FaceTime me as we run through the biohacked morning routine gauntlet together!!!
Have a great week!
Jack
🛠️ The Biohacked Gear List
“If you can’t eat it, don’t put it near your mouth.”
Here is the exact toolkit I use to prime my mind, body, and microbiome every single morning.
Oral Care & “Morning Spa” 🪥
Toothpaste: Living Libations Frankincense Fresh or Dr. Bronner’s All-One (Non-toxic, fluoride-free, and gut-safe).
Toothbrush: PRIMALS or the Feno Smart Brush (20-second deep clean).
Floss & Scraper: Dr. Tung’s Smart Floss and Stainless Steel Tongue Cleaner (The OG of oral hygiene).
Oil Pulling: Living Libations Happy Gum Drops (Swish for 10 mins for a bacterial reset).
Shower Filter: AquaTru Filtered Showerhead (Don’t let your skin absorb city chlorine).
Skin & Hair Care: Alitura Gold Serum (Copper peptides + Marine Collagen = Liquid gold) and Living Libations shampoo + conditioner.
The “Clean Ship” Toolkit 🧼
All-Purpose Scrub: Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds (The Kitchen Captain’s secret weapon).
The Scent: Organic Thieves Oil (Anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and smells like a fortress).
Gut & Brain Fuel 🧠
Prebiotic Fiber: Bio.me Daily Prebiotic (Feeding the “good guys” with Sunfiber & Solnul).
Nootropics: Nootopia Upbeat & Dopa Drops (Precision-grade cognitive enhancers to hit that 7:00 AM writing flow).