It snowed again. It is already the 24th of February and it is unusual to have snow after the middle of February. My Nordic walking this morning was just like Kan Geiko, which I’ll talk about later, so stick around.
What is Ikigai Bio-Hacking?
It is biohacking based on Japanese natural health.
Japanese natural health is the foundation of many martial arts, including Aikido, Judo, Karate, and natural healing methods like Shiatsu, the diets like the Zen Shojin Diet and macrobiotic diet. It is also a base of Shugendo, a Japanese spiritual practice that Ninjas adopted into their Ninjutsu.
The health secrets that have been recognized recently by modern science have been around in Japan for centuries. They are nothing new for us. Gut health for instance has been part of Japanese natural health and it is represented in a concept of Hara. Hara is the belly area and it is central in all martial arts. We move from Hara, and we breathe through Hara. We call that Tanden, too, and one exercise I introduced in the book called Tantoko is a qi-gong exercise to feel ki energy in your Tanden.
Fermented foods, which are considered to foster healthy gut microbiomes, are part of Washoku, the Japanese diet.
Recently, some scientists discovered that spermidine contained in fermented foods stimulates autophagy, the cellular recycling mechanism. Natto contains the highest amount of spermidine.
Hermetic activities known for having saunas and cold baths have been around in Japan for a long time. Takigyo, sitting under a waterfall conducted by Yamabushis, Shugendo practitioners, has the same effects, as well as Kan Geiko, training conducted early mornings in winter to endure cold in martial arts. Some Karate practitioners stand in the sea and do their training.
Fasting has been around in Japanese spirituality for centuries, too, and it is practiced in spirituality all over the world.
If you are interested in biohacking, you should look into the source, which has been around for a thousand years.
Ikigai Bio-Hacking: Bio-Hacking Based on Japanese Natural Health
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