The 'Fountain of Youth' – A Chemical and a Lifestyle

Joel's note: The Altimetry offices are closed tomorrow and Friday for the Thanksgiving holiday, so look for your next Altimetry Daily Authority on Monday, December 2. See you then!

Wishing you and yours a happy Thanksgiving...

Every year around Thanksgiving, I like to take a little time to look back with our team to highlight all the things we have reason to be thankful for. There have been a lot of great highlights over the year... Altimetry is certainly No. 1 on the list for me and the team this year as we think about what we're grateful for.

The last two months have been tremendous for our team here at Altimetry. We've had an amazing time launching three new products for individual investors, all focused on using Uniform Accounting and our other tools to help you in your investments.

We've also had an amazing time interacting with our readers – hearing your thoughts and answering your questions.

So with the holiday around the corner, we here at Altimetry want to thank you, our readers... And wish you a very happy Thanksgiving.

On Friday, I opened Altimetry Daily Authority by describing my journey into bio-hacking called the 'Fountain of Youth'...

Considering tomorrow is Thanksgiving, it's appropriate to start with one of the most powerful tools I've found in my anti-aging arsenal.

But first, a bit of background about what has been the key to many of the insights I've found...

Much of my research has pointed to the importance of one key hormone that the human body produces and how it impacts aging.

Last week, I mentioned that I had been experiencing extreme elbow pain in both of my elbows – severe tennis elbow and golfer's elbow.

Looking for a non-invasive cure (or at least a symptom reducer) I found that some research suggested the joint issue may have been getting worse due to lower natural human growth hormone ("HGH") secretion. A drop in HGH generally comes with aging.

HGH levels are highest in children and young adults and then proceed to drop severely from ages 30 to 40. In fact, many studies show that this drop in HGH levels over that span is larger and faster than the drop in HGH from ages 40 to 70.

Getting old sucks.

Hope was not all lost, however... With further extensive research, I found lots of positive notes on how HGH could be naturally brought back to more youthful levels.

These various "bio-hacks" seemed quite doable, and frankly, not at all unhealthy in any way.

I saw plenty of ads for synthetic HGH injections and pills. I haven't tried those, and I probably won't unless a doctor tells me I have to for medical reasons.

These artificial methods are not what I'm talking about here. I focused on personally trying and testing the natural techniques to increase HGH levels so I can get my body to feel younger. I have not tried any methods that seemed to be unhealthy in any way to me.

When I began this research and "test on myself" period a few years ago, one of our senior analysts mentioned intermittent fasting ("IF").

Yes, I know... tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and I'm sure some of you will groan at the idea... but bear with me. This isn't about dieting, this is about timing when you eat.

Personally, of all the things I've tried, the easiest, most direct way of naturally increasing HGH seems to be IF.

Studies have shown very interesting and even compelling results from restricting your caloric intake into a small window of time each day, every day. And to adjust to that fasting, your body responds with massive natural increases in HGH levels.

For me, what I found was nothing short of a medical miracle.

Over a few months of trying IF, my elbow problems receded by 95% or more. I'm back in the gym as often as I want. I've recovered so much that I'm hitting personal records in elbow-important exercises that I haven't hit since my early 30s.

Essentially, by fasting 12 hours to 18 hours each day, one can increase natural HGH production levels back to those of one's youth. I eased into it over a few weeks, so I didn't find it that difficult to adopt as a lifestyle.

Some studies have even shown natural increases in HGH levels of 500% or more.

The overall impact on my life has been overwhelmingly positive. I feel more youthful, I'm stronger, I sleep more soundly, and there is no question that I'm experiencing faster healing and recovery times.

I'm not a doctor... so I can't and wouldn't recommend anything medically. However, I can shout at the top of my lungs about how IF has personally changed my life.

It has reversed my aging process in strength, sleep, healing, and recovery. My chronic elbow problem, which I thought I would be stuck with for life, is all but nonexistent (knock on wood). People tell me I look younger, and when I first meet new people now they don't ever guess I'm on my 50th year of life.

Given my crazy travel schedule and long hours studying the markets and individual companies and stocks, the heavier sleep has been a godsend.

Again, I haven't decreased the number of calories I consume... I've just changed when I consume them. And ironically, Thanksgiving can be a great day to start a mission like this. That one massive meal you're likely sitting down to around 3 p.m. tomorrow can be your first "six-to-eight-hour window of feeding."

I hope you found this useful. Let me know if so at [email protected], and I'll share more like this in the future.

Wishing you and whoever you are spending your Thanksgiving with a truly great day, and continued reasons to be thankful in the coming year,

Joel Litman
November 27, 2019

P.S. You can read more about the benefits of IF in the Harvard Gazette: In pursuit of healthy aging.