What Is Bryan Johnson’s Project Blueprint? Quick Overview

Bryan Johnson Blueprint is a comprehensive health and wellness program created by Bryan Johnson, a tech entrepreneur known for founding Braintree and Kernel. This ambitious initiative aims to slow biological aging and support optimal physical and mental health through a meticulously designed regimen. The program combines diet, nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle changes, all grounded in data-driven decision-making. With a team of over 30 doctors monitoring his bodily functions, Bryan Johnson has invested millions of dollars into developing this rigorous regimen. The ultimate goal is to slow Bryan Johnson’s biological aging across multiple organs and support youthful function across his physiology.

A brief overview of what Project Blueprint entails and its goals.

The Philosophy Behind Project Blueprint: Bryan Johnson’s ‘Don’t Die’ Approach

At the heart of Project Blueprint lies a philosophy that underscores the importance of taking control of one’s health and well-being. Bryan Johnson’s approach is centered around the concept of “Zeroism,” which involves aligning one’s body and mind with the latest scientific research and technological advancements to achieve optimal health and longevity. This philosophy is rooted in the belief that humans have the potential to live longer, healthier lives, and that it is our responsibility to take proactive steps towards achieving this goal. By leveraging cutting-edge science and technology, Project Blueprint aims to push the boundaries of what is possible in terms of human health and longevity.

Understanding the core principles and motivations driving Bryan Johnson’s approach.

It is possible to achieve better results than Bryan Johnson with less money and lifestyle sacrifice

• Bryan Johnson will spend $2MM in 2023 on his Blueprint approach to longevity
• Others have achieved greater biological age results affordably and with less aggressive lifestyle changes
• There are multiple aspects of Bryan’s approach that might run counter to longevity and would be risky for most people to follow

Tech entrepreneur Bryan Johnson has been featured widely in the press for his Project Blueprint protocol and biological age results. We cover the full analysis in our companion article; this piece offers a quick overview, including the latest 2026 body fat and biomarker updates.

If you read the Bloomberg coverage in which Dr. George Church of Harvard Medical School (and a NOVOS Scientific Advisory Board member) commented on Bryan Johnson’s healthy aging work, you may be wondering whether it is realistic for the rest of us to slow biological aging without a centimillionaire’s budget. You might also be wondering if Bryan Johnson is taking the right approach with his supplements, prescription drugs, hormone therapies, blood transfusions, and lifestyle interventions. The software entrepreneur, who founded payment processing company Braintree Payment Solutions, drew widespread attention after undertaking an overhaul of his personal health and wellness routine, dubbed Project Blueprint. 

In this article, we’ll dig into the following topics (click to skip to a section):

1. What is Project Blueprint?

2. You Don’t Need Millions or To Go To Extremes

3. Comparison of Chris Mirabile’s and Bryan Johnson’s biological age results

4. Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint – Supplements, Prescriptions, and Interventions – Pros & Cons

5. How do I slow down or reverse my age?

6. Final thoughts

What Is Project Blueprint? Daily Calorie Intake, Pills, and Routine

Project Blueprint is a rigorous regimen that includes dozens of pills daily, a team of over 30 doctors monitoring Bryan Johnson’s bodily functions, a strict diet of the same daily foods and only 1,977 calories per day, hour-long daily workouts, and a sleep routine that includes wearing blue-light-blocking glasses for two hours before bed. The goal is to reverse the aging process in each and every one of Johnson’s organs in an effort to regain the body of an 18-year-old. It’s also a massive undertaking that costs millions to get up and running and will require an investment of at least $2 million this year alone.

Bryan Johnson Blueprint Cost vs NOVOS: Do You Need To Spend $2 Million?

NOVOS takes a different approach from the Bryan Johnson Blueprint protocol, with a focus on accessible, evidence-led healthy aging habits rather than a multi-million-dollar regimen. Practical methods to support biological aging are available through this blog, NOVOS’ video content, and the NOVOS Core and NOVOS Boost supplement stack.

Consider that many people who pursue so-called anti-aging regimens, especially celebrities, are not improving their lifespans and health spans. They’re actually shortening them or increasing their risks for disease with therapies like HGH and TRT (both of which Johnson also takes). In contrast, NOVOS provides the best guidance via our team of world-renowned experts whose combined experience informs every ingredient we include in our supplement line and lifestyle advice we provide in our content, such as in our article 60 Top Tips to Live Longer, Doctor-Approved

Bryan Johnson’s Diet: Foods, Calories, and Macros

A cornerstone of Project Blueprint is Bryan Johnson’s meticulously crafted diet and nutrition plan. His approach emphasizes the consumption of whole, plant-based foods, designed to promote optimal health and well-being. Key ingredients in his diet include leafy greens like kale and spinach, cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and cauliflower, legumes like lentils and chickpeas, nuts and seeds including almonds and chia seeds, whole grains such as quinoa and brown rice, and healthy fats like avocado and extra virgin olive oil.

In addition to these nutrient-dense foods, Bryan Johnson incorporates a range of supplements into his diet to ensure he meets all his nutritional needs. These supplements include omega-3 fatty acids, probiotics, vitamin D, magnesium, and coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). Hydration is also a critical component, with an emphasis on drinking plenty of water throughout the day.

Bryan Johnson’s diet is highly personalized, tailored to his individual needs and health goals. While his specific regimen may not be suitable for everyone, it provides a valuable framework for understanding the importance of nutrition in achieving optimal health. His diet is relatively balanced in terms of macronutrients, with a daily caloric intake of around 2,250 calories, broken down into approximately 33% carbohydrates, 19% protein, and 4% fat. This balance supports his overall health and wellness goals while providing the energy needed for his active lifestyle.

Overall, Bryan Johnson’s diet and nutrition plan is a critical component of Project Blueprint, offering insights into the role of nutrition in promoting health and longevity. By focusing on whole, unprocessed foods and personalized supplementation, his approach underscores the importance of diet in achieving optimal well-being.

An exploration of the dietary strategies and nutritional choices within Project Blueprint.

Bryan Johnson Body Fat and Biological Age Results: Inside the Numbers

As NOVOS Founder Chris Mirabile shares on SlowMyAge.com, independent third-party biological age assessments across multiple testing methods have consistently shown a biological age younger than his chronological age. He attributes these outcomes to a science-based longevity approach designed to be practical, sustainable, and achievable without sacrificing quality of life. (Individual results will vary.) In fact, the laboratory that ran the identical tests for both Chris Mirabile and Bryan Johnson commented about Chris’ results, stating “Quite frankly, we haven’t seen a score this good, but it is accurate.”

And according to perhaps the most powerful and accurate of all epigenetic clock tests, the DunedinPACE clock, which measures one’s current rate of aging, the third-party lab reported that Chris is aging at 0.69 (31% slower than average), while Bryan Johnson is aging at 0.72 (28% slower than average). Many additional physiological aging measures further corroborate these results.z

Bryan Johnson reduced his biological age by 2.5 years versus his chronological age — from 45 to 42.5, a 5.5% reduction; meanwhile, Chris Mirabile reduced his biological age by 13.6 years versus his chronological age — from 37.2 to 23.6, a 36.6% reduction.

Other NOVOS customers have submitted their results to Bryan Johnson’s Rejuvenation Olympics leaderboard. Three customers, Julie Gibson Clark, Amy Hardison, and Lil Eskey, have placed ahead of Bryan Johnson on the leaderboard at various points, with Rick Chiovarelli closely behind. Individual results will vary.

Pros and Cons of Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint: TRT, Rapamycin, Diet, and Sleep

Here’s a closer look at just a few of the noteworthy facts and stats mentioned in the Bloomberg article, along with our thoughts on why Bryan Johnson’s regime is not one we would recommend.

• Vegan diet. We at NOVOS acknowledge that Bryan Johnson’s diet is much better than the standard American diet; however, our research also shows that a vegan diet is not ideal for longevity, as evidenced across Blue Zones of supercentenarians, and also necessitates supplementation. Mediterranean diets, which include a moderate amount of fish and lean meats, are consistently shown in research to be the best diets for longevity and even mental health (R,R,R,R,R,R,R). Even better than that is the NOVOS Longevity Diet, which builds upon the Mediterranean diet and further optimizes it. Compared to Bryan’s approach, this allows for a lot more variety (which is beneficial for the microbiome), tasty meals, and the ability to be social with friends (being social is in itself an important dimension of being younger for longer ()). Bryan Johnson’s diet, while structured, has potential drawbacks such as lack of peer-reviewed evidence and high costs.
• Diet lacks diversity. Many of the ingredients in his diet are superfoods, including chlorella, garlic, ginger, turmeric, cocoa, extra virgin olive oil, avocado, and nuts. Yet, his standard diet of three meals lacks diversity, which is not ideal for the microbiome. However, for most people, incorporating these ingredients would be an upgrade. Here’s what we recommend:
• 30+ plant foods per day for ideal microbiome diversity. As the American Gut study has shown, eating the same three meals is not ideal for this.- Why microbiome diversity? It results in better health outcomes, reduced frailty, and improved immune systems (R,R,R).
• Extremely low body fat. Bryan Johnson’s body fat hovers around 5-6%. In one study of men aged 65 and older, very low body fat percentages were linked with an increased risk of death (). Although we don’t yet know how these mortality findings apply to younger men and women, we would argue that Bryan’s extremely low body fat percentages do not constitute homeostasis and therefore would be nefarious in the short, medium, and long term.

Specifically, body fat levels and all cause mortality rates have a J-shaped curve, where going too low (likely, below the 6% threshold) is not ideal and can result in health risks ranging from hormonal imbalances, organ damage and decreased bone mineral density (R,R,R). The lower body fat percentage is nonetheless better than being overweight, but we would recommend adding a couple of percentage points to Bryan’s overall body fat percentage for him to be in the 8% to 10% range.

Further, some subcutaneous body fat can actually be a good thing, serving as a barrier against viruses and germs that can penetrate the skin, and producing hormones like adiponectin, which are found at high levels in centenarians.

• 1,977 calories a day. Bryan Johnson’s calorie intake is likely too low for his activity levels and basal metabolic rate. Although up to a 25% caloric deficit may reduce the risks for certain diseases and may even slow aging, Bryan is going beyond that 25% threshold. Considering his daily 60 minute exercise routine, which includes high intensity interval training (HIIT), and his basal metabolic rate based on his age, body weight and height, we calculate his caloric deficit to be approximately between 31% to 40% or greater, depending on his exercise intensity and if he’s moderately active for the remainder of the day. Our research shows that long-term calorically deprived diets to this extent can lead to poor mood or depression, low libido, fatigue, weaker bones, nutrient deficiencies, and other consequences.

Going just a little further on calorie restriction (men consuming 1,570 calories, but also significantly lower activity levels than Johnson), as demonstrated in the 1945 Minnesota Starvation Experiment, found that nearly all subjects experienced periods of severe emotional distress and depression, signs of social isolation and withdrawal, decline in concentration and judgment capabilities, reduced body temperature and basal metabolic rate, and even an instance of self mutilation. To say the least, this is not an area we advise people to experiment with. With that said, eating fewer calories than you crave each day is good, and being hypocaloric at a range that’s within the 25% threshold may also be good for longevity — but we don’t advise you to take it any further.

Unfortunately, despite all of this caloric sacrifice, Bryan Johnson is likely counteracting its potential benefits due to the hormones he takes. Specifically, as well-known longevity researcher, endocrinologist and geriatrician Dr. Nir Barzilai has shared, “animal models whose levels of hormones were maintained at caloric-restricted levels in isolation did not realize extended life spans. So far, the only decrease that’s known to make a difference in longevity is the decrease in growth hormones” (emphasis added).

• TRT (testosterone replacement therapy), DHEA, & HGH (human growth hormone). Dr. Barzilai has also stated, “Regardless of the hype, I can tell you with certainty that growth hormones do not grow your life span.”

Bryan Johnson seems to be able to maintain such low caloric levels due to an unhealthy cycle of disrupting his testosterone levels and then making up for it with testosterone patches, HGH and the steroid hormone DHEA. This is an unsustainable method and a simplistic view of biology in that abrogating testosterone and HGH as a result of caloric restriction interferes with other bodily functions, including signaling pathways — to such an extent that testosterone patches and HGH eventually cannot compensate for the lack of production.

While caloric restriction and fasting can be beneficial in terms of signaling hormonal and biological pathway changes, Bryan is likely counteracting those benefits by using testosterone patches, HGH, and DHEA. Research associates long-term TRT and HGH with mixed lifespan and healthspan outcomes, and the long-term effects in younger people taking them outside of medical indication are not well understood.

• 17α-estradiol hormone. In contrast to androgens like TRT and DHEA, Bryan Johnson also includes 17α-estradiol in his stack. While 17α-estradiol, a steroidal estrogen hormone, has been found by the Interventions Testing Program (ITP) to extend lifespan in male mice, the efficacy and long term side effects in male humans – especially when combined with many other hormones (including androgens), prescriptions and supplements – are not known.
• Additional prescription drugs. In addition to testosterone replacement therapy, Bryan Johnson indicates he is using prescription drugs that include a diabetes drug, metformin (2,000 mg daily); another diabetes drug, acarbose (400 mg daily); and an immunosuppressant drug, rapamycin (13 mg) bi-weekly.

Each of these drugs is theorized to favorably impact human aging, based on animal studies and hints in human biology and outcomes. However, they are not yet proven and well understood in that context, and the combination of all four of the prescriptions (including TRT), at these high dosages, is uncharted territory, especially for someone with Bryan Johnson’s low body weight, high activity levels and low calorie intake.

For example, the acarbose dosage indicated for diabetics is 25 mg, up to 100 mg, every 8 hours, based on (high) blood glucose levels. Bryan Johnson’s dosage is 200 mg at a time, 400 mg daily, even with his low blood glucose levels. The metformin dosage is at the higher end of the range assigned to overweight diabetics with very high glucose levels, and the rapamycin dosage is more than 200-300% greater than the dosage typically used for off-label, experimental purposes.

Beyond the dosages are the overlapping biological pathways that these drugs have with one another, and with Bryan Johnson’s lifestyle (e.g., low calorie diet, intense physical exercise, supplements like spermidine, low body weight and fat, etc.). He is likely taking this too far, and then adding the androgenic hormones testosterone and DHEA to the mix sends simultaneous conflicting signals.

Ultimately, the dose makes the poison and more is not better. In our professional estimation, this approach is overly simplistic, where every drug that has purported longevity benefits is added to the routine at maximum dosage, without first comprehending the biology and dysergies (negative synergies) between them and one’s individual lifestyle and health situation. We caution against this highly experimental approach.

How To Slow Biological Aging Without Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint Budget

Start by learning more about the biological causes of aging and how to slow them down. NovosLabs.com is a fantastic resource for that, including our blog, ebook, and video content

Then take some free tests. Complete the five-minute longevity assessment, which will provide you with a longevity score of your current lifestyle. Then, use FaceAge, our AI-powered tool that measures your facial age and skin health, powered by a data set of more than 12 million people’s photos. Consider this your starting data that you will look back on as you progress on your longevity journey.

You should also consider downloading NOVOS Life, the 100% free iOS and Android app that provides the most accurate survey-based biological age clock available (based on an AI model and tens of thousands of people’s health data), personalized longevity lifestyle recommendations, and a longevity-trained AI chatbot.

If you’re an overachiever, consider purchasing NOVOS Age – the most powerful and complete biological age test available for consumers – which includes the DunedinPACE rate of aging clock, as well as additional measures: biological age and telomere length. Take this test at the beginning of your longevity journey, then again after 12 months.

Integrate our free, science-based advice on diets, sleep supplementation, exerciselifestyle, and longevity tech devices. And, of course, if you want to improve and accelerate your results, consider using NOVOS supplements: Core (the foundational supplement) and Boost (for an added boost to Core).

We invite you to follow us on social (@novoslabs) and subscribe to our newsletter for the latest on all things human longevity.

Final Thoughts

Is it possible to slow down aging? It is increasingly possible to slow biological aging across many physiological markers, and the longevity research community continues to refine the evidence base. As people delve deeper into information about their biological age, more and more of them are choosing to undertake new supplements and lifestyle routines to turn back the aging clock. With NOVOS as part of your daily routine, you can begin supporting healthy aging now without the cost or lifestyle extremes of Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint protocol. You can be Younger For Longer.

FAQ About Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint Protocol

What is Bryan Johnson’s Project Blueprint?

Project Blueprint is Bryan Johnson’s data-driven healthy aging protocol launched in 2021. It combines a calorie-controlled vegan diet, exercise, sleep optimization, supplements, and extensive health monitoring designed to measure and improve biological aging.

How much does Bryan Johnson spend on Blueprint?

Bryan Johnson has publicly stated he spends around $2 million per year on Project Blueprint, including doctors, lab tests, equipment, and supplements.

What is Bryan Johnson’s body fat percentage?

Bryan Johnson typically reports a body fat percentage between 5% and 6%. While maintaining a healthy body composition is associated with longevity, extremely low body fat may not be appropriate or beneficial for everyone. Individual health needs vary.

Does Bryan Johnson take TRT?

Yes, Bryan Johnson has publicly disclosed testosterone therapy and other hormone-related interventions as part of his longevity protocol. His regimen has changed over time, and he regularly updates his published protocol. The long-term effects of combining multiple hormone therapies for longevity remain uncertain.

What does Bryan Johnson eat in a day?

Bryan Johnson follows a structured, primarily plant-based diet centered on leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and healthy fats. Earlier versions of his Blueprint protocol provided about 1,977 calories per day, although his diet and calorie intake have evolved over time..

Can you slow aging without spending millions like Bryan Johnson?

Yes. Research suggests that accessible lifestyle habits, targeted supplements, a Mediterranean-style diet, and quality sleep may support healthier biological aging. Individual results will vary..

Is Project Blueprint backed by peer-reviewed evidence?

Project Blueprint pulls from peer-reviewed research. However, the complete Blueprint protocol has not been evaluated as a single intervention in randomized controlled clinical trials, so its overall effectiveness has not been established. Individual results will vary.