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LIFE CHEAT
I’m 30 but have the liver of a nine-year-old – here’s what I eat every day for longevity
Siim Land shares what he thinks of supplements, including those worth taking
PEOPLE will go to extreme lengths to reverse their biological age.
We’ve seen millionaire Bryan Johnson talk about taking 100 pills a day, finish eating at 11am and having transfusions of blood from his son in order to ‘not die’.
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Time will tell if these methods are really worth it, but the hype around longevity has certainly boomed.
But Siim Land, a 30-year-old from Estonia with a biological age of just 17 years, has revealed you don’t need to go to extreme lengths to reverse the clock.
He sticks to some simple rules - and there's one he says trumps the others, even if you are busy and have little time and money.
Siim isn’t your average young man - he hasn’t spent his 20s drinking (having only had a glass of wine on his honeymoon two years ago).
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And it has paid off - his liver is just nine years old.
Siim is already the best-selling author of nine books including his most recent, The Longevity Leap, and has 600K followers on and , desperate to know his secrets.
He tells Sun Health: “My age is 30 and my biological age is 17.
“The age of my organs is also 17 on average.
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“I haven’t done any severe ‘biohacks’, like gene editing of peptides or anything like that. There is such a wide group of people that call themselves biohackers so the term means different things to different people.”
Siim is currently placed 4th on the , meaning he 'has the 4th slowest speed of ageing in the world' based on its test that looks at DNA.
Tycoon bio-hacker vows ‘I will never die’ after injecting son’s blood
He's closing in on Bryan Johnson who is 3rd place.
While we can’t change our actual age (how many years we have been alive), we can change our biological age, which is how old our body and its organs may seem based on health markers.
It's a measure of how well or poorly your body is functioning compared to your actual age and may be a greater indicator of mortality risk.
Like many super ‘longevists’, there’s often a reason behind their interest.
Siim, who lives with his wife, Inka, 31, said: "I realised the importance of preventive health quite early.
“My grandfather died of cancer when he was 36 years old, in the 80s, so I didn't want to follow something similar.
“It's much easier to prevent diseases than it is to fix them afterwards."
Siim had a humble upbringing with "regular parents", eating meals cooked from scratch such as meatballs, and rarely having sweets, fizzy drinks or crisps.
He says: "We didn't have snacks laying around because we weren't super wealthy. We had crisps and chocolate once or twice a week."
Diet hacks
Siim, who studied anthropology, says his diet now fits that of a Mediterranean diet - considered the 'best diet in the world' with evidence for being beneficial for heart and brain health.
Even if I knew that I was going to die tomorrow, I wouldn't change my current daily routine
Siim Land
He says: “[I eat] mostly fish, vegetables, olive oil, some beef, eggs, fruits, berries, potatoes, maybe some grains every once in a while.
“I focus on healthy proteins, vegetables, olive oil and fish as the main source of fats, maybe some nuts and seeds.
"I'll have dark chocolate. Every once in a while I’ll have some ice cream or birthday cake.
“I'll have whatever snacks every once in a while, but because I'm healthy and because I'm physically active, I can get away with a lot more, and I suffer less consequences by doing that as well.
“If I do eat, like a pizza, I'm not going to get brain fog or feel tired the next day.
“I don't have any real restrictions to my diet. I'm not afraid of gluten or dairy or whatever else people are afraid of. But I manage my portion sizes, I think that's important.
“I haven’t drunk for the last nine years. I did have a glass of wine on our honeymoon two years ago.
“One drink per day is probably enough and most people can get away with it… It might even be linked to lower mortality.
“But I’m not a drinking guy, I just decided it’s not something I enjoy.”
Exercise habits
Though he says “exercise is the most powerful thing right now for longevity in humans”, he does not spend hours in the gym.
Siim adds: "The healthier your diet is, the less exercise you kind of need as well for just the health benefits.
“I'm doing both cardio and resistance training in almost equal amounts. I do three days a week of each with one rest day.
“I'm aiming for a solid base in both muscle strength and muscle mass and respiratory fitness.
“So I am not trying to maximise muscle strength or endurance. I’m trying to be above average in both. I think for longevity purposes, it’s a more suitable approach.”
Siim’s daily routine
- 6AM: Wake up, walk the dog, get sunlight exposure
- 7AM: Make tea or coffee, play with the dog, talk to his wife, start working (researching, writing, emails)
- 10-11AM: Have a protein shake (whey protein powder, berries, cacao)
- Midday: Continue working
- Afternoon: Workout (gym, run, park callisthenics, hike)
- Evening: Sauna (a few times a week)
- 5PM: Have dinner
- Evening: Relax, stop working
- 10PM: Go to bed
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What is most striking about Siim is that, regardless of his endless research on the science of ageing, his approach is very simple and effective.
He enjoys the process of staying fit and healthy, saying: “I enjoy my life and I'm happy. I am also a bit of a person who doesn't get stressed out that easily.
“Even if I knew that I was going to die tomorrow, I wouldn't change my current daily routine that much (other than of course spending more time with my wife and family!).
“I’m doing what I love already, feeling great and happy.”
STRESS LESS
Siim may go above and beyond most of us by tracking his markers regularly - but he doesn't let them dominate his life.
He is remarkably stress-free and credits this to his health in general.
Siim says: "I don't feel like I experience stress or mental health problems.
“I guess that is my personality but also I put my body through a lot of physical stress (exercise), and there is research that that increases stress resilience from a mental perspective.
“So exercise can reduce stress but it is also a good buffer against future stressors as well.
“Your perception of stress can also dictate your response; so people who perceive it as inherently harmful might experience it worse. Whereas if you have a growth mindset about stress, you can mitigate some of the harm.
“It’s important to take care of your mental health and I am a big believer in downtime, so every night I take time to relax and I don’t work too hard.”
THE EASIEST LONGEVITY HACK
Siim thinks that the biggest thing people get wrong is being inactive all day.
He says: “Movement is really powerful and improves all organ function, all the hallmarks of ageing and can protect against all chronic diseases.
“A lot of people drive everywhere and at home or their office sitting all the time."
His simple tip is to walk more, however you can.
“Just going from 2,000 to 8,000 steps per day has been found to reduce all-cause mortality by 60 per cent," he says. "And 8,000 steps is about an hour and a half of walking over a day.
“Everyone can squeeze in some exercise, even just 20 minutes of focused exercise. And if you have children, try and find ways to implement activities like going to the park, rather than just sitting on the sofa with them.”
But he says the most "powerful thing" is to adjust the diet.
“Even if you just eat a lower calorie, whole foods diet, then it's going to be relatively easy to lose weight, even without exercise," he says.
DAILY ROUTINE
Siim starts his day at 6AM, just like many of us, but what he does next is where the magic happens.
He says: “I'll go outside, walk the dog and get some sunlight exposure.”
Getting daylight exposure first thing is hugely beneficial to keep the body clock running smoothly, running systems that help with sleep, mood and appetite.
At 7am, Siim has tea or coffee and plays with his dog before starting work, which is computer-based.
Mid-morning, Siim says: “I'll have a protein shake with whey protein powder, berries, and maybe some cacao or something else for flavour.
“After that, I'll continue working for a few hours before a workout. I'll either go to the gym, go for a run, or me, my dog and wife go to the park and do some callisthenics, or for a hike in the forest.”
Around four times a week, Siim will use the sauna, which a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine revealed could keep the heart healthy and extend life.
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The popular Finnish pastime has previously been shown to potentially be beneficial for people with risk factors for heart disease, such as high cholesterol and diabetes.
Siim eats dinner around 5pm before heading to bed at 10pm after a relaxing evening.
What about supplements?
Siim says people are often keen to know what supplements can extend lifespan.
He says: “NAD is a popular, hyped one, but it doesn’t appear to extend life in even animal studies, so we will see what the research says in humans in a few years.
“Rapamycin is probably the only candidate worth considering. There is interesting research in animals. It’s the longest life extension seen from a pharmaceutical.
“In humans, there is research that it can help with immune function in old people and muscle function. So it’s thought to slow down ageing and its related decline, but there is still not many clinical studies on it yet.
“That will probably be the first recognised longevity drug in the world and in the next few years will be accepted as such.”
But there are some already available over-the-counter supplements that Siim says could improve health outcomes and healthspan.
These are:
- Creatine monohydrate: “This has been found to improve muscle strength and muscle mass, as well as cognition and brain function,” says Siim.
- Omega-3s: “These appear to reduce the risk of heart disease events and help with brain function, inflammation and blood sugar levels,” says Siim.
- Magnesium: “Magnesium deficiency is one of the biggest negative consequences to health. It increases heart disease and diabetes risk, and sleep problems. So just taking a supplement can fix that deficiency,” Siim says.
- Vitamin D: “It can help to improve your vitamin D levels, and is relatively safe. It’s probably not going to extend your lifespan though,” says Siim.
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