---
title: "Less Is More: Low Tech and No-Tech Hacks"
url: "https://www.biohackyourself.com/articles/less-is-more-low-tech-and-no-tech-hacks"
author: "Dr. Marc Cohen"
published: "2025-05-04"
section: "Editorial"
topics: "stress, brain, tech"
description: "Biohacking leverages modern technology to gain control over unconscious or unknown biological processes and achieve asymmetrical benefits in human longevity and performance. Yet, biohacking is not…"
---

# Less Is More: Low Tech and No-Tech Hacks

*By Dr. Marc Cohen · May 4, 2025 · Editorial*

Biohacking leverages modern technology to gain control over unconscious or unknown biological processes and achieve asymmetrical benefits in human longevity and performance. Yet, biohacking is not new and does not have to be high-tech or involve doing more.

Our ancestors were masterful biohackers and ancient biohacks such as fasting, isolation, chanting, yoga, martial arts, body temperature manipulations, acupuncture, and plant medicines have been passed down through the ages through cultural, religious, and medical traditions. Many of these traditions also recognized that removing unwanted, unnecessary, or excessive inputs from one area of life can enhance the ability or sensitivity of other areas and there are many ‘Low tech’ and ‘No-tech’ hacks that involve having, or doing, less.

Elimination diets, noise-blocking headphones, EMF shields, blue-light-blocking[glasses](https://www.healthline.com/health/what-are-blue-light-glasses), [silent Vipassana meditation retreats](https://www.dhamma.org/en/about/vipassana), and [sensory deprivation tanks](https://www.floattank.net/) all involve stripping away extraneous inputs in order to reveal and enhance our inherent natural powers. Some biohackers also attempt to remove inputs such as [sugar, pornography, menial jobs, alcohol, processed food, news, and social media](https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/sep/21/extreme-biohacking-tech-guru-who-spent-250000-trying-to-live-for-ever-serge-faguet) from their lives in the hope of extending their lifespan and becoming healthier, happier, and more intelligent.

Many low-tech or no-tech biohacks require very little cost, training, or equipment such as those that involve simple body movements. For example, while coaching people to tolerate ice baths I devised the following “[10 Hacks to Relax”,](https://www.drmarc.co/wellness-poem-hacks-to-relax) which is a poem that describes simple body movements that hack the autonomic nervous system. These 10 body hacks calm sympathetic ‘fight and flight’ responses and activate the parasympathetic ‘rest and digest’ responses and thereby serve as ‘emotional first aid’ by allowing you to ‘relax on demand’ any time you are scared, upset, anxious, or in pain.

## *Dr. Marc Cohen*

### Many low-tech or no-tech biohacks require little cost

## **The Ten Hacks to Relax**

Touch all your fingers

Wiggle your toes

Soften your stomach

Breathe through your nose

Sigh

Smile

Swallow

Sing

Flutter your eyelids

Focus within

Some low-tech and no-tech hacks only require access to nature and can be as simple as walking barefoot on the earth or exposing yourself to morning sunshine or hot and cold water, while breathing practices such as those promoted by Konstantin Buteyko or Wim Hof require only basic instruction and dedicated practice.

Fifty such low-tech lifestyle hacks are included in my evidenced-based poem “[The Way to Wellness](https://maracas-strawberry-ttxg.squarespace.com/config/)”, which lists simple practical activities that connect us to nature, to other people, and to the deep inner well of our being. These activities have all been shown to relieve anxiety and/or enhance immunity and can take you from wired and tired, to chilled and fulfilled, or from stressed and depressed to joyfully blessed. The Way to Wellness” also serves as a poetic literature review with each activity having a hyperlink to the scientific evidence supporting its use.

## **The Way To Wellness**

[Hold someone’s hand](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01832.x), [gaze into their eyes](https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190108-why-meeting-anothers-gaze-is-so-powerful)[Go barefoot](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4378297/) in [nature](https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/14/8/864), [bask in sunrise](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2290997/)

[Choose a dance partner](https://socialdance.stanford.edu/syllabi/smarter.htm), [go find your groove](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6710484/)[Do tai chi](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12529-013-9351-9) or [yoga](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/da.22762), [mindfully move](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1469029217308178?via%3Dihub)

[Share a massage](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229429563_The_Effectiveness_of_Massage_Therapy_A_Summary_of_Evidence-Based_Research), [enjoy healing touch](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15227762)[Focus on one thing](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S027273581100081X) [and don’t think too much](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1037/gpr0000101)

[Make time for a hobby](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4919481/), [play chess](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6380050/), [fly a kite](https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/minding-the-body/201104/kite-flying-health-and-happiness)[Make use of your hands](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00787-015-0732-2), [draw,](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2850.2011.01693.x) [paint,](https://www.tac.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/270232/Art-Therapy-2018-Full-Report.pdf) [sew](https://www.plymouthart.ac.uk/documents/Beth_C._McLaughlin_MF2017.pdf) or [write](https://www.apa.org/monitor/jun02/writing)

[Help someone in need](https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2458-13-773/), [donate to a cause](https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2013-04859-001)[Play games](https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-46221-002), [meditate](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4940234/), [read stuff from bookstores](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/274959033_Healing_through_books_The_evolution_and_diversification_of_bibliotherapy)

[Turn off your screens](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S001393511830015X), [get a good sleep](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5449130/)[De-clutter](https://go.gale.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CA128447228&sid=googleScholar&v=2.1&it=r&linkaccess=abs&issn=1548419X&p=AONE&sw=w), [spark joy,](https://ntnuopen.ntnu.no/ntnu-xmlui/handle/11250/2639717) [love what you keep](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41042-020-00030-y)

[Dig around in a garden](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211335516301401), [pick up a guitar](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3402/qhw.v8i0.20635)[Slip into a bathtub](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30974799), [sauna](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5941775/), or [spa](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00484-018-1504-8)

[Care for a pet](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.2752/089279315X14129350721812?journalCode=rfan20), [take up a sport](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/1479-5868-10-135)[Go on vacation](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22213478), [make your home a resort](https://bmccomplementmedtherapies.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12906-017-2078-4)

[Lie in a hammock](https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(11)00539-2?cc=y%3D%3Fcc%3Dy%3D), [release pent-up stress](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2156587214543143)[Relax](http://irje.tums.ac.ir/article-1-6428-en.html) and [do nothing, then do even less](https://thriveglobal.com/stories/why-doing-nothing-is-just-what-you-need-to-have-a-better-life/)

[Laugh out loud](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27439375), [share a joke](https://drmarc.co/project/happiness-and-humour-a-medical-perspective/), [give someone a kiss](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10570310902856071)[Say a prayer](https://go.gale.com/ps/anonymous?id=GALE%7CA98033290&sid=googleScholar&v=2.1&it=r&linkaccess=abs&issn=00384348&p=AONE&sw=w), [chant a mantra](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1876382018304591), [follow your bliss](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/folow-your-bliss_b_5053796)

## *Dr. Marc Cohen*

Some hacks only require access to nature

While these lifestyle hacks require little or no equipment, many of these low-tech biohacks are now being augmented with technology. For example, meditation, mindfulness, and self-hypnosis can be augmented by meditation apps, such as [Calm](https://www.calm.com/), [Headspace](https://www.headspace.com/), and [Smiling Minds](https://www.smilingmind.com.au/), and as an integrative medical doctor, I’ve used electro-stimulation, Trans Cutaneous Electro Neuro Stimulation (TENS), lasers, and magnets to augment the practice of acupuncture. I have also practiced [intermittent hypoxic training](https://www.go2altitude.com/) to acclimatize to altitude prior to hiking to Everest Base Camp, used the [Timeshfter App](https://www.timeshifter.com/) to overcome jetlag when traversing the globe, and used pulse oximeters to monitor my heart rate and oxygen saturation while practicing the [Wim Hof Method](https://www.wimhofmethod.com/).

Ancient biohacks such as yoga, meditation, and massage along with other low-tech and no-tech hacks have become the foundation of the wellness industry and are commonly featured in wellness retreats and resorts and included in healthy lifestyle and workplace wellness programs. Thus, while biohackers explore the frontiers of science and spend considerable time and money chasing biological advantage from breakthroughs in engineering, nutrigenomics, or molecular biology, there are many biohacks that are freely available to everyone and simply require some basic knowledge and the willingness to include them in your life.

***About Dr. Marc Cohen:***

*Dr Marc Cohen is a medical doctor, university professor, author, poet, entrepreneur, wellness trailblazer, and perpetual student of life who embodies the role of a bridge-builder, connecting ancient wisdom with modern science, academia with industry, and individual well-being with global health. Dr Marc believes wellness can be just as contagious as illness and aims to co-create a culture of wellness that infects the world with good health. You can find him at*[www.drmarc.co](http://www.drmarc.co/)*.*

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