How to Age Backward in 2025
Do you know your biological age?
It’s a question I wasn’t asking myself until recently.
For years, people have commented that I look younger than my age.
And yes, while I’ve inherited some good genes (both of my parents looked youthful well into their 60s), the real game-changer for me was uncovering the difference between my chronological age—how many birthdays I’ve had—and my biological age—how my body is actually functioning.
The result? My biological age is 11.4 years younger than my chronological age.
How do I know? Well, I went pretty far beyond the standard annual check-up.
I had over 100 biomarkers tested through Function Health (use code MARNESON10 to sign up and skip the waitlist)---data that my GP would never offer me under a standard American insurance plan.
And the insights just confirmed that everything I’ve been doing to “Fuck the Hustle”—changing my relationship to work, reducing stress, overhauling my diet, receiving coaching, practicing mindfulness, meditation and breathwork, spending as much time as humanly possible outdoors, becoming hyper-vigiliant about everything I eat, drink, breathe, touch or slather on my body—it’s all had the effect of dramatically slowing my aging over the last 10 years.
... and that's allowed me to have some pretty incredible adventures---like being a full-time digital nomad for 5+ years---something I could only dream of 10 years ago when my body was super run-down.
Why These Changes Weren’t Optional
10 years ago, I reached a breaking point. My body was falling apart. I was experiencing symptoms no one could explain—chronic fatigue, joint pain, wild skin issues, auto-immune symptoms, inflammation, and emotional turbulence that seemed to come out of nowhere.
No one could tell me what was going on. Specialist after specialist told me it was all in my head. OR they tried to prescribe me drugs to fix the symptoms, but not the root cause.
I was frustrated and discouraged and depressed about not being able to find any answers. I was in my late 30’s and looked from afar like I was in pretty good shape, but up close I was starting to look haggard, and inside my body FELT completely broken.
I’d already been receiving some game-changing coaching, when I also started seeing a therapist who specialized in energy healing, and then added on top of that a functional medicine practitioner (who also happened to be a licensed MD), who helped me diagnose the root causes of my symptoms.
Between these 3 practitioners, I was able to come up with a long-term plan to rebuild my whole physical foundation and personal electrical grid from the ground up.
When I dug into the root causes, two major factors stood out:
Unprocessed Trauma and Stress: Years of ignoring my mental and emotional health were catching up with me. Trauma and stress are often invisible, but their impact on aging is undeniable.
Personal and Environmental Toxins: From the food I ate to the products I used daily, I was unknowingly bombarding myself with harmful chemicals that compounded the issues my body was facing in trying to combat the stress. These toxins were adding major fuel to the fire of bodily inflammation, disrupting my endocrine system, and rapidly accelerating the aging process.
Why the Endocrine System Matters—and Why It’s Overlooked
Your endocrine system is like your body’s command center for hormones, regulating everything from metabolism to mood, energy levels, and even how your body ages. Think of it as the behind-the-scenes operator keeping everything in balance.
The problem? Most people—and even many doctors—don’t pay enough attention to it. Unlike more obvious health systems like the cardiovascular or digestive systems, endocrine health often flies under the radar until something goes seriously wrong.
The sad truth is that endocrine disruptors—chemicals that interfere with your hormone balance—are lurking everywhere. They’re in nearly ALL conventional personal care products, cleaning supplies, and even in our food packaging. These chemicals mimic or block hormones, creating chaos in your body and leading to issues like:
Hormonal imbalances (think fatigue, weight gain, or mood swings)
Fertility problems
Accelerated aging
Increased risk of certain cancers
The deeper issue is that endocrine disruptors don’t just affect one area of your health—they throw your entire system out of sync. And because exposure happens gradually over time, most people don’t connect these products to their symptoms until it’s too late.
But the good news? By becoming aware of these hidden toxins and making informed swaps, you can reduce your exposure and give your endocrine system the support it desperately needs.
A Wake-Up Call: Visiting My Aging Parents
I’ve spent the last two weeks at my mom’s house. While I love her dearly, and I never want to blame her for my issues, I’m having a hard time maintaining my energy in this environment. Her home is filled with everything I’ve worked so hard to avoid.
Every single product she puts on her body is laced with endocrine disruptors, from the hand soap, to shampoo and conditioner, anti-perspirant, body lotion, face wash, perfume, sunscreen, lip gloss, hairspray.
And don’t even get me started on the cleaning supplies full of harmful dyes and toxic chemicals—from dish soap and dishwasher pods, to Windex, Tide, and Clorox wipes.
I went in the pantry the other day and found baking powder chock full of aluminum (and she’s been complaining about losing her memory!), and processed foods loaded with preservatives and “natural” colors and flavors (which, if you know anything about the food industry, you know are anything but natural.)
Of course then there’s the freezer full of conventionally-raised meat laden with hormones and antibiotics, tap-water contaminated with fluoride, chlorine and toxic heavy metals, and closets filled with synthetic fabrics … Oy!
It’s not like I didn’t know it was all gonna be there, I just thought that anyone concerned about their health these days would be exposed to the same information that I am … but I know what they say about what it means to “ASS-U-ME.” Silly me.
Anyway, that’s when I realized, I’d better start sharing what I’ve learned about this stuff with everybody who’s interested in finding freedom from the hustle! Because if you're feeling stuck, you need to know it's NOT all in your head. It's NOT all solved with managing your thoughts and your boundaries around work, and your relationships with your screens.
It's highly likely that your brain fog, exhaustion, and lack of motivation could ALSO be tied to personal and environmental toxins.
Because unlike me, my parents have been aging dramatically faster in the last 10 years.
The culprits? A combination of chronic stress, unresolved emotional trauma, and, you guessed it: personal and environmental toxins.
The contrast between our lifestyles made one thing crystal clear: aging isn’t just about genetics. It’s about the daily choices we make.
In the coming weeks, I’ll be sharing some of my favorite biohacking tools and products to help you detox and combat these super-agers.
Meanwhile …
What You Can Do to Start Aging Backward NOW
If you’ve ever felt like the deck is stacked against you when it comes to aging, here’s the truth: you have more control than you think.
My BEST Advice? Start by processing trauma and stress.
By now you’re familiar with the work I do, and you know that I believe it’s SO IMPORTANT to find ways to address the emotional baggage you’ve been carrying. This could mean coaching, therapy, journaling, or mindfulness and meditation practices. Whatever—just make it a priority.
AND, I always come at everything from both a top-down and a bottom-up approach. So while managing the mental/emotional stuff is crucial, I believe that if you’re feeling stuck, addressing your body and your physical environment is going to be EQUALLY important.
And this is the part I haven’t been talking about as much until recently. So let’s dive in!
The 2 easiest and most tangible steps you can take (with immediate results) are to:
Start Eliminating Toxins Immediately: Audit your home for products that contain harmful chemicals. From skincare to household cleaners, swap out anything that could be disrupting your hormones or inflaming your body. This can be a bit of an overwhelming process, especially if you’re used to buying everything at a local CVS, Walgreens. Walmart, Target or Costco, and you’re not familiar with what kinds of natural, healthy alternatives exist. Don’t worry! I’ve got your covered … future issues of this newsletter will dive DEEP on this!
Know Your Numbers: You gotta start with a baseline understanding of where you are. Understanding my unique biomarker data allowed me to make informed decisions about my health. My most recent test results revealed that I’ve come A LONG way in my healing over the past 10 years, and only inspired me to keep going and make that gap between my chronological age and my biological age EVEN BIGGER.
I’m proof that aging backward is a thing. And if I can do it, you can do it!
Your Next Step: Get a Baseline Measurement of ALL Your Most Important Biomarkers
In my initial exploration of functional medicine 10 years ago, I spent about $5000 out of pocket on doctor visits, every imaginable test you could think of, and cabinets full of supplements. It was quite an investment, considering I was working for a non-profit at the time. But it was worth every penny to get to the bottom of my issues.
During my latest blood draw, the phlebotomist asked me if this was my first time get tested by Function Health. I said it was and I thought it was an unbelievable deal … but I was curious to know her thoughts.
She told me that without insurance, a basic vitamin D test costs $1500 out of pocket, so the fact that I was getting over 100 tests, twice a year, for only $500 seemed completely insane to her!
Imagine having a clear handle on all your most crucial biomarkers— and having a roadmap to making the changes you need to increase your longevity.
With Function Health, you’ll get access to a baseline of over 100 biomarkers that your general practitioner won’t test you for. For just $500 a year, you’ll uncover crucial insights about your body and learn how to take actionable steps to improve your health.
NOTE: I've been following Dr. Mark Hyman for years. As co-founder and Chief Medical Officer at Function Health, this is a company I trust to tell the truth and give me the most up-to-date information, while far surpassing the value for the money.
Function is still in BETA and taking limited numbers of new patients, but it’s FSA and HSA-eligible, so there’s literally nothing to lose!
Click here to get started with Function Health today and skip the waitlist with my code: MARNESON10.
Full disclosure: this is an affiliate link, meaning that should you choose to sign up with Function, I will receive a small commission. This is to help support the development of the Fuck the Hustle YouTube channel and podcast and keep delivering as many high-value tools and practices to you as possible.
Your support means so much to me and I will honor you by ONLY ever promoting the products and tools I truly believe will help you get results. In this case, I’ve tried it myself and I’m a raving fan. So I’m sharing it! I hope you find as much value in this service as I have!
P.S. Is self-care a high priority for you in 2025? I hope it is after reading this! Stay tuned if you're at all intrigued because next week, I'll start sharing some of my favorite products and tools to help clear some of these toxins from your system.