Life is an experiment…a very big one, with lots of variables. The only way to know if something works for you, is to try it. It can’t fail. Every experiment is successful because it’s either effective and you learn that it’s something that improves your life or it doesn’t give you the desired outcome, so you know to move on and try something else. No failure, only feedback.

You can self experiment with anything: your nutrition, your training, your sleep, your work, your home…the list goes on. All it takes is wanting to try something new, or to break old habits with the goal of self improvement and the willingness to make changes.

I’m always looking for inventive ways of reaching my goals as quickly and efficiently as possible to see which one my body responds to best. Yes, we can read about studies and science all day long and of course, use this as a basis for our experiments, but the only guaranteed method is by using ourselves as the guinea pig. Whatever happens to you carries more weight than what any study might say.

I have been self experimenting in different ways for about six years now, tracking everything along the way. I’ve discovered things about myself I never would have known had I not done it. The overall aim is to not only find out how my body works best, but also to satisfy my curiosity and desire for self improvement. In addition, it’s been incredibly rewarding for me in terms of learning due to the research carried out whilst in the planning phase of the experiments. As a bonus, it’s fun too.

Let’s look at ‘diets’ as an example. Very often people who are trying to reach a certain goal devise an action plan to help them. Although they stick rigidly to the plan, it doesn’t work, but for some reason they blame themselves. They convince themselves they need to do ‘better’ or do ‘more of the same’ for things to happen. It worked for their friend, so it will work for them, it’s just taking a bit longer. But then what? Things don’t change. The person thinks they have failed and they revert back to their old lifestyle. What they need to understand is, they haven’t failed…they have just learnt what doesn’t work for them.

Most dietary templates are based on generalisations assuming everyone will act the same, but we are as different on the inside as we are on the outside. It’s silly to keep doing something that doesn’t work for you, just because it has worked for some people you know.

So what self experiments have I done?

Too many to list but most of them have been nutritionally connected as food is an easy variable to track and control and is not affected so much by outside influences. My ultimate goal is optimising my health and performance and food plays a major role in both.

I encourage everyone to try.

Where do you start?

1. Define the objective

Not necessarily what you want the outcome to be but focus on something you want to improve. Many of my experiments have been fun to do because when I started them, I had no clue what might happen.

It might not be something you can even quantify like a weight, distance or time. Maybe the measure of its success will be how something makes you feel.

2. Define the experiment

Time for action. How could you bring yourself closer to your objective. Do some research. You will find lots of methods in which to try out your theories. It doesn’t have to be complex or difficult. In fact, small simple changes are sometimes the best. How long are you going to do it for?

3. Collect data

How do you know if anything has changed if you don’t track it? Also track what you have done during your experiment. What did you eat, at what time, how frequently. What exercise did you do, for how long and at what time of day? What results/changes did you notice? How well did you sleep, your moods, your energy levels etc

If your objective does turn out to be something you can measure then you need to have baseline results. Maybe weight, measurements, distance or time and track each one throughout. Don’t have too many variables and change too much or how will you know which one was responsible for your success or lack of it?

Run it for 4 weeks minimum

There are so many ways to learn. Observing, experiencing, reading, researching or by just doing. The possibilities of self experimentation are endless and you will learn so much. By investing a little time and energy into trying new things, you’ll quickly learn what works for you.

My body is the most fascinating thing I own.