The Secret Peptides and Underground Compounds Doctors Won’t Talk About : 1413
The Human Upgrade: Biohacking for Longevity & Performance
Dave Asprey
4.6 • 7.4K Ratings
🗓️ 10 February 2026
⏱️ 63 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
What if the line between “medicine” and “forbidden” has nothing to do with safety and everything to do with permission? This episode gives you a clear framework for understanding peptides, research chemicals, and performance enhancement so you can think for yourself instead of outsourcing your biology
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Host Dave Asprey sits down with Dylan Gemelli for a candid, unfiltered conversation about the underground world of biohacking, research chemicals, and human performance. Dylan is a long-time biohacker, educator, and researcher who came out of the bodybuilding world and spent more than a decade studying peptides, SARMs, nootropics, and gray-area compounds. He brings first-hand experience, deep research literacy, and a rare ability to explain what these compounds actually do, where the risks are, and why most doctors will never talk about them.
Together, they unpack what “research chemicals” really means, why peptides technically fall into that category, and how legality often has little to do with biological reality. They explore compounds like MK-677, S4, and other SARMs, how they interact with growth hormone, muscle, strength, and recovery, and why some of these tools can be more powerful than peptides when used with intention and restraint. Dave also shares his own experiences rebuilding his health using underground tools, why he refuses to ask for permission to take care of his body, and how performance enhancement fits into longevity, metabolism, and real-world function.
You’ll Learn:
• What research chemicals actually are and why peptides fall into that category
• How compounds like MK-677 stimulate growth hormone and affect muscle and recovery
• Why SARMs differ from steroids and where the real risks come from
• The difference between tobacco and nicotine and why low-dose nicotine can support brain optimization
• How performance enhancement fits into longevity, metabolism, and functional medicine thinking
• Why strength and neurological drive matter more than size alone
• How to think clearly about supplements, nootropics, and biohacking tools without fear or hype
• Why taking responsibility for your biology is not cheating
Dave Asprey is a four time New York Times bestselling author, founder of Bulletproof Coffee, and the father of biohacking. With over 1,000 interviews and 1 million monthly listeners, The Human Upgrade is the top podcast for people who want to take control of their biology, extend their longevity, and optimize every system in the body and mind. Each episode features cutting edge insights in health, performance, neuroscience, supplements, nutrition, hacking, emotional intelligence, and conscious living.
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Dave Asprey is a four-time New York Times bestselling author, founder of Bulletproof Coffee, and the father of biohacking. With over 1,000 interviews and 1 million monthly listeners, The Human Upgrade brings you the knowledge to take control of your biology, extend your longevity, and optimize every system in your body and mind. Each episode delivers cutting-edge insights in health, performance, neuroscience, supplements, nutrition, biohacking, emotional intelligence, and conscious living.
New episodes are released every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday (BONUS). Dave asks the questions no one else will and gives you real tools to become stronger, smarter, and more resilient.
Keywords: biohacking research chemicals, peptide biohacking podcast, underground peptides, SARMs explained, MK-677 growth hormone, performance enhancing drugs science, human performance biohacking, longevity biohacking podcast, neuroplasticity optimization, brain optimization nootropics, mitochondrial optimization biohacking, metabolism and hormones, testosterone optimization science, nicotine brain benefits, modafinil cognitive performance, supplements biohacking debate, functional medicine biohacking, muscle vs strength science, anti-aging performance strategies, Dave Asprey biohacking, Dylan Gemelli biohacking, The Human Upgrade podcast, Smarter Not Harder biohacking
Resources:
• Learn More About Dylan’s Work And Content At: https://dylangemelli.com/
• Get My 2026 Biohacking Trends Report: https://daveasprey.com/2026-biohacking-trends-report/
• Join My Low-Oxalate 30-Day Challenge: https://daveasprey.com/2026-low-ox-reset/
• Dave Asprey's Latest News | Go to https://daveasprey.com/ to join Inside Track today.
• Danger Coffee: https://dangercoffee.com/discount/dave15
• My Daily Supplements: SuppGrade Labs (15% Off)
• Favorite Blue Light Blocking Glasses: TrueDark (15% Off)
• Dave Asprey’s BEYOND Conference: https://beyondconference.com
• Dave Asprey’s New Book – Heavily Meditated: https://daveasprey.com/heavily-meditated
• Upgrade Collective: https://www.ourupgradecollective.com
• Upgrade Labs: https://upgradelabs.com
Timestamps:
0:00 - Introduction
1:28 - SARMs & Research Chemicals
7:43 - 29 Pounds of Muscle in 6 Weeks
10:20 - MK-677 & Growth Hormone
16:41 - Vegan Diet Disaster
18:30 - From Bodybuilding to Biohacking
21:31 - Diet Transformation & Metabolism
29:14 - Reversing Heart Plaque
33:50 - Exercise, Cardio & Longevity
44:16 - Testosterone, TRT & Kyzatrex
50:06 - Healthcare Freedom
53:23 - Medical Freedom
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Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Let's talk about some of your favorite songs and my backstory for this so people know. I used a combination of these things, this is 10 years ago. On 29 pounds of muscle in about six weeks. Yeah, with no change in diet or exercise, I did tear ligaments in both shoulders because ligaments don't grow like muscles. I say it's cheating to put yourself at the level you're supposed to be at so you can actually be who you're supposed to be. Tell me how that's cheating. The idea of cheating is absurd. You know what always makes me mad? The people who talk most about cheating, they actually drive to the studio to talk about that. You mean, we use technology to make life better? There's also a thing that's cheating. And if you think I'm cheating, that's because you're losing. I will not ask for a permission slip to take care of myself. |
| 0:40.9 | It's a fundamental innate right. |
| 0:44.0 | You're listening to The Human Upgrade with Dave Asprey. |
| 0:52.2 | So Dylan, second time on the show. |
| 0:55.2 | I didn't ask this the first time. |
| 0:57.1 | Now, since that time, one of the things I appreciate about you is we might hang out in some |
| 1:02.7 | similar corners of the biohacking world, but you maybe talk about it more than I do. |
| 1:07.0 | The world of research chemicals and underground stuff. |
| 1:11.4 | I mean, I rebuilt my health using underground stuff, |
| 1:13.7 | and I brought a lot of it out from the underground over the last 15 years, |
| 1:17.1 | even some of the early peptide stuff and things like that. |
| 1:19.7 | But the number of peptides has just exploded since I wrote my book. |
| 1:23.1 | I've got a dozen of them I'm using right now, |
| 1:25.8 | and there's probably another 500 that are interesting that I may or may not use at some point. |
| 1:32.4 | And then there's all the research chemicals. |
| 1:34.6 | So where should we go first? |
| 1:36.4 | Are research chemicals more powerful than peptides or are peptides more powerful than research chemicals? |
| 1:41.4 | Or are they mostly the same thing? |
| 1:42.6 | Well, it's funny because peptides actually fall into research chemicals technically. |
| 1:48.3 | Right. |
| 1:48.5 | So when I think of research chemicals, I'm looking at SARMs. |
| 1:52.2 | I'm looking at peptides and neutropics because a lot of those aren't technically legal. |
... |
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