Listen up, you aging meat missile.

If you’ve been anywhere near the fitness internet lately, you’ve seen the new religion: peptides.
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Little amino acid chains that promise to make you jacked, lean, and immortal — all for the low, low price of $200 a vial.

But do these “anti-aging injections” actually do anything… or are we just paying biotech rent for expensive placebo juice?

The Hype Injection

You’ve probably seen the usual suspects:

• BPC-157 for healing your cranky knees.
• Epitalon to “reverse aging.”
• Thymosin Alpha-1 for “immune optimization.”
• And my personal favorite—people injecting “research chemicals” they bought next to crypto scams and beard oil.

The sales pitch is seductive: restore your youth, shred fat, fix injuries, boost libido, and live forever.
It’s like someone took HGH, sliced it into micro Lego blocks, and said, “We’ve hacked biology, bro.”

For full disclosure: I’ve never injected a peptide in my life but have advised clients via a physician on them for over 6 years.
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For me personally I am terrified of needles.
The only time I’ve done anything close to any peptides was Kambo — yeah, the Amazon frog venom ritual that makes you puke your soul out. Weird flex, I know.

The Science Reality Check

Peptides do have legit effects.
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They’re basically small fragments of proteins — mini biological messengers that can tell your cells to do stuff.​
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...But here’s the rub: most of the anti-aging ones haven’t made it through the clinical finish line.

• BPC-157? Only tested in rats and mice. Promising tissue repair data — very very few human RCTs.
• Epitalon? Maybe tweaks melatonin rhythms in elderly folks, but data’s thinner than a whey protein label claim.
• Thymosin Alpha-1? Actually used in medicine for immune modulation, but it’s not Benjamin Button in a syringe.

So yeah, there’s smoke. But no fire yet.

You want anti-aging?
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You know the drill - lift weights, sleeping like a sloth on sedatives, crush your cardiac dev days, eat like an adult and train those bitch mittens.

The Longevity Math

Let’s say you drop $200 a month on a peptide stack.
That’s $2,400 a year — roughly what you could spend on:

• 160 lbs of grass-fed steak
• A Beyond Power Voltra 1 for eccentric torture or a sweet setup from my friends at Rogue including a Concept 2 rower.
• Or enough Killswitch Sleep cocoa to sedate a small zoo.

If peptides eventually prove out? Cool — I’ll be first in line (behind a lead shield, sweating about the needle).
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But until then, invest in the fundamentals.
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Mitochondria don’t care about your wallet — they care about stress, fuel, and sleep.
...And if I see one more broken Biohacking Bro say that all you need is whiz bang peptide XX454 while never discussing training I am going to vomit.

Why This Matters

The allure of shortcuts never dies.
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We all want -myself included - the “injection of youth,” especially when we’re sore, tired, and one stair flight away from a hamstring tear.
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...But physiology doesn’t care about hype. It cares about adaptation.

If you want the longevity stack that actually works, here’s mine:

• Strength training (your #1 anti-aging drug).
• Cardiac development work 2–4x/week (VO₂max = lifespan cheat code).
• Amazing sleep most nights
• Protein around 1 g/lb bodyweight (fuel and repair).
• Phys Flex framework for CO₂ tolerance, O₂ use, and pH balance — real adaptation, not Instagram wizardry.

The Takeaway

Peptides might someday deliver miracles.
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But right now, most of them are like ordering “stem cells” off Craigslist — sketchy, unregulated, and probably just rebranded saline.

You can’t shortcut physiology.
You can only earn adaptation.
And when you do?
You don’t need to buy youth — you build it.

Much love and heavy ass weights,
Dr. Mike

PS – If you want to go deeper, I was featured as an expert in this piece on peptides and longevity here that fellow newsletter insider Greg Presto crushed:
​>> Read the full SuperAge article

PPS -And if you want the deep-dive BPC-157 research compilation I put together (actual studies, not Reddit wizardry), vote via the poll below. if I get enough votes I will send it to everyone, so let me know! Voting open for only 24 hours

Note- the links above do include some affiliates that I get a few sand dollars for if you purchase.

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Mike T Nelson CISSN, CSCS, MSME, PhD
Associate Professor, Carrick Institute
Owner, Extreme Human Performance, LLC
Editorial Board Member, STRONG Fitness Mag

Mike T Nelson is a PhD and not a physician or registered dietitian. The contents of this email should not be taken as medical advice. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any health problem - nor is it intended to replace the advice of a physician. Always consult your physician or qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health.

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