Mitochondria: The Motherboards of Energy and Longevity
Originally sent to subscribers on 8 June 2025
The Million Hour Memo
I’ve been thinking a lot this week about what makes me feel alive, grounded, and energised—and it always comes back to one thing: mitochondria. They might be invisible, but they’re a key hallmark of ageing—and more.
Let’s dive in...
DATA
Where insight becomes impact
What I’ve been looking at this week…
We’ve all heard it—“Mitochondria are the powerhouses of the cell.” But what if that's only part of the truth? This week I was captivated by an article that reframes this. In Scientific American, mitochondrial researcher Dr. Martin Picard makes a bold but compelling case:
Mitochondria aren’t just powerhouses. They’re the motherboards of the cell. They’re the Chief Energy Officers of our biology. They regulate, sense, signal, and decide. They’re not just fuelling you—they’re managing your body’s most critical operations.
Here's what's most striking:
Mitochondria are social and communicate with one another across cells and organs.
They sense your emotions, environment, and relationships.
Their behaviour shifts in response to light, food, stress, and connection.
They influence over 66% of gene expression in your nucleus.
When mitochondria thrive, you age well. When they fragment, you don’t.
They’re listening—to your life, to your choices—every day. When they sense the right signals, they fuse, flourish, and fortify. When they sense dysfunction—glucose overload, emotional stress, sleep deprivation—they fragment, triggering inflammation and decline.
Here’s what's important: “You are not a being. You are a process—an energetic process”.
DEVICES
Track it to hack it.
What I’ve been monitoring this week…
If energy is a process, you need feedback loops that show how well it’s flowing. Here’s what I’ve been using to get a picture of how my mitochondria are behaving:
Oura Ring: I monitor deep sleep, REM, HRV, and latency—recovery tells you a lot about mitochondrial resilience.
Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM): Glucose stability is mitochondrial signalling in real time. I track dips, spikes, and variability to understand how food, stress, and movement affect my energy curve.
Metabolic markers: I test nutrient cofactors like glutathione, magnesium, and CoQ10, and organic acids like succinate and fumarate to evaluate mitochondrial output and efficiency.
One key insight: after a 16‑hour fast with a 20‑minute walk and morning light, I saw a 21% increase in deep sleep that night. That's mitochondrial signalling in action.
DECISIONS
From knowing to doing.
What this means for YOU…
Become a Mitochondriac! Yes, get obsessed with how energy flows and grows. Support mitochondrial fusion and avoid mitochondrial fragmentation.
The 10 Mitochondrial Commandments
These are the daily non‑negotiables that decide how long—and how well—you live:
Light Before Logic: Get natural light within 30 minutes of waking. Synchronise mitochondrial clocks and energy output with daylight.
Move to Multiply: Add Zone 2 cardio and resistance training 3–5×/week. Triggers mitochondrial biogenesis.
Fast to Flex: 14–16‑hour fasts, 2–3×/week. Induces mitophagy—removing old, dysfunctional mitochondria.
Burn Clean: Avoid sugar + fat‑heavy processed meals. Glucolipotoxicity fragments mitochondria and fuels inflammation.
Sleep is Strategy: Prioritise deep, restorative sleep. This is when mitochondria repair, detox, and recharge.
Challenge to Change: Add cold finishes to showers or short sauna bursts. Hormetic stress builds mitochondrial resilience.
Feed the Force: Test nutrients and co‑factors and target support with magnesium malate, CoQ10, ALA. Micronutrients fuel the mitochondrial engine.
Walk After Eating: A 10‑minute walk post‑meal improves glucose disposal, insulin sensitivity, and mitochondrial output.
Think With Your Cells: Breathe slowly, focus deeply, pause between tasks. Stress fragments mitochondria. Calm restores coherence.
Connect to Protect: Prioritise purpose and people. Positive emotional states enhance mitochondrial function, especially in the brain.
Case in point
One of my clients—a tech investor in his 50s—felt fine but flat. He trained, ate well, but his mitochondrial stress markers were high: his CGM showed spikes, his HRV was tanking, and his organic acids were off. We focused on Commandments #10, #6, and #4:
Early morning light
Screen‑free evenings and Zone 2 cardio
Targeted nutrient optimisation
⏳ 21 days later:
HRV up 23 points
Deep sleep doubled
Post‑meal glucose improved
“It feels like I finally got out of airplane mode,” he said.
If you'd like to make decisions with precision based on your personal data and using devices that are specific for you, then book a private consultation and let's start to decode your health.
DIARY
Where you’ll find me…
Last week:
I was in Rimini, Italy, with my boys watching them take on HYROX. There’s something beautiful about seeing fitness become a family ritual. We explored, spent time in the old town, walked miles, soaked in the sun, laughed and shared long Mediterranean meals. This is lifestyle medicine. This is how longevity is lived.
This week:
I’m in Marbella at The Better Man Retreat, leading men through a biohacking circuit that goes beyond strength. We’re not just talking testosterone. We're talking mitochondria, mindset and modern masculinity. Because men’s health isn’t about avoiding weakness—it’s about building strength from the inside out.
Next week:
A whirlwind week ahead: being interviewed at The Groucho Club, hosting the SME Start‑Up Stage, speaking at Elevate, and closing the week at Mindset Unlimited. My favourite kind of week! I love speaking—especially when it means sharing strategies that change the way people live, think and lead. And I have tickets for you—Groucho Club, SME Expo, Elevate, Mindset Unlimited. It would be lovely to see you so do come and say hello!
DISTINCTION
A thought to pause on…
“You are not a body. You are an energy process”.
So here’s my question for you this week: Are your daily choices helping energy flow—or forcing it to fragment?
Longevity doesn’t start in the future—it starts with how your mitochondria respond today.
Wishing you a wonderful week ahead!
Dr Alka