Compare experts › Kelly & Juliet Starrett vs Bryan Johnson

Kelly & Juliet Starrett vs Bryan Johnson

Kelly & Juliet Starrett (physical therapist; attorney & ceo) and Bryan Johnson (entrepreneur, founder of blueprint) side by side: how they train, eat, supplement and sleep, how strong the evidence is, and how to build a plan from either or both.

Build a plan from bothSee the protocols
Words explained (11)
Zone 2
Steady cardio at a pace where you can still talk in full sentences, but not sing.
Intervals
Short hard efforts with easy recovery in between, such as 30 seconds fast, 90 seconds slow.
4 × 4
Four rounds of 4 minutes hard with 3 minutes easy in between. Also called Norwegian intervals.
Loaded carry
Walking while holding something heavy, like shopping bags or dumbbells.
Mobility
Moving your joints freely through their full range.
Creatine
A well-studied supplement that supports strength and muscle.
Omega-3 (EPA, DHA)
Healthy fats found mostly in oily fish such as salmon, herring and sardines.
Fibre
The part of plant foods you don't digest. It feeds healthy gut bacteria and keeps you full.
Time-restricted eating
Eating all your meals within a set window of the day, for example 8am to 6pm.
Glucose
Blood sugar.
Rapamycin, metformin
Prescription drugs that some experts take hoping to slow ageing. Not proven for that, and never part of your plan.

At a glance

MeasureKelly & Juliet StarrettBryan Johnson
BackgroundPhysical therapist; attorney & CEOEntrepreneur, founder of Blueprint
Training split10% strength · 30% aerobic · 0% intervals · 60% mobility30% strength · 40% aerobic · 20% intervals · 10% mobility
Signature habit10 tests, 10 practicesSleep-first, measure everything
Protein1.5–2.2 g per kg~130 g a day
Training styleMobilityMeasure everything
Overall evidenceSolidMixed
FollowingYouTube 390KInstagram 2.8M · YouTube 2.2M

Training splits are our estimates from each expert’s published routine. Following checked October 2026.

The key differences

  • Johnson puts more of the week into strength: about 30% against 10%.
  • Johnson puts more of the week into aerobic base (zone 2): about 40% against 30%.
  • Johnson puts more of the week into intervals: about 20% against 0%.
  • The Starretts put more of the week into mobility and stability: about 60% against 10%.
  • In plans in their style, the Starretts' hard sessions are 1-minute intervals; Johnson's are 4-minute intervals (Norwegian 4 × 4).
  • We rate the evidence behind the Starretts' protocol higher: solid, against mixed for Johnson.
  • Supplements that go into a plan: the Starretts, none (food first); Johnson, creatine monohydrate, omega-3. Prescription items and personal stacks stay out of every plan.
  • Both include their own mobility or movement routine.

Protocols side by side

Each line is rated for the evidence behind it. “Doctor only” items never go into a plan.

Training

Kelly & Juliet Starrett

  • Walk 8,000–10,000 steps a day, up to 12,000 if you canStrong evidence
  • Sit on the floor for at least 30 minutes a day, changing positions (cross-legged, 90/90, long sitting)Personal habit
  • Practise getting down to and up from the floor; test with the sit-and-rise testSome evidence
  • Daily deep-squat time: hold your deepest squat for five breaths as a test, plus sit-stands from a chairSome evidence
  • Daily balance practice; test standing on one leg with eyes closed (SOLEC) and putting on shoes while standingSome evidence
  • Optional rucking: start with about 2 kg for a mile, three times a week, and build up over about a monthPersonal habit

Bryan Johnson

  • About 150 minutes a week of moderate cardio (Zone 2, a pace where you can still talk)Strong evidence
  • About 75 minutes a week of vigorous work such as high-intensity intervalsStrong evidence
  • Strength training 3 times a weekStrong evidence
  • Balance, flexibility and mobility work included in the daily sessionSome evidence
  • 2–3 minutes of light movement every 30 minutes of sitting, plus two 10-minute walks a daySome evidence
  • He says even 20 minutes of exercise a day is worthwhile for people starting outNote

Eating

Kelly & Juliet Starrett

  • About 800 g of fruit and vegetables a day (roughly six cups)Strong evidence
  • Protein about 1.5–2.2 g per kg of body weight; some later talks cite 1.8 g per kgSome evidence
  • Choose affordable protein sources that fit your budget; perfection is not requiredNote

Bryan Johnson

  • About 2,250 kcal a day, which he describes as roughly 10% below his energy needsSome evidence
  • About 130 g protein a day, much of it from plant foods, protein powders and collagenPersonal habit
  • Lots of vegetables, legumes (black lentils, chickpeas), berries, nuts and extra-virgin olive oil (about 1 tbsp per meal)Strong evidence
  • All food eaten between about 5:30 am and noonPersonal habit
  • Stops drinking fluids at about 4 pm to avoid waking at nightPersonal habit
  • Follows no named diet; he says he avoids labels such as vegan or ketoNote

Supplements

Kelly & Juliet Starrett

No specific guidance in what we reviewed.

Bryan Johnson

  • Creatine, 7.5 g a day in totalSome evidence
  • Omega-3 (EPA/DHA), 800 mg a daySome evidence
  • Fibre-type prebiotics (inulin, galacto-oligosaccharides, arabinogalactan) in his morning drinkPersonal habit
  • Ashwagandha and rhodiolaPersonal habit
  • Blueprint's own multi-ingredient capsules and antioxidant softgelsPersonal habit
  • Collagen powder; he suggests 20–30 g a day for skin and hairPersonal habit

Sleep & recovery

Kelly & Juliet Starrett

  • Aim for at least 7, ideally about 8, hours of actual sleep; track hours asleep for three nightsStrong evidence
  • Keep the same bed and wake times, including weekendsSome evidence
  • Be careful with caffeine and alcohol; keep phones and screens out of the bedroomSome evidence
  • Keep the bedroom cool, dark and quiet, and allow more time in bed than you think you needSome evidence

Bryan Johnson

  • Fixed early schedule: in bed about 8:30 pm, up about 4:30 amStrong evidence
  • Screens off and a 60-minute wind-down before bedSome evidence
  • No caffeine for 8–10 hours before sleepSome evidence
  • Bright light soon after waking and dim red or amber light in the eveningSome evidence
  • Dry sauna at about 79 °C for 20 minutes dailySome evidence
  • Tracks sleep with a wearable and aims for a very low resting heart rate before sleepPersonal habit

Stress & mind

Kelly & Juliet Starrett

  • Breath-hold test as a rough benchmark for tolerance of carbon dioxidePersonal habit
  • Breathe through the nose during the day and in workoutsPersonal habit
  • Optional mouth-taping at night, building up gradually from about 10 minutesPersonal habit
  • Spend about 180 minutes a week outdoorsSome evidence

Bryan Johnson

  • Uses a fixed routine so daily health choices do not depend on willpowerPersonal habit
  • Breathwork or reading as part of the evening wind-downSome evidence

Weak spots to know

Kelly & Juliet Starrett

  • Several central tests rest on observational data: the sit-and-rise and one-leg balance studies show that people who do poorly die sooner, not that practising the test makes you live longer. Both studies were also in Brazilian cohorts and could not rule out other explanations.
  • Some tests have no validated scoring for the general public; the Starretts themselves describe the breath-hold test as a rough benchmark rather than a lab-grade measure, and practices such as mouth-taping have little evidence behind them.
  • Built to Move deliberately leaves out cardio and strength training; for adults over 50 those remain important for heart health and muscle, so the plan works best as a base layer rather than a complete programme. Kelly's earlier Supple Leopard was criticised by one reviewer for a trial-and-error approach rather than a systematic method.

Bryan Johnson

  • His results come from one person doing many things at once, so it is hard to tell which part works. Scientists including Nir Barzilai (Nature, republished by Scientific American, 2026), who said science can't rest on a single person, and Morgan Levine (quoted in Vice, reported by Lifespan.io, 2023) have made this point.
  • His 'speed of ageing' and biological-age figures come from epigenetic clocks and biomarker comparisons. Researchers such as Steve Horvath have noted that some of these clocks predict health outcomes less well than others, and none is yet proven as a measure of whether a treatment extends life.
  • Several therapies he has tried, such as young-donor plasma and rapamycin, he later dropped himself. The US FDA has warned that young-plasma infusions have no proven benefit and may cause harm.

Build a plan from the Starretts, Johnson or both

Your free plan shows a week of gym sessions, cardio, a day of eating, supplements and mobility, fitted to your age, time and health.

Plan in the Starretts' stylePlan in Johnson's styleMix both

Questions

What is the main difference between Kelly & Juliet Starrett and Bryan Johnson?

Their training split differs most in mobility and stability: the Starretts about 60%, Johnson about 10% (our estimate from their published routines). The Starretts' signature habit is 10 tests, 10 practices; Johnson's is Sleep-first, measure everything.

How much protein do the Starretts and Johnson recommend?

The Starretts: 1.5–2.2 g per kg. Johnson: ~130 g a day.

Whose advice has stronger evidence?

We rate the evidence behind the Starretts' protocol higher: solid, against mixed for Johnson.

Do the Starretts and Johnson disagree?

Not directly in what we reviewed. Their differences are in emphasis: johnson puts more of the week into strength: about 30% against 10%.

Can I combine the Starretts and Johnson?

Yes. In Build my mix you choose one expert per area, for example one for strength and another for eating. Your free plan shows the result straight away.

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Full sources are on each profile: Kelly & Juliet Starrett · Bryan Johnson. Reviewed October 2026.