The Ironically Unhealthy Lifestyle of Running a Health Tech Startup
Startups and Health are hard to manage. Especially together.
The tech community has developed the unfortunate habit of glorifying unhealthy lifestyles. 80 hour work weeks, minimal sleep, eating for sustenance and convenience over nutrition and balance — the entrepreneurial grind is often based on destroying our bodies to pursue some greater vision.
We’ve romanticized insane amounts of caffeine and normalized cheap meals to the point of no return; our depraved nervous systems are a badge of honor worn by the brave few willing to forgo sleep in the name of progress.
In short, it’s crazy.
Not to say this extreme lifestyle is unnecessary; Startups are a lot of work and, when juggling it along with everything else in our lives, they can be nothing short of brutal.
I’ve been reaping the negative effects of a full blown startup routine for almost a year. I’ve been splitting my time between a wife, newborn, full-time engineering job, and a budding startup––the result is total physical exhaustion.
The painfully ironic part? I’m the founder of Biostrap, a clinical grade health startup.
😩 Irony 😞
I don’t want to talk too much about the product, but a bit of context is necessary to truly appreciate my unfortunate Catch 22. Biostrap is a wristband, shoe-clip, mobile app trio that tracks and provides deep biometric insights to its users.
Heart rate variability, blood oxygen levels, resting heart rate — we’re providing the same metrics that the medical community has been utilizing for years. We want to help the world live healthier, data-driven lives — and it feels like I’ve been putting up my own well-being as collateral.
For those interested in trying to lead a healthy lifestyle, this data can be fantastic. For those of us working a 9–5 and then a 5–3? Not so much.
I’ve dedicated the past year to the software and hardware development of a product that insists on telling me I’m running my body into the ground.
I’ve manufactured a form of cruel and unusual punishment.
My brain-child is mocking me.
❤️ Biometric Insights ❤️
The upside of biometric insights is that you can understand exactly how your body is responding to your daily activities and diet.
The downside of biometric insights is that you can understand exactly how your body is responding to your daily activities and diet.
Which side of the fence you fall on is dependent to your daily activities and––for startup founders––they often produce pretty grim results.
My heart rate variability, an incredibly insightful statistic that originally sparked my interest in biometrics, had been devastated.
My stress and physical overextension manifested itself in a plummeting HRV number delivered to me via the very app I helped build.
I grew up in an environment where unhealthy eating and physical inactivity were relatively acceptable. In college, after deciding it was time to make a drastic change, I took up fitness and lost 65 pounds in just a few months.
My point is that I’ve lived on both sides of the spectrum––and it was difficult seeing the real-time metrics of falling off the bandwagon.
👏 The Silver Lining 👍
I can take solace in the fact that, perhaps, it would’ve been worse otherwise. As difficult as it may be to balance a rigorous work schedule, the constant insight into my health was at least keeping me aware of my overall well-being.
It’s easy to get swept away in the excitement of creating a company. Going from an idea to a functioning product is exhilarating, but misunderstanding the physiological effects of that lifestyle can quickly have consequences on your health.
Our product launch is now well within reach and I’ve been able to pump the brakes slightly on my relentless routine. Thankfully, the less volatile lifestyle, as minimal as the difference may be, is already paying dividends, with the readings from my Biostrap following suit.
Very few things are more satisfying than the physical effects of a healthy lifestyle––I can’t wait for everyone else to feel the same.
