I’m a Certified Biologist Who Reversed My Age by a Decade. This Is the 10-Minute Exercise ‘Trick’ I Use 3x a Week

What if you could get measurably “younger” every week not in 10 hours, but in 10 minutes?

For many people, the world of anti-aging is confusing. You’ve read about “biological age,” “telomeres,” and “mitochondria.” But the advice to slow the aging process often involves overwhelming, time-consuming workouts and restrictive diets.

Most busy adults want the 20% of effort that delivers 80% of the results.

As a certified biologist, Dr. William Davis doesn’t guesshe measures. When his own epigenetic clock showed he was aging faster than his chronological years, he dug deep into the cellular data.

He found a “trick” that helped him reverse his biological age by a decade.

It’s a 10-minute exercise protocol, and he personally uses it three times a week. Today, we’re sharing his exact plan and the 2025 science that proves why this method to reverse biological age exercise is so effective.

First, What Is “Biological Age”? (And Why It’s Not Your Birthday)

Have you ever met a 60-year-old who has the boundless energy of a 40-year-old? Or a 40-year-old who feels and moves like they’re 60? That’s the difference between chronological and biological age.

Think of it this way: your chronological age is your car’s model year. It’s a fixed date. Your biological age is the car’s mileage. It reflects the true wear and tear on the engine, tires, and transmission.

Dr. Davis explains that scientists have a few key ways to measure this “mileage” on your cells:

• Telomere Length: Think of these as the little plastic tips on your shoelaces. They sit at the end of your DNA strands to protect them. Every time your cells divide, these telomeres get a tiny bit shorter. When they get too short, the cell stops dividing properly and can become a “zombie cell” (senescence), which speeds up aging.
• Mitochondrial Function: These are the hundreds of “power plants” inside every one of your cells. They create the ATP energy that fuels your entire body. A hallmark of aging is that these power plants become weak, inefficient, and create more “exhaust” (oxidative stress). This leads to fatigue, slow recovery, and brain fog.
• DNA Methylation (Epigenetic Clock): This is the most accurate measure we have in 2025. If your DNA is the hardware (the instruction manual), epigenetics is the software that tells your body which parts of the manual to read. As you age, this software gets buggy, turning “on” aging genes and turning “off” youth-promoting genes.

You can’t change your chronological age. But here’s the good news: your biological age is malleable. You can absolutely change it. You can be 50 years old but have the cellular health of a 40-year-old.

You just need to give your body the right, powerful instructions to lengthen telomeres and build new mitochondria.

Dr. Davis’s 10-Minute ‘Age Reversal’ Protocol

Dr. Davis’s “trick” isn’t some expensive, complicated machine. It’s a 10-minute, all-natural protocol that he adapted from decades of clinical research on human performance.

The method is a specific form of Sprint Interval Training (SIT). This is often confused with HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training), but Dr. Davis notes a critical difference:

• HIIT is working hard (maybe an 8/10 effort).
• SIT is working at maximal capacity (a 10/10, “all-out” effort).

This protocol is a direct application of research by Dr. Martin Gibala at McMaster University. His lab famously found that a few 20-second “all-out” sprints could provide the same, and in some cases superior, cellular benefits as 45-50 minutes of traditional, moderate cardio.

Here is the exact 10-minute protocol Dr. Davis uses.

The 10-Minute Anti-Aging Protocol

1. Warm-up: 2 minutes of light, easy movement (like light cycling or jogging in place).
2. Sprint 1: 20 seconds of 100% “all-out” maximal effort.
3. Recovery 1: 2 minutes of very slow, active recovery (easy pedaling or walking).
4. Sprint 2: 20 seconds of 100% “all-out” maximal effort.
5. Recovery 2: 2 minutes of very slow, active recovery.
6. Sprint 3: 20 seconds of 100% “all-out” maximal effort.
7. Cool-down: 2 minutes of slow walking and light stretching.

Total Time: 10 minutes. Total “Hard” Work: 60 seconds.

That’s it. The magic of this 10-minute exercise ‘trick’ is not in the volume of work. It is 100% in the intensity. That one total minute of maximal effort is all it takes to signal a powerful, system-wide anti-aging response.

The Scientific Proof: How 60 Seconds of Work Reverses Cellular Aging

Dr. Davis is the first to admit it sounds too good to be true. How can 60 seconds of work do more than 45 minutes?

It’s because that 10/10 intensity spike acts as a powerful “hormetic” signal. It’s a short, controlled shock to the system that tells your body, “We need to get stronger, more efficient, and more resilient right now.”

This signal directly targets the three pillars of aging.

1. It Rebuilds Your Cellular Engines

This protocol is the most potent mitochondrial biogenesis exercise known. That’s the scientific term for your body building brand-new, powerful mitochondria.

A landmark 2024 Mayo Clinic study on intense interval training shocked researchers. It found that older adults who participated saw a 69% increase in mitochondrial capacity.

They were not only building new mitochondria, but they were also repairing their old, dysfunctional ones.

Dr. Davis describes this as “the cellular equivalent of swapping your car’s old, rusty 4-cylinder engine for a brand-new V8.” The result is more clean energy, a higher metabolism, and a dramatic slowing of age-related decline.

2. It Protects Your Genetic Blueprint

This type of maximal-effort exercise also helps lengthen telomeres (your DNA’s protective “shoelace tips”).

How? The intensity activates a specific enzyme called telomerase. Think of telomerase as the dedicated repair crew that comes in after the workout to rebuild and lengthen those telomere caps.

A Brigham Young University study confirmed this, finding that people with high-intensity activity levels had telomeres with a biological age advantage of nine years over sedentary people.

3. It Resets Your ‘Aging Software’

This protocol acts as a hard reset for your epigenetic clock. The intense, short-term “stress” of the sprints signals your body to optimize its gene expression. It tells your body to turn off inflammation and aging genes and turn on repair and youth-promoting genes.

New 2025 research reviewed by Tohoku University in Japan confirmed that structured exercise can literally reverse epigenetic aging markers.

One study on sedentary women showed a two-year reversal in their epigenetic age after just eight weeks of this type of training.

How to Start This Protocol (Safely and Effectively) in 2025

Ready to try it? Dr. Davis emphasizes that you must do this correctly to get the benefits and stay safe.

The Most Important Step: Safety

Dr. Davis’s first rule is “do no harm.” This is maximal-intensity exercise. It places a significant, short-term load on your cardiovascular system. You must consult your doctor before starting this or any new exercise program, especially if you have a pre-existing heart condition or are new to exercise.

Choose Your Modality

This protocol works on any machine that lets you go “all-out” safely.

• Best for Most (Dr. Davis’s Pick): Stationary Bike. An air bike (like an Assault Bike) or a spin bike (like a Keiser or Peloton) is ideal. It is zero-impact, and you can safely go “all-out” without risking a fall or joint injury.
• Advanced: Hill Sprints. Running up a steep hill is a fantastic, no-equipment option.
• Good Options: A rowing machine (full-body, but requires good form) or a stair climber.
• Use Caution: A flat-run treadmill can be dangerous, as it takes too long to speed up and slow down.

What “100% All-Out” Actually Feels Like

This is the part most people get wrong. On a 1-to-10 scale of RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion), where 1 is sitting and 10 is “I am being chased by a bear,” your 20-second sprint must be a 10.

You should be so breathless you are physically unable to speak. You will be counting the seconds until it’s over. This is non-negotiable. A 7/10 or 8/10 effort is just standard HIIT; it will not trigger the same powerful mitochondrial response.

Frequency and Recovery

Dr. Davis stresses that you should only do this 2 or 3 times per week. Never do it on back-to-back days.

Your body doesn’t get younger during the sprint; it gets younger during the 48-hour recovery period. That’s when your body is building new mitochondria, repairing DNA, and resetting your epigenetics. Recovery is when the magic happens.

Your 10-Minute Plan to Get Younger

The key takeaway from Dr. Davis’s research is simple: intensity trumps duration.

You don’t need to spend hours in a gym to reverse biological age exercise. You need a powerful, intelligent signal.

This 10-minute protocol, done just 3 times a week, is the minimum effective dose to recharge your cellular batteries, protect your DNA, and reset your epigenetic clock.

The best time to start was 20 years ago. The second-best time is today.