Named Protocol
Two rules carry most of it: view bright sunlight within the first 30 to 60 minutes after waking, and delay caffeine for 90 to 120 minutes after waking. He adds a body-temperature trigger - cold water or movement - and a wake time that varies by no more than an hour, weekends included.
The light rule has independent backing. The caffeine delay is the one number others put differently. The cold-water step is Huberman's own, with no one else on the record either way.
2 backed by another expert · 1 nobody else has addressed
What Huberman takes
Morning sunlight within 30-60 min of wakingoutdoors, not through a window; the trigger for the early cortisol peak
Backed by the panelWhat the rest of the panel says
What Huberman takes
Delay caffeine 90-120 min after wakinglets residual adenosine clear, so you avoid the afternoon crash
DisputedWhat the rest of the panel says
What Huberman takes
Raise body temperature cold water 1-3 minor light movement; drives the adrenaline and dopamine that set daytime alertness
No one else has weighed inWhat the rest of the panel says
No one else has weighed in on this one.
What Huberman takes
Consistent wake time vary by no more than 1 hourweekends included - the schedule is the anchor the rest hangs off
Backed by the panelWhat the rest of the panel says
See what the other experts said
Every line checked against the panel. Verbatim quotes, timestamped to the second, deep-linked to the tape.
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The light rule, stated twice in a row for emphasis · 2022-08-08
“One way that you can ensure that that cortisol peak occurs early in the day right about the time that you wake up is to view bright light, ideally from sunlight, within the first 30 to 60 minutes after waking”▸ Andrew Huberman, on the record @ 16:40
The caffeine delay, as a flat recommendation · 2022-08-08
“I highly recommend that everybody delay their caffeine intake for 90 to 120 minutes after waking”▸ Andrew Huberman, on the record @ 36:29
View bright sunlight within 30 to 60 minutes of waking, delay caffeine for 90 to 120 minutes, raise body temperature with cold water or movement, and keep the wake time within an hour of the same time daily.
Huberman says 90 to 120 minutes, so residual adenosine clears before caffeine blocks it, which he ties to avoiding the afternoon crash. Note the panel is not unanimous on this number - the figure given on Rhonda Patrick's channel is about an hour.
The rule Huberman states is about the window, not the duration - within the first 30 to 60 minutes after waking. It has to be outdoor light; indoor lighting is a couple of hundred lux against thousands outside.
He covers the substitution directly: when natural sunlight is not available, daylight simulators, LED panels or ring lights stand in, which matters most in winter.
Educational synthesis of what these experts said on video, not medical advice.