Best way to preserve buying power?

I'm a newbie when it comes to personal finance and investing(just started last year) so I am looking for some advice.

I want to know what the majority of people believe is the best way to preserve buying power. I contribute regularly to my 401k which is invested in an S&P500 Index but every time I make a contribution I ask myself "will this investment preserve my buying power?". Sure I am getting a nice return nominally but if inflation does what its suppose to do I'll basically tread water. I feel like there's a big repricing event coming soon so I wanted to get some opinions. I feel this next "crash" will be invisible to the naked eye because of the currency failing so I am eyeing hard assets as opposed to equities due to how they are valued. Bitcoin and real estate seem like the best hedges for the future.

Obviously no one can predict the future but I want to know what some peoples financial plans are for what they think will happen in the future. I appreciate the feedback!