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Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results
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I'm not affiliated with InsideTracker. I paid for the test and these are my thoughts/results, and I thought they would be of interest to others.


People spend hundreds of dollars on gear without hesitation, however when I said I was spending hundreds on a comprehensive blood test, even I hesitated a bit. Spending this kind of money on something intangible was honestly a challenge.


I'm not a professional runner, but I'm giving running my best damn go. And part of that is, in my opinion, seeing how the body is doing internally. a $400 GPS isn't going to make you faster, but finding out your deficient in Iron and Vitamin D and correcting this **will** make you faster.


My results were generally good. The majority of tests came back optimal, the ones that were outside this range were typically just barely outside, and I'm fine with that. The results that were a bit farther outside of the optimal range were even then results that I'm ok with simply because I'm training 10-11 hours weekly and in a calorie deficit most days (down 6.3 pounds since the beginning of the year). I plan on retesting at a later date after a period of rest during a time of reduced training. If my blood test results improve, we'll know that the non-optimal tests were **normal** results of heavy training. If they do not improve, that's an indicator there is something else going on.


I would also be incredibly interested if any health professionals or athletes with expertise in this area would have any thoughts on my results.

---
KyleKranz.com
Win a pair of SKORA Running Shoes!
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [kylekranz] [ In reply to ]
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You must have at least a loose connection to Inside Tracker because you have a discount code for the service advertised on your site. (though maybe that came after your post from March).

I just got my results and they were eye-opening. Both testosterone metrics darned near flatlined. Iron group "at-risk." Blood iron "low." And glucose "borderline high," which surprised me.

These are eye-opening to me because I'm performing pretty darned well, I have good body composition, and I eat pretty well (in my opinion, but maybe I need to re-think that opinion).

My initial thought is just overtraining.

And I'm also wondering how to consult a Dr. about very low testosterone as a masters cyclist - don't want to sound like I'm fishing for a prescription. :)
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [trail] [ In reply to ]
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trail wrote:
You must have at least a loose connection to Inside Tracker because you have a discount code for the service advertised on your site. (though maybe that came after your post from March).

I just got my results and they were eye-opening. Both testosterone metrics darned near flatlined. Iron group "at-risk." Blood iron "low." And glucose "borderline high," which surprised me.

These are eye-opening to me because I'm performing pretty darned well, I have good body composition, and I eat pretty well (in my opinion, but maybe I need to re-think that opinion).

My initial thought is just overtraining.

And I'm also wondering how to consult a Dr. about very low testosterone as a masters cyclist - don't want to sound like I'm fishing for a prescription. :)


People need to accept that, aside from T declining as we age, it is also normal for endurance athletes to have lower levels of T.


https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2675257

You say above that you are performing well, thus that tells me you have no symptoms that would indicate you need supplemental T.
What if your doc offers you testosterone, what will you do? Take it and quit racing, even though you feel fine without it?
Last edited by: SBRcoffee: Mar 1, 17 9:37
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [SBRcoffee] [ In reply to ]
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SBRcoffee wrote:
You say above that you are performing well, thus that tells me you have no symptoms that would indicate you need supplemental T.
What if your doc offers you testosterone, what will you do? Take it and quit racing, even though you feel fine without it?


Oh great. My post where I didn't want to sound like I was fishing apparently sounded like I was fishing. No, I'd never take a T supplement given my current lack of life-debilitating symptoms. I enjoy sanctioned bike racing waaaay too much. And fuck cheaters. I'm not that guy, I'm the guy who has to resist the urge to drive them into the curb during races.

Actually I just found the other thread on low T and my #s are only about 25% below Thomas Gerlach's. I'm feeling a little better about just improving my diet, adding some resistance training, and dialling back the 6-hour weekend epics. Then seeing where I'm at in a few months. And apparently it can fluctuate a lot over the course of a day so I may have just been tested at a low ebb.
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [trail] [ In reply to ]
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But if you feel fine now, then you don't even have any reason to 'dial back' anything just to try to raise a number that doesn't necessarily mean much.
Oh, and honestly, I wasn't trying to accuse you of fishing! Just pointing out that you likely have zero to worry about in your current state. :)
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [SBRcoffee] [ In reply to ]
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SBRcoffee wrote:
But if you feel fine now, then you don't even have any reason to 'dial back' anything just to try to raise a number that doesn't necessarily mean much.
Oh, and honestly, I wasn't trying to accuse you of fishing! Just pointing out that you likely have zero to worry about in your current state. :)

I'm not sure about the doesn't mean much part. Testosterone levels correlate strongly with performance. If the levels, as they are now, are just "who I am," then that's fine. But if some aspect of my lifestyle (training, diet) is significantly depressing them, then that's a potential avenue for performance improvement!

I agree that one measurement, in isolation, doesn't mean a whole hell of a lot. But it's worth looking into, I think,.
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [kylekranz] [ In reply to ]
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Hey guys,

If you have never had your blood analyzed, or have never used Inside Tracker before, you can put your name in for this giveaway (ends Sunday the 14th). They have an extremely user friendly platform and options for all the biomarkers you would want checked.

https://www.dojomojo.com/...07-8d4f-3e8401e4ee6f


You can also DM me if you want a discount code for any of the packages that they offer.

Timothy Winslow
Last edited by: timmywins: Mar 8, 21 11:26
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [timmywins] [ In reply to ]
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If you have never had your blood analyzed, or have never used Inside Tracker before, you can put your name in for this giveaway (ends Sunday the 14th).

Entered thanks for the heads up!
Last edited by: onboost91: Mar 8, 21 11:38
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [onboost91] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for entering! Giveaway ends tomorrow night!

Timothy Winslow
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Re: Inside Tracker - My Comprehensive Blood Test Results [timmywins] [ In reply to ]
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I would not recommend making any changes without first talking to a primary care physician or internist. Interpreting a random cortisol level can be meaningless given the circadian fluctuations in that hormone. If the levels of these markers are simply reported as “low,normal, or high” then that is problematic too, without knowing the thresholds the lab is working to to report. Beware of playing endocrinologist on your own. (Not specifically the OP, but the average customer for this service).
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