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1d (edited) ā¢ Peptide Tips
š§Ŗ How to Read Your Bloodwork (Using My Labs as an Example)
This post is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making decisions about your health.
Most people get bloodwork back, see "normal" on everything, and move on. But knowing how to actually read your labsānot just glance at the reference rangesācan tell you a completely different story.
I'm going to walk you through how I analyze my own bloodwork, what markers I look at, and how I connect the dots. Hopefully this helps you do the same with yours.
I recorded a full walkthrough of my actual labs if you want to see the numbers yourself: Watch the video breakdown here
Step 1: Don't Just Look at "Normal" ā Look at Where in the Range
Lab reference ranges are built to catch disease, not optimize health. "Normal" just means you're not flagged as sick.
When I pulled my results, most looked textbook healthy:
- Blood sugar: dialed
- A1C: low
- Cholesterol: solid
- Body fat: trending down
On paper? Great. But a few numbers weren't bad... they were just sitting in odd places within the range. That's where the real information was hiding.
Step 2: Start with Fasting Insulin (Most People Skip This)
This is one of the most underrated markers. Most standard panels don't even include itāyou often have to ask.
Mine came back at 2 Ī¼IU/mL.
Most people hear "low insulin" and think that's a win. And it isāto a point. It means you're insulin sensitive, your body handles glucose efficiently, you're not resistant.
But here's what most people miss: insulin is also a metabolic signal. It tells your body "Energy is available. Run normal operations."
When insulin stays rock-bottom for too long, your body starts interpreting that as a shortage. That's when other systems start quietly downregulating.
What to look for in your own labs:
- Fasting insulin between 3-8 Ī¼IU/mL is generally a good functional range
- Under 3 Ī¼IU/mL can indicate you've been in a deficit too long
- Over 10 Ī¼IU/mL starts suggesting insulin resistance
Step 3: Read the Full Thyroid Panel (Not Just TSH)
This is where most people get incomplete information. Doctors often only run TSH, but that's just one piece.
Here's what my full panel showed:
- TSH: Normal, but creeping toward the higher end
- Free T4: Normal
- Free T3: Low-normal (bottom 25% of range)
Quick primer:
- TSH = the signal from your brain telling your thyroid to work
- Free T4 = stored thyroid hormone
- Free T3 = active thyroid hormone (this actually sets your metabolic speed)
My thyroid gland was producing just fine (T4 was normal). But my body wasn't converting much of it into the active form (T3).
Why? Because T4-to-T3 conversion depends on energy intake, carbohydrates, insulin levels, and stress. My body recognized the chronic deficit and made a smart call: "Keep things running, but slower."
This isn't thyroid disease. It's metabolic conservation. And it won't show up if you only look at TSH.
What to look for in your own labs:
- TSH creeping above 2.5 (even if "normal") while T3 drops = possible downregulation
- Free T3 in the bottom 25% of range = your metabolism may be slowing
- T4 normal but T3 low = conversion issue, not a thyroid gland problem
Step 4: Check Hormones as a System (Not Isolated Numbers)
This is where people get confused. They see testosterone is "normal" and stop there. But hormones work as a system.
Here's what mine showed:
Testosterone:
- Total T: normal
- Free T: dropping (lower end of range)
Free testosterone is what you actually feelāenergy, drive, libido, fat loss. Total T can look fine while free T quietly declines. Low T3 contributes to this because thyroid hormone influences androgen signaling.
Estrogen:
- Didn't spike, but testosterone was drifting down faster, creating a ratio imbalance
Prolactin:
- High-normal
Prolactin rises with stress, poor sleep, low calories, and extended dieting. It doesn't make you sick, but it makes you feel flat, unmotivated, less reward-driven.
What to look for in your own labs:
- Free T dropping while Total T stays stable = SHBG may be climbing or T3 may be low
- Prolactin at the high end of normal = stress/recovery signal
- Look at the ratios between hormones, not just individual numbers
Step 5: Look at Recovery Markers
Two more markers supported the same pattern in my labs:
IGF-1:
- Normal, but slightly low for my age
IGF-1 reflects growth, recovery, and repair capacity. It drops when calories are low, insulin is low, and recovery is limited.
DHEA-S:
- Mid-range
Not burnout, not optimal. Another sign of chronic load.
What to look for in your own labs:
- IGF-1 on the lower end for your age = recovery capacity may be reduced
- DHEA-S declining over time = worth watching for adrenal load
Step 6: Check That the System Is Still Intact
This is the reassuring part most people miss.
Two markers told me nothing was broken:
LH and FSH: Both normal.
These are the signals from your brain to your hormonal system. If these are normal, it means the system isn't shut downāit's just downshifted.
What to look for in your own labs:
- LH and FSH normal = the system is intact and reversible
- LH and FSH suppressed = something else is going on that needs investigation
Step 7: Track Trends Over Time
One blood draw is a snapshot. The real insight comes from tracking over time.
If you see:
- TSH slowly climbing
- Free T3 slowly dropping
- Free testosterone declining
...you're watching metabolic downregulation happen in real time. Catching this trend early lets you course-correct before you feel terrible.
When you do get bloodwork, don't just accept the basics. Ask for:
Metabolic signals:
- Fasting insulin (not just glucose)
- Fasting glucose
- HbA1c
Thyroid (full panel):
- TSH
- Free T4
- Free T3
- Reverse T3 (optional but useful)
Hormones:
- Total testosterone
- Free testosterone
- SHBG
- Estradiol (sensitive assay for men)
- Prolactin
- LH
- FSH
Recovery markers:
- IGF-1
- DHEA-S
- Cortisol (AM draw, or 4-point saliva for full picture)
What I'm Doing With This Information
My labs didn't say "you need medication." They said "you've been running lean, stressed, and efficient for a long time."
So instead of pushing harder, I'm doing the oppositeāstrategically:
- Eating more (especially carbs)
- Letting insulin come up slightly
- Reducing training stress temporarily
- Prioritizing sleep consistency
- Running a short hormone rebound phase
The goal isn't fat gain. It's signal restoration. Once those signals normalize, everything else follows.
The Takeaway
Learning to read your bloodwork is a skill. The reference ranges tell you if you're sick. The patterns tell you how your body is actually functioning.
If you've ever felt like:
- "My labs are normal but I don't feel normal"
- "I'm doing everything right but something's off"
- "Pushing harder isn't working anymore"
It might be time to look deeper than the "normal" flags.
Drop a comment if you want me to break down any specific markers in more detail. And if you've had a similar experience reading your own labs, I'd love to hear what you found.
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š§Ŗ How to Read Your Bloodwork (Using My Labs as an Example)
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