1. Learn how to read your blood work
2. Be armed with knowledge to ask the right questions at doctor visits to get the care you deserve
3. Take weekly progress pictures
4. Reconfigure calories and nutrients

Nutrition Calculator

Eating and Nutrition Plan

MSQ

Let’s talk about lab work. Each year you get an annual physical, the doctors draw blood and tell you everything looks great, or maybe your cholesterol is high or maybe your blood glucose is high. Whatever the report may be, your answers are short and they don’t take the time to review your labs and what it means. If you have not had bloodwork in the last year, I highly recommend you do so. You can do this a couple of ways:

1. lifeextension.com. Select the “weight loss panel”This is an out of pocket expense, but a very comprehensive panel. Most doctors will not pull this comprehensive panel.

2. Visit your gynecologist, discuss your symptoms and ask them to pull a comprehensive panel with all the categories listed below.

3. Visit an OptimizeU location. I have my own panel for clients here in Louisville, KY. If you have an OptimizeU where you live, please contact me and I will be happy to get my panel info over to them. The panel is $200 out of pocket or an HSA will cover.

I want to help you understand what your bloodwork means, what questions to ask your doctors and know how to improve your numbers and health.

The first thing to know when it comes to bloodwork is there is what is called “standard medical range” and there is “optimal range”. Optimal range is where you want to be and the ranges I refer to below.

Doctors will typically treat the labs, not the clinical symptoms, and go by the standard medical range. What I mean by this is that you go to the doctor because you just don’t feel good. Energy is down, libido is low, you are trying to lose weight but the things you are doing aren’t working, your hair is thinning or coming out … and the list goes on. The doctor will pull labs, come back and tell you everything looks normal, either take some meds, eat better and move more is their answer. This is treating the labs, not the symptoms.

I am not bashing doctors. They are trained a certain way in med school and this is what they know. Luckily, you have people like me who dig a bit deeper and look at the correlation of the foods you eat, stress, sleep, digestion, energy, libido and come up with a plan based on bloodwork AND your symptoms. This is why I want you to understand blood work, be educated and your own health advocate to get the plan, treatment and care you need to feel better.

If you have any questions on bloodwork, please use the chat room to ask.

Lab Work Panel

A full CBC or complete blood count. This is standard and almost all doctors pull this. I am not going to cover this, because if something is off your doctor will cover it. This checks for blood volume, blood cell size, blood thickness etc.

A full CMP or comprehensive metabolic panel. This again is pretty standard for all doctors to pull. This looks at liver enzymes, kidneys, glucose, calcium and more. I will cover a few here

• Glucose: this should be tested fasted. Optimal range is 75-85mg/dl, with 100 mg/dl being considered pre diabetic. I do not like clients in the 90s. There is lifestyle and good choices being made that are likely causing inflammation and the start of gut issues and hormonal imbalances.
• Insulin: optimal range is between 3-6iIU/ml, with 15 iIU/ml being considered diabetic. It is crucial to get your doctor to test insulin WITH glucose (most don’t). Glucose can read in normal range and insulin can be sky high. This is not good.
• Hemoglobin AIC between 4.8-5.3%, 6.5% or higher is clinical diagnosis of type II diabetes.
• ALT and AST: liver enzymes. ALT 0-32 IU/L and AST 0-40 IU/L. You can think of ALT (the L) as more specific to the liver and AST (the S) more specific to the whole body or system. When the liver is damaged, ALT is released into the bloodstream and levels increase. AST is an enzyme that helps metabolize amino acids. These are important to watch because your liver is BIG for your overall health. It is the main detox/flushing system in the body. NAFLD or non alcoholic fatty liver disease is now one of the highest causes of death in the US. NAFLD is a direct result of lifestyle and diet.

Sex Hormones

Estrogen or estradiol on labs, optimal ranges

• Follicular phase 30-120 pg/mL
• Ovulatory phase 130-370 pg/mL
• Luteal phase 70-250 pg/mL
• Post menopausal 15-60 pg/mL
  
  

Testosterone optimal ranges

• Total 45-65ng/DL
• Free 2.2 ng/dL or better
  
  

DHEA, precursor to estrogen and testosterone optimal range: 200 – 380 ug/dl

Progesterone

• Post menopausal 1ng/mL or under is very normal
• Women in mid point of cycle 5-20 ng/mL
• Women in luteal phase (second half of cycle) 15-33 ng/mL
• Pregnant women 11-90 ng/mL
  
  

LH: Luteinizing Hormone, signals the ovaries to produce estrogen and progesterone

• Follicular phase 1.9 -12.5 IU/L
• Ovulation phase 8.7-76.3 IU/L
• Luteal phase .5-16.9 IU/L
• Pregnant women 1.5 IU/L
• Women using birth control .7-5.6 IU/L
  
  

FSH: Follicular Stimulating Hormone, has a direct influence on estrogen and progesterone production in the ovaries

• Follicular phase 3.1-7.9 mIU/L
• Ovulation phase 2.3 – 18.5 mIU/L
• Luteal phase 1.4 -5.5 mIU/L
• Postmenopausal 30.6-106.3 mIU/L
  
  

Thyroid: optimal ranges

• TSH Thyroid Stimulating Hormone .5-2.5
• Free T3 3.0-4.0 pg/mL
• Free T4 1.1-1.5 pg/mL
• Reverse T3 under 15 ng/dL
• TPO: Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies (marker for Hashimotos) 0-34 IU/mL

CRP: C-Reactive Protein (major signal body is experiencing stress) optimal range is less than 1 mg/L

Vitamin D: 80-100 ng/mL

Vitamin B12: 232-1245 pg/mL

Add the following to the things you are focusing on this week:

1. Removing dairy and red meat
2. Adding in more fiber. Aim for 20-30grams a day.

I know you have to have questions about this information today. Use the chat group, let’s go through it.

Each week take progress pictures. I know you aren’t excited about this right now, but I promise as each week passes and you see the small changes in your pictures, this will help you build discipline and keep going.

Tips for successful progress pictures:

1. Take in bright natural light
2. Wear the exact same clothes each week
3. Stand with the same, ideally plain, background each week
4. Wear a bikini, or sports bra and tight, short shorts
5. Smile

The more skin you show the better and easier it will be to see the composition changes occuring. This can be very motivating and encouraging. Don’t cover yourself up.

Each week, use a photo collage app (I personally use PicPlayPost) to post side by side of weekly progress in the chat group. You can scale the pictures to cut your head off if you choose.

If you have any questions or concerns on your nutrition goals please use the chat room feature to ask questions. I will be available here Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm. Make sure you tag me in your question so that I am notified. If you ask a question and I do not respond, please tag me again. I am not ignoring you, I just missed the question.

Print out 6 copies of the Self Check-In Resource Guide and put them in a three ring binder. Use it to keep track of all your progress in the program. You will be adding other documents along the way. Be organized so that you can be successful. 

Be honest, open and thorough. Be thoughtful with your answers and take your time. The more info you put on the check in the better. You will fill this out several times over the program, so the more info you record the more you can reflect on to see how much progress you have made.

Again, please use the chat room for all questions or concerns. This week has a lot of info. Do not struggle. Ask questions. I am here to help!