One topic that seems to be a never-ending source
of confusion is blood, or more precisely, understanding
blood work and which tests to get and why. It never
fails to amaze me that the vast majority of bodybuilders
and other athletes have no issue spending literally
thousands of dollars on supplements (some of which
have virtually no science behind them to justify their
use) and gym memberships each year, but won't spend
a penny on blood tests to see what's really going
on with their hormones and other indicators of health
(e.g., cholesterol, liver function, etc.).
This is odd considering the fact that it's those
very hormones that are ultimately responsible for
whether or not your hard work in the gym is a waste
of time (read busting your ass and getting no place
fast) or productive. Let me be as clear as possible
here: if your blood chemistry is off, meaning your
hormone levels are sub par, you can eat all the supplements
you want, follow any fancy new routine you want, and
eat all you want, and you will be spinning your wheels
with little to no results!
Depending on how out of whack your hormones are,
you will get less then optimal results from your hard
work or virtually no results at all. Conversely, the
person with naturally optimal levels of hormones,
or the person that has optimized their hormone levels
via external assistance (more on that later) is going
to make the progress they expect from their training,
nutrition, and supplement use.
Now, explaining everything there is to know about
blood work, hormones, etc., is far beyond the scope
of this article. What I hope to do is give people
a primer, using my own recent blood tests as examples,
so people understand the importance of regular blood
work and will follow up by learning more about the
topic via additional readings, talking to a doctor,
surfing the net, and so on.
Most bodybuilders know about the major anabolic and
catabolic hormones, such as testosterone, Insulin-like
growth factor-1, GH, cortisol, etc. There are however
other tests that give an overall picture that should
be considered (e.g., estradiol, thyroid hormones,
etc.) and not all hormones can be tested for easily
by a single blood draw, such as GH, which does not
last long enough in the blood and is released in a
pulsatile fashion, making it difficult to test for
unless you are hooked up for multiple blood draws
throughout the day.
Reading Blood Tests 101
Many people are under the impression that blood tests
are difficult to read and must be in some secret coded
language only doctors can possibly understand. Nothing
could be further from the truth. The trick is not
in reading them per se but interpreting them. Interpreting
a blood test, that is understanding the relevance
of the results, is where the doctor's education may
come in and where years of research can be spent.
This does not mean however that even the average
person can't read a blood test and derive some very
useful information regarding the state of their health,
hormone levels, and so on. It's not uncommon at all
for a person to spot something of concern on a blood
test a doctor either didn't notice or didn't feel
was a concern (such as a low "normal" testosterone
level) where the bodybuilder would be concerned (being
you can't build no damn muscle without adequate testosterone!).
Labs have a reference range for anything tested,
such as testosterone, cholesterol, and so on. The
test always has that range with the results of your
test next to it, and it's easy enough to read. For
example: normal testosterone levels range from a low
of 300ng/dl to a high of 1200ng/dl*. A testosterone
level between those numbers (mine was 520) is considered
"normal." Free (unbound) testosterone has
a low/high range of 8.7pg/ml - 25pg/ml. Mine was 18.3
which would be about mid "normal."
So, it's quite easy to read a blood test. Again,
the challenge is understanding why a person has say
low testosterone and what to do about it, such as
run additional tests, consider hormone replacement
therapy (HRT) and so on. So, reading them is easy,
interpreting them is where the difficulty comes in
and doctors are often as guilty as lay people in this
respect. A perfect example; the many people who fall
in the low "normal" range of some hormone.
You will often see some poor bastard who is just a
few points above the lowest possible "normal"
level of testosterone, but most doctors won't treat
a person if they are low normal, even when the person
is exhibiting symptoms of lacking testosterone.
A smart doctor will know that low normal testosterone
levels, though technically "normal," really
sucks for adding new muscle, keeping body fat down,
libido, mental function, and so on. Though technically
sub-clinical, these low "normal" levels
should be treated and the data is quite clear that
men will greatly benefit from such treatments, often
seeing an increase in libido, reduced depression,
reduction in cholesterol levels, reductions in bodyfat,
and improved muscle mass. Even when some doctors are
aware that sub clinical levels of testosterone should
be addressed (via HRT), they often won't due to fear
of liability.
There are other areas where sub clinical (low normal)
levels of hormones should be treated, such as sub
clinical levels of thyroid hormones T3 and T4 for
example. Of course there can be levels of some hormone
that can be too high (versus too low) yet still be
technically in the normal range. For example, most
of the medical profession refuses to understand the
role estrogen - in particular estradiol - plays in
a man's physiology. To the majority of the medical
profession, estradiol is a "woman's" hormone
and refuse to treat men (via an estrogen lowering
drug or other modality) when high estrogen levels
in men can cause a long list of undesirable effects,
from gyno (bitch tits), to increases in bodyfat, to
a loss of libido, etc.
Recent data also points to estradiol being correlated
to prostate cancer and other ailments best avoided.**
So, don't think doctors have all the answers after
viewing a blood test. They don't. The best combination
is an open-minded progressive doctor who works with
a patient who has a general understanding of how to
read their own blood tests. A partnership, so to speak,
between doctor and patient. This segues us into a
comment regarding (some) doctors and your blood tests.
Always ask for a copy of your blood work versus simply
taking the doctor's word for it with a sweeping "your
blood work looks fine" that they often use.
It's very odd to note that some doctors will refuse
to give a person a copy of their own blood work! I
have no idea why they feel they have the right to
do that, but they don't. Any doctor that refuses to
give a person a copy of their own blood work is no
doctor you want to work with.
My Own Test Results...
Recently, I had over 80 different tests done on my
blood, which I do at least once per year, and I consider
it money very well spent. In most states you can simply
walk into a lab and have your blood drawn and then
check off on an order form which tests you want done.
Some states may require a doctor to request the tests
on your behalf. Some times you can get insurance to
pay for it. However, some companies have packages
they put together where you can save a considerable
amount of money.
I used the Life Extension Foundation to have my tests
done as they have good prices and an extensive list
of tests many medical professionals are often unaware
of or don't bother with***.
I had the major hormones of importance checked:
Testosterone
Free testosterone
IGF-1 Estradiol
DHEA/DHEA-s
Full thyroid panel
I also had a full cardiovascular risk profile done,
which included:
Total cholesterol
LDL
HDL
Triglycerides
C-reactive protein
Homocysteine
I had the major liver function tests done: alkaline
phosphatase, GGT, SGOT, and SGPT, as well as a PSA
test to make sure my prostate was OK.
Finally, I had the major kidney function tests done:
creatinine, BUN, and the creatnine/BUN ratio. As mentioned
above, there was actually over 80 tests done (man
they took a lot of blood out of me!) but those are
the major tests of interest to readers and will give
you a good idea of what should be looked at.
>> Continue
to part 2
>> Click here for Will Brink's Bodybuilding Revealed
>> Click here for Will's Fat Loss Revealed
About the Author - William D. Brink
Will Brink is a columnist, contributing consultant,
and writer for various health/fitness, medical, and
bodybuilding publications. His articles relating to
nutrition, supplements, weight loss, exercise and
medicine can be found in such publications as Lets
Live, Muscle Media 2000, MuscleMag International,
The Life Extension Magazine, Muscle n Fitness, Inside
Karate, Exercise For Men Only, Body International,
Power, Oxygen, Penthouse, Women? World and The Townsend
Letter For Doctors.
He is the author of Priming The Anabolic Environment
and Weight Loss Nutrients Revealed. He is the Consulting
Sports Nutrition Editor and a monthly columnist for
Physical magazine and an Editor at Large for Power
magazine. Will graduated from Harvard University with
a concentration in the natural sciences, and is a
consultant to major supplement, dairy, and pharmaceutical
companies.
He has been co author of several studies relating
to sports nutrition and health found in peer reviewed
academic journals, as well as having commentary published
in JAMA. He runs the highly popular web site BrinkZone.com
which is strategically positioned to fulfill the needs
and interests of people with diverse backgrounds and
knowledge. The BrinkZone site has a following with
many sports nutrition enthusiasts, athletes, fitness
professionals, scientists, medical doctors, nutritionists,
and interested lay people. William has been invited
to lecture on the benefits of weight training and
nutrition at conventions and symposiums around the
U.S. and Canada, and has appeared on numerous radio
and television programs.
William has worked with athletes ranging from professional
bodybuilders, golfers, fitness contestants, to police
and military personnel.
|
