Free guide
Blood test markers for lifters
What each marker on a lifter's blood test measures, why people who train hard track it, and what can change the reading on the day. Written by CoachAk, the coach who reads your bloodwork.
Coaching feedback, not medical advice. CoachAk is not a doctor and does not diagnose or treat conditions. Review all results with your doctor. This guide never gives “normal ranges”: compare each result with the range printed on your own lab report.
Before your test
A blood test is only useful if you can compare it with the next one. These habits keep your results comparable.
- 1Follow your lab's or your doctor's instructions first. Most say to fast overnight (water is fine) for blood sugar, insulin and cholesterol.
- 2Book an early-morning draw, and keep the same time of day every test. Several hormones, testosterone among them, change through the day.
- 3Skip hard training for a couple of days before. A heavy session can raise AST, ALT, creatinine and hs-CRP for days.
- 4Drink water as normal. Being dehydrated makes your blood more concentrated, which pushes up hematocrit and hemoglobin.
- 5If you take biotin (vitamin B7, common in hair and skin supplements), tell your doctor and lab before the test. It can upset the results of many hormone and thyroid tests.
- 6Use the same lab and the same tests each time where you can. Different methods give different numbers for the same blood.
- 7Write down anything unusual: a cold, a bad night's sleep, alcohol, a big change in diet or training. It explains a lot when you look back.
Hormones
Total testosterone
How much testosterone is in your blood, bound and free together.
Free testosterone
The part of your testosterone that is not bound to proteins.
Estradiol (sensitive)
The main estrogen. Labs offer more than one test, so note which one your report used.
SHBG
A protein that binds testosterone, so it changes how much is free.
LH
The signal from the brain that tells the body to make its own testosterone.
FSH
A signal from the brain linked to fertility, usually read alongside LH.
Prolactin
A hormone often tracked alongside the sex hormones. Linked to libido.
IGF-1
Reflects how much growth hormone activity there is in the body.
Lipids
Total cholesterol
All the cholesterol in your blood, every type added together.
LDL cholesterol
Cholesterol carried in the particles that can build up in artery walls.
HDL cholesterol
Cholesterol carried back to the liver. Diet, training and hormones all move it.
Triglycerides
Fats in the blood. Recent meals change it, so it is best tested fasted.
ApoB
Counts the particles that carry cholesterol around the body.
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