What kind of Labs do you

[Memo85]

What kind of labs bloodwork are you taking? To keep records of your stack ? I just got some labs done for test, estrogen , etc…

What is your stack and what type of labs do you recommend with your protocol ?

Thanks

 

[bk0004]

7.5mg of Tirz weekly.

1.5mg of GHK-CU daily.

Various vitamins and supplements.

So nothing crazy at all.

That said, I get the pretty standard workup every 6 months: CBC, glucose, insulin and A1C, thyroid panel, liver function panel, kidney function panel.

A1C has gone down 1.5%. Thyroid levels improving as well.

I'm considering adding on Estradiol, Progesterone, and Cortisol tests in to the mix as I explore deeper into gynaecological health/supplements but haven't done it yet.

 

[Neurogroot]

I actually bit the bullet and put a huge order in. The basics, plus prostate stuff, testosterone, igf-1, various nutrients, minerals and electrolytes… progesterone, prolactin, high sens CRP, 6 various thyroid, renal function…. There’s more, but I can’t remember. They took a ton of vials and I have to go back in a few days to get the rest.

I’m curious, did your blood draw tech give you weird questions if you didn’t go through a physician to order? I almost fell like she thought I was doing something shady.

 

[DustAndDignity]

For me it depends on what I’m running, but I try to approach it from a “monitor the mechanism” standpoint instead of blindly following protocols.

Core labs I personally pay attention to:

• CBC

• CMP (liver/kidney markers)

• Lipid panel

• Fasting glucose + A1C

• Testosterone (total + free)

• Estradiol (sensitive assay)

• SHBG

• IGF-1 + Z-score if running GH secretagogues/tesamorelin

• Thyroid panel occasionally (TSH, Free T3/T4)

• CRP occasionally for inflammation

If someone is running GLP-1s, GH peptides, test, etc., I think baseline labs matter way more than internet protocol debates. Otherwise we’re all just guessing and chasing anecdotes.

Personally I’m more interested in positive trends over time than trying to force every marker into “optimal” influencer ranges.

I’d also recommend getting labs before starting anything, then retesting after adjustments instead of stacking 5 compounds at once and having no clue what’s doing what. Especially id your running GH peptides.

 

[Memo85]

For me it depends on what I’m running, but I try to approach it from a “monitor the mechanism” standpoint instead of blindly following protocols.

Core labs I personally pay attention to:

• CBC

• CMP (liver/kidney markers)

• Lipid panel

• Fasting glucose + A1C

• Testosterone (total + free)

• Estradiol (sensitive assay)

• SHBG

• IGF-1 + Z-score if running GH secretagogues/tesamorelin

• Thyroid panel occasionally (TSH, Free T3/T4)

• CRP occasionally for inflammation

If someone is running GLP-1s, GH peptides, test, etc., I think baseline labs matter way more than internet protocol debates. Otherwise we’re all just guessing and chasing anecdotes.

Personally I’m more interested in positive trends over time than trying to force every marker into “optimal” influencer ranges.

I’d also recommend getting labs before starting anything, then retesting after adjustments instead of stacking 5 compounds at once and having no clue what’s doing what. Especially id your running GH peptides.

With igf-1 what kind of changes did you see if any before and after protocol? Care to share your stack affecting GH peptides. I will be getting some more blood test on my own dime (no doctor). I did have a cbc, comp, A1c , test, shbg, tsp, free, done recently. BTW, great info. I appreciate it.

 

[bk0004]

I actually bit the bullet and put a huge order in. The basics, plus prostate stuff, testosterone, igf-1, various nutrients, minerals and electrolytes… progesterone, prolactin, high sens CRP, 6 various thyroid, renal function…. There’s more, but I can’t remember. They took a ton of vials and I have to go back in a few days to get the rest.

I’m curious, did your blood draw tech give you weird questions if you didn’t go through a physician to order? I almost fell like she thought I was doing something shady.

I've had a few offhanded comments from techs about how much I was getting drawn at once, but more to make conversation and fill space that anything I think.

Never tried to go without a physician's order though. I've got a really good doc who will put in the orders for pretty much whatever labs I want. She takes the "can't hurt" stance on most things I ask for .

 

[DustAndDignity]

With igf-1 what kind of changes did you see if any before and after protocol? Care to share your stack affecting GH peptides. I will be getting some more blood test on my own dime (no doctor). I did have a cbc, comp, A1c , test, shbg, tsp, free, done recently. BTW, great info. I appreciate it.

I ran Tesa by itself w/ no IPA. I started at 1mg per day then went to 1.5mg after a month. Then pushed it to 2mgs around week 10 or 11.

My starting IGF-1 on January 15th was 165, z-score .1. I re ran my labs on March 16th. My IGF-1 shot up to 401, z-score 2.5.

I immediately dropped back down to 1mg per day 2-3 hours after dinner. I’ll retest in June to see how my IGF is doing.

 

[Neurogroot]

I've had a few offhanded comments from techs about how much I was getting drawn at once, but more to make conversation and fill space that anything I think.

Never tried to go without a physician's order though. I've got a really good doc who will put in the orders for pretty much whatever labs I want. She takes the "can't hurt" stance on most things I ask for .

Yeah, not having physician order hurt. I really feel more let down, because my assumption was that the blood test is a snapshot. They did roughly half the draws and will do the rest Monday. I was way too passive and didn’t advocate for myself. Why not take them all? At most, it’s 270 mL of blood. A donation is 500 mL. I feel like I should get them all at the same time, or ask for a discounted rate on the bloodwork they did today. Would that be unreasonable? This is my first time doing this whole thing with bloodwork.

 

[sfkid]

Yeah, not having physician order hurt. I really feel more let down, because my assumption was that the blood test is a snapshot. They did roughly half the draws and will do the rest Monday. I was way too passive and didn’t advocate for myself. Why not take them all? At most, it’s 270 mL of blood. A donation is 500 mL. I feel like I should get them all at the same time, or ask for a discounted rate on the bloodwork they did today. Would that be unreasonable? This is my first time doing this whole thing with bloodwork.

This is 2026 , you don't need a physician to get your labs.

Its so easy these days.

Don't know who you used but www.goodlabs.com is so damn cheap and fully customizable that I do them every 10 to 12 weeks .

 

[woundcarping]

Yeah, not having physician order hurt. I really feel more let down, because my assumption was that the blood test is a snapshot. They did roughly half the draws and will do the rest Monday. I was way too passive and didn’t advocate for myself. Why not take them all? At most, it’s 270 mL of blood. A donation is 500 mL. I feel like I should get them all at the same time, or ask for a discounted rate on the bloodwork they did today. Would that be unreasonable? This is my first time doing this whole thing with bloodwork.

Why did they not do them all?

I assume you paid for them all together, or are you paying for them in two batches?

I pay for the membership at Fitomics, so my draw fees/order fees come out of that/cost me nothing (Fitomics normally charges $20/requisition to coverer that)/. I've had blood drawn, wanted something else and went back for two tests.

I had 40 tests/panels ran back in March, 13 vials, no problems.

 

[Neurogroot]

This is 2026 , you don't need a physician to get your labs.

Its so easy these days.

Don't know who you used but www.goodlabs.com is so damn cheap and fully customizable that I do them every 10 to 12 weeks .

Interesting, I used GoodLabs and went to Quest Diagnostic. I got a package, plus extras. Posted the listing from my invoice. Paid $423 (self pay) all in.

Hormone / Endocrine

• ACTH, Plasma

• Cortisol, Total, LC/MS

• Dihydrotestosterone

• Estradiol

• Insulin-Like Growth Factor I

• Men's Hormone Panel

• Progesterone, Total, LC/MS

• Prolactin

• PSA Total+% Free

• T3 Total

• T4 (Thyroxine), Total

• Thyroid Panel

Metabolic / Blood Sugar

• C-Peptide

• Comprehensive Metabolic Panel (CMP)

• Fructosamine

• Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c)

• Insulin

Heart / Cardiovascular / Lipids

• Apolipoprotein A-1

• Apolipoprotein B

• High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (hs-CRP)

• Homocysteine

• Lipid Panel

Liver & Kidney Health

• Gamma Glutamyl Transferase (GGT)

• Hepatic Function Panel

• Renal Function Panel

• Uric Acid

Inflammation / Immune

• Fibrinogen

• Rheumatoid Factor

• Sedimentation Rate-Westergren (ESR)

Blood (Hematology)

• Complete Blood Count (CBC) with Differential/Platelet

Enzymes / Organ & Muscle Function

• Amylase (Pancreas)

• Lipase (Pancreas)

• Creatine Kinase (CK), Total (Muscle/Heart)

• Lactate Dehydrogenase (LD) (Tissue damage)

Nutritional / Minerals

• Nutrient Panel

• Selenium, Serum or Plasma

• Transferrin (Iron transport)

 

[sfkid]

Interesting, I used GoodLabs and went to Quest Diagnostic. I got a package, plus extras. Posted the listing from my invoice. Paid $423 (self pay) all in.

Hormone / Endocrine

• ACTH, Plasma

• Cortisol, Total, LC/MS

• Dihydrotestosterone

• Estradiol

• Insulin-Like Growth Factor I

• Men's Hormone Panel

• Progesterone, Total, LC/MS

• Prolactin

• PSA Total+% Free

• T3 Total

• T4 (Thyroxine), Total

• Thyroid Panel

Metabolic / Blood Sugar

• C-Peptide

• Comprehensive Metabolic Panel (CMP)

• Fructosamine

• Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c)

• Insulin

Heart / Cardiovascular / Lipids

• Apolipoprotein A-1

• Apolipoprotein B

• High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (hs-CRP)

• Homocysteine

• Lipid Panel

Liver & Kidney Health

• Gamma Glutamyl Transferase (GGT)

• Hepatic Function Panel

• Renal Function Panel

• Uric Acid

Inflammation / Immune

• Fibrinogen

• Rheumatoid Factor

• Sedimentation Rate-Westergren (ESR)

Blood (Hematology)

• Complete Blood Count (CBC) with Differential/Platelet

Enzymes / Organ & Muscle Function

• Amylase (Pancreas)

• Lipase (Pancreas)

• Creatine Kinase (CK), Total (Muscle/Heart)

• Lactate Dehydrogenase (LD) (Tissue damage)

Nutritional / Minerals

• Nutrient Panel

• Selenium, Serum or Plasma

• Transferrin (Iron transport)

Bruh , you got the "what's wrong with me " package .

The problem is that to get any meaningful info from this you need to repeat to get a trend . Single markers are usually not that informative .

 

[Neurogroot]

Bruh , you got the "what's wrong with me " package .

The problem is that to get any meaningful info from this you need to repeat to get a trend . Single markers are usually not that informative .

I got the “started with basic tests + igf and testosterone” at first. Then, I realized I’m 40. Have prostate fears lately. Thyroid’s freaking me out a bit. Then thought about what I did to my liver 50 lbs ago. The list crept up fast.

 

[Memo85]

Interesting, I used GoodLabs and went to Quest Diagnostic. I got a package, plus extras. Posted the listing from my invoice. Paid $423 (self pay) all in.

Hormone / Endocrine

• ACTH, Plasma

• Cortisol, Total, LC/MS

• Dihydrotestosterone

• Estradiol

• Insulin-Like Growth Factor I

• Men's Hormone Panel

• Progesterone, Total, LC/MS

• Prolactin

• PSA Total+% Free

• T3 Total

• T4 (Thyroxine), Total

• Thyroid Panel

Metabolic / Blood Sugar

• C-Peptide

• Comprehensive Metabolic Panel (CMP)

• Fructosamine

• Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c)

• Insulin

Heart / Cardiovascular / Lipids

• Apolipoprotein A-1

• Apolipoprotein B

• High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (hs-CRP)

• Homocysteine

• Lipid Panel

Liver & Kidney Health

• Gamma Glutamyl Transferase (GGT)

• Hepatic Function Panel

• Renal Function Panel

• Uric Acid

Inflammation / Immune

• Fibrinogen

• Rheumatoid Factor

• Sedimentation Rate-Westergren (ESR)

Blood (Hematology)

• Complete Blood Count (CBC) with Differential/Platelet

Enzymes / Organ & Muscle Function

• Amylase (Pancreas)

• Lipase (Pancreas)

• Creatine Kinase (CK), Total (Muscle/Heart)

• Lactate Dehydrogenase (LD) (Tissue damage)

Nutritional / Minerals

• Nutrient Panel

• Selenium, Serum or Plasma

• Transferrin (Iron transport)

That’s good deal. Can use gpt to read the results etc… I would mind spending that much twice a year to tell me what’s up along with my yearly blood test.