Beginner Just Learning The Ropes. Mind Reviewing My Recent Blood Work?

_noozie

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Sep 29, 2017
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17
Hey everyone. Hope you're doing well. Starting a couple weeks ago I've adopted a more RP-inspired diet and lifestyle. I must say, I'm really enjoying learning about health from a bioenergetic standpoint. My motivation for this? Chronic sluggishness, feeling of cold, and flat-out poor metabolism. I'm a young man in what are supposed to be my prime years– I shouldn't feel the way I do.

[Diet]
Before this transition, my diet was decent with exception to regular nut butter consumption and fibrous vegetables+oats. Now I've simplified my diet to fit RP's basic principles. This means low-no PUFA, infrequent muscle meats, high dairy [organic milk, parmigiano reggiano or cheddar without additives/gums, and lots of 0% Greek yogurt to hit my protein needs, ice cream without additives/gums] and sugar [organic pulp-free OJ, honey, fruit] intake, daily gelatin consumption, only well-digestible (non-fibrous) fruit and vegetables [daily raw carrot, mushrooms, cooked apples], and occasional servings of well-digestible starches (white rice and potato).

A month ago I finished a successful (from a physique standpoint, obviously not health) cut down to my current conditioning at ~9-10% body fat. So since then I've been slowly increasing calories and decreasing cardio to maintain my physique and ensure I don't gain excessive fat. Currently I'm at at 2000kcal, 160-170P, 55-60F, 200-210c, with 1000 kcal low-intensity cardio per week.

[Exercise]
I regularly train for strength and hypertrophy and have been seriously training for about 4 years. Definitely physique-minded, as this is one of my passions. One thing I can possibly attribute to my poor metabolism is that in my mid teens I trained very hard MMA while severely under-eating. And then after stopping MMA and normalizing food intake I picked up weightlifting (powerlifting+bodybuilding style), which I still do this day (not competitively–screw that lol). But in my early lifting career I was stupidly in a caloric deficit way too frequently (every half year or so). I've gained significant muscle and strength over the years and I'm much healthier now, but I feel like my unhealthy and underfed background has contributed to the current status of my sloth metabolism.

[Supplements]
I'm a minimalist with supps and prefer to keep it that way. I take the following daily:
– recently started 4000IU vit D (Carlson's Liquid D3 - 1 drop topically on my shins)
– 250mg KSM-66 Ashwagandha (I find this helps with stress levels and mood)
– 3-5g creatine monohydrate (one of the few legit research-backed sports supplements, improved physical and cognitive function, no reason not to...)

[Basic Stats] 21 years old / Male / 144 lbs / 5'7''

[Blood Work] <taken on Oct-3-2017>:
TSH: 3.56 uIU/mL (HIGH - RP says this should be <0.4. In that case this is extremely high. Should I be worried about this?)
Total T4: 3.6 ug/dL (below the given standard range of 4.6-12)

Sodium: 142 mmol/L
Potassium: 5.1 mmol/L
CO2: 22 mmol/L
Calcium, Serum: 9.5 mg/dL
Albumin: 4.7 g/dL
Glucose, Serum: 91 mg/dL
BUN: 30 mg/dL (HIGH *)
Creatinine: 1.88 mg/dL (HIGH *)
* I assume bc of my muscle mass, daily creatine supplementation, and protein intake

[Temperature/Pulse]
I've taken my temperature and pulse readings upon waking for the past week and I regularly land around 96 F and 60 bpm. These are clearly suboptimal to say the least.

Given all this info, it would be greatly appreciated if you guys could:
(1) assess my blood work and inform me of anything noteworthy/pressing
(2) recommend changes in diet/lifestyle to put me on a path toward more energy and a strong metabolism
 
Last edited:

Peatful

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Dec 8, 2016
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3,582
Hi and welcome.

I am sitting in traffic but wanted to reply to say a few general observations. Bear with me if I am vague or cryptic.
1) you are hypothyroid. But you are young, caught it early.
2)you probably are hypothyroid because you have trained your body to slow down its metabolism due to under eating, even currently, and overtraining
3) you can fix this by eating more. Your current diet looks pretty good. Macros look good. You simply need more of it. Up your meal frequency. Hit 3k calories.
4)don't overdo supplements.

You are young. You are smart. You will recover quickly.
Get natural sunlight if possible. Don't overtrain. Have fun with friends, but avoid alcohol and weed. Sleep well.

Lastly, use the search function on this site. Lots for you to discover here.
 
OP
N

_noozie

Member
Joined
Sep 29, 2017
Messages
17
Hi and welcome.

I am sitting in traffic but wanted to reply to say a few general observations. Bear with me if I am vague or cryptic.
1) you are hypothyroid. But you are young, caught it early.
2)you probably are hypothyroid because you have trained your body to slow down its metabolism due to under eating, even currently, and overtraining
3) you can fix this by eating more. Your current diet looks pretty good. Macros look good. You simply need more of it. Up your meal frequency. Hit 3k calories.
4)don't overdo supplements.

You are young. You are smart. You will recover quickly.
Get natural sunlight if possible. Don't overtrain. Have fun with friends, but avoid alcohol and weed. Sleep well.

Lastly, use the search function on this site. Lots for you to discover here.

For a couple years I've felt I was hypo. But of course the ******* doctor has said I'm "normal" and "should stop worrying about Thyroid" (I've had it tested every year for a couple years). Ok great so you're going to let some number you don't understand lead you to neglect all the symptoms I talked about... Thanks doc. /endrant

Anyways, how gradually should I work my way up to 3k? I'm guessing the increments should be in the form of carbs? Should I also gradually get rid of cardio?

Thanks you @Peatful! You make me optimistic.
 

Peatful

Member
Joined
Dec 8, 2016
Messages
3,582
Yes, you intuitively knew.

Great question.
If you are eating three meals now, simply increase to four. Then once you are comfortable with four meals, increase to five....until you hit your 3k.
I would say keep your macros at 40/30/30. C/P/F.
That way your blood sugar stays balanced not causing adrenal stress and allows your thyroid to heal.
Red light is a great tool to aid thyroid function too.
And yes, get rid of cardio. No aerobic exercise. Lift weights, but not to fatigue, if you want exercise. Nature walks are good too, especially in sunshine.
Also, hope you are getting enough salt.

Track your temperature. Great objective data. Gives you feedback that you are on the right track.
Keep reading the forum. A great resource.
 
Last edited:
OP
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_noozie

Member
Joined
Sep 29, 2017
Messages
17
Yes, you intuitively knew.

Great question.
If you are eating three meals now, simply increase to four. Then once you are comfortable with four meals, increase to five....until you hit your 3k.
I would say keep your macros at 40/30/30. C/P/F.
That way your blood sugar stays balanced not causing adrenal stress and allows your thyroid to heal.
Red light is a great tool to aid thyroid function too.
And yes, get rid of cardio. No aerobic exercise. Lift weights, but not to fatigue, if you want exercise. Nature walks are good too, especially in sunshine.
Also, hope you are getting enough salt.
Keep reading the forum. A great resource.

Thanks. Updated my post with temperature/pulse as of late.

I eat 4 main meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and pre-bed) along with 1-2 'snacks' of raw carrot, OJ+gelatin, or milk/cream in coffees throughout the day. I eat plenty of salt too!

Actually was thinking about getting into Red Light Therapy but wanted to first see how I progress with diet alone.

Random Q: I don't see Greek yogurt mentioned much on the forum but I know some have issues with its lactic acid. I have ~3 cups a day because I enjoy it and bc it is an extremely convenient source of protein. Anything wrong with this? So far haven't experienced any issues and I've been eating lots of 0% Greek yogurt for as long as I can imagine.
 

Peatful

Member
Joined
Dec 8, 2016
Messages
3,582
Thanks. Updated my post with temperature/pulse as of late.

Random Q: I don't see Greek yogurt mentioned much on the forum but I know some have issues with its lactic acid. I have ~3 cups a day because I enjoy it and bc it is an extremely convenient source of protein. Anything wrong with this? So far haven't experienced any issues and I've been eating lots of Greek yogurt for as long as I can imagine.
From what I understand Greek yogurt is okay if no funky ingredients. You can sprinkle in baking soda to neutralize the lactic acid I think.
If you eat it but your temp doesn't rise from it, then it isn't an ideal food for you....
 
OP
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_noozie

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Joined
Sep 29, 2017
Messages
17
Update: dropped cardio.
Going to roll with the same calories/macros (2000 kcal, 160-170P / 55-60F / 200-210C) for a week or so before increasing. Just want to analyze how I respond to zero formal cardio.
 

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