#FrugalFridays: What is InsideTracker and Why Do You Need It?

Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with InsideTracker but I was offered a discount on the plan I purchased. I was not asked to blog about my experience, but found it necessary to share because of my positive experience and life-changing results I received.

Happy Friday!

Today’s #FrugalFridays post will explain all about InsideTracker and also provide you with a discount code at the end of the post.

What is InsideTracker?

Simply put, InsideTracker provides “sophisticated, science-based blood analytics, tailored just for you”. Based on your results, the website provides personalized nutrition and lifestyle recommendations.

I first found out about the company from an Instagram post from fellow runner Christina. I was thinking about getting complete blood works done anyway before I started Marathon training so this seemed perfect. I also like that the company provided personalized results – always a good thing!

InsideTracker offers 6 different plans:

Ultimate Plan ($499) – This is the most comprehensive plan and includes 30 biomarkers.

Performance Plan ($299) – This plan includes 20 performance biomarkers and is marketed to the “weekend warrior or serious athlete”.

Fitness Plan ($149) – Included in this plan are 12 biomarkers and requires less blood than the other plans.

Home Kit Plan (starting from $109) – This plan includes 7 biomarkers and gives information to allow you to “live an active lifestyle at home”.

Inner Age Plan ($99) – This plan allows you to know you true “inner age” based off of 5 key biomarkers.

DIY Kit (starting from $49) – If you already have your blood results, you can send them to InsideTracker to check for biomarkers of your choice.

Getting Started

I first talked to Jonathan Levitt about the different plans and which plan would be the right one for me based on my wants and needs. Based on this, we decided on the Performance Plan. Jonathan was also kind enough to include the Inner Age plan as well. What I also want to add is that the bloodworks are included in your purchase. I think this is VERY important when you are looking at the price of the plans. Y’all know I’m all about bring frugal, so this is really a great deal. Personally I’ve never been tested for Vitamin D because the test was not included with my annual physical through my insurance. I know this test alone would be $200+, so getting it included in the Performance Plan, along with other biomarkers, was great!

Once you purchase the plan, you are emailed a sheet that you bring with you to your doctor’s office or blood draw facility. Luckily I had a few Quest Diagnostics facilities in my area so I set up an appointment there. The only requirement is that you fast for 12 hours before getting your blood drawn. My guess is that this gives a more accurate reading. Your blood is then sent off to InsideTracker and you get your results within a week.

The Results

I received my results in less than 5 business days. I was very impressed with how quickly I got my results. Once you make an account on the website, you can log in to see all of your results and recommendations. Here is a quick snapshot:

So as you can see, I have 2 at risk biomarkers, 4 biomarkers that need work and 13 optimized biomarkers. Overall not too bad, but let’s delve into these results a little deeper.

Vitamin D – I’m not surprised at all by this result. As I mentioned earlier, I have never been tested for Vitamin D and my very low level explains my tiredness the past few months. The optimized zone for me for Vitamin D is between 40-48 and I’m at a whopping 12. Yeah, that’s pretty awful. The good news is that I’m now taking a Vitamin D supplment daily.

Inflammation – Again, not surprised by this result at all. I’ve always had issues with inflammation in my body (going back to high school). What alarmed me was that it’s just not high, but VERY high. I’m sure this affects many things in my body, and my diet may have something to do with it, so I was very happy to see all the food suggestions.

My “needs work” biomarkers included iron, ferratin, total cholesterol and LDL. I expected the iron and ferratin levels to be a little out of whack because I’ve been told that women, especially women who are still menstruating, often have lower numbers in these two categories. I wasn’t too far away from the optimized category, so with a little work, I know I can get my numbers where they need to be. I was a little concerned about the total cholesterol and LDL numbers, but I discused these with my doctor and she was not alarmed so that made me feel better.

Yes, I did take my results to my doctor because I want to go over everything, especially the Vitamin D and high inflammation information. I recommend this because although the results are personalized, you still need an expert to discuss the results with you as well.

So what are my next steps?

The food recommendations were a little overwhelming, because there were so many to choose from! Funny enough, on Wednesday I was notified that I won a giveaway for a free 30 minute nutrition consultation with a Registered Dietitian from InsideTracker. To say I was stoked would be an understatement. My next step was actually to set up an appointment with a nutritionist in my area, but this 30 minute session will be a great start. I’m hoping that working with a nutritionist based on all my results will help to enhance my marathon training experience. Please keep your fingers crossed for me!

Get your own results, at a discount!

If you’re interested in trying InsideTracker, click here to save 10% off of any plan (or you can use code KOOKYRUNNER). If you sign up for a plan, please let me know. I’d love to hear about your experience!

Wishing everyone a great weekend! I plan on hobbling through a 10K race on Saturday and then binge watching the new season of Orange is the New Black 🙂