--- title: "InsideTracker Works: I'm a believer" description: After my last blood test, I received some pretty embarrassing results. As a master’s student studying nutrition, I had both high cholesterol and low ferritin, a blood marker for iron.  Despite eating a very healthy diet, I was still missing the mark on some seriously important nutrients. image: https://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m44hncwwrA1r2cpf6.png --- [![Logo](https://blog.insidetracker.com/hubfs/Logo.png "Logo")](https://www.insidetracker.com/) - [Why InsideTracker?](https://www.insidetracker.com/testimonial/) - [How it works](https://www.insidetracker.com/tour/) - [Science](https://www.insidetracker.com/science/) - [About](https://www.insidetracker.com/about/) - [Blog](https://blog.insidetracker.com/) - [Contact us](https://support.insidetracker.com/supportcenter) - [Shop](https://store.insidetracker.com/) Open main menu Close main menu - [Home](https://blog.insidetracker.com/) - [Courses](https://info.insidetracker.com/live-healthier-longer-course) - [Nutrition](https://blog.insidetracker.com/nutrition) Open the submenu - [Food](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/food) - [Supplements](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/supplements) - [Health + Wellness](https://blog.insidetracker.com/health-wellness) Open the submenu - [Heart health](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/heart-health) - [Women's health](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/womens-health) - [Sleep](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/sleep) - [Energy](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/boost-energy) - [Cognition](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Cognition) - [Immunity](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/immunity) - [Stress](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/reduce-stress) - [Performance](https://blog.insidetracker.com/performance) Open the submenu - [Endurance](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/endurance) - [Strength + Fitness](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/strength-fitness) - [Longevity](https://blog.insidetracker.com/longevity) - More... Open the submenu - [Recovery](https://blog.insidetracker.com/recovery) - [Community Stories](https://blog.insidetracker.com/community-stories) - [InsideTracker Updates](https://blog.insidetracker.com/insidetracker-updates) - [Home](https://blog.insidetracker.com/) - [Courses](https://info.insidetracker.com/live-healthier-longer-course) - [Nutrition](https://blog.insidetracker.com/nutrition) Open the submenu - [Food](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/food) - [Supplements](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/supplements) - [Health + wellness](https://blog.insidetracker.com/health-wellness) Open the submenu - [Heart health](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/heart-health) - [Gut health](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/gut-health) - [Sleep](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/sleep) - [Energy](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/boost-energy) - [Cognition](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Cognition) - [Immunity](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/immunity) - [Stress](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/reduce-stress) - [Performance](https://blog.insidetracker.com/performance) Open the submenu - [Endurance](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/endurance) - [Strength + fitness](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/strength-fitness) - [Recovery](https://blog.insidetracker.com/recovery) - [Longevity](https://blog.insidetracker.com/longevity) - [Community stories](https://blog.insidetracker.com/community-stories) - [InsideTracker updates](https://blog.insidetracker.com/insidetracker-updates) #### Search the InsideGuide #### Browse biomarkers ##### Energy + Metabolism - [Glucose](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/glucose) - [Cholesterol](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Cholesterol) - [Triglycerides](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Triglycerides) ##### Bone Health - [Calcium](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Calcium) - [Vitamin D](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Vitamin-D) ##### Inflammation - [hsCRP](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/hsCRP) - [White blood cells](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/White-blood-cells) ##### Strength + Endurance - [Creatine Kinase](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Creatine-Kinase) - [Testosterone](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Testosterone) - [DHEAS](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/DHEAS) - [Cortisol](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Cortisol) - [Sex-Hormone Binding Globulin](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Sex-Hormone-Binding-Globulin) ##### Brain + Body - [Magnesium](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Magnesium) - [Vitamin B12](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Vitamin-B12) ##### Electrolytes - [Potassium](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Potassium) - [Sodium](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Sodium) ##### Oxygen + Performance - [Ferritin](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Ferritin) - [Hemoglobin](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Hemoglobin) - [Iron](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/Iron) ##### Liver Enzymes - [ALT, AST + GGT](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/alt-ast-ggt) #### InsideTracker Plans - [Ultimate](https://store.insidetracker.com/products/ultimate) - [Essentials](https://store.insidetracker.com/products/essentials) - [InnerAge 2.0](https://store.insidetracker.com/products/innerage) - [DNA Kit](https://store.insidetracker.com/products/dna-kit) # InsideTracker Works: I'm a believer By [Bobby Robins](https://blog.insidetracker.com/author/bobby-robins), August 5, 2022   After my [last blood test](https://www.insidetracker.com/blog/post/15669765602/my-eye-opening-insidetracker-experience), I received some pretty embarrassing results. As a master’s student studying nutrition, I had both high cholesterol and [low ferritin](https://www.insidetracker.com/blog/post/13462425024/blood-iron-levels-and-athletic-performance), a blood marker for iron.  Despite eating a very healthy diet, I was still missing the mark on some seriously important nutrients. ![image](https://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m44hncwwrA1r2cpf6.png) Even worse, my doctor had ordered blood work as part of my annual physical last year and hadn’t notified me that anything was amiss in my results! That’s why [InsideTracker](https://www.insidetracker.com/) goes further than typical blood tests to find my optimized range for markers like cholesterol. Their unique algorithm uses my demographic information, lifestyle habits and the latest peer-reviewed scientific research to create more accurate ranges for my biomarkers. [Click here to learn how InsideTracker can recommend personalized diet and exercise plans that will fit your unique physical needs!](https://www.insidetracker.com/demo) Once I received my results, I wanted to take action immediately.  As a  nutrition blogger and a health advocate, it’s important for me to walk the walk.  I used InsideTracker’s food recommendations to make simple changes to my diet. To lower my cholesterol, I cut down on my weekend splurges of red meat, ate less cheese, and swapped eggs for oatmeal as my breakfast staple. ![image](https://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m44hncwwrA1r2cpf6.png) Trying to raise my low level of ferritin was a bit more difficult. [As a woman and a runner](https://www.insidetracker.com/blog/post/13462425024/blood-iron-levels-and-athletic-performance), I need more than twice as much iron as a man, and it’s important to make sure my body’s getting enough.  But because my diet is low in animal products, which contain heme iron (the form that’s more readily absorbed by the body), my iron-rich food options were limited. I decided to turn to a more potent iron supplement to ensure that my blood would absorb enough iron to meet my body’s needs. I ditched my multivitamin, which provided 6mg/day and started taking a higher dose of ferrous sulfate that provided 65mg/day. [InsideTracker](https://www.insidetracker.com/) also helped me see that I really didn’t need to take a multivitamin anyway. Besides iron and cholesterol, my nutrient levels were already optimized and my folic acid was actually well over the recommended amount. High intakes of folate can actually cause neurological damage over time. Three months later, I had my blood tested again at InsideTracker’s booth at the [Boston Multisport World](https://www.multisportworld.com/Boston.htm) fitness expo. Amid booths of nutrition bars and neon spandex, the phlebotomist drew several vials of my blood. (I’ll blame my subsequent running shoe splurge on being light-headed.)  A few days later, my results were in! In three short months, I lowered my LDL (bad) cholesterol from 127mg/dL to 96mg/dL - just above my optimized range from InsideTracker - just by changing a few foods in my diet. My ferritin marker also made moves; it raised 11ng/mL in a short period of time. Since I’m a runner, I was especially pleased to see my progress. Iron is essential to form hemoglobin and myoglobin, the body’s oxygen-carrying proteins. Moving oxygen efficiently throughout the body is vital for distance runners to perform at their peak. My iron is still 7ng/mL below my optimized zone, so I still have some work to do. [InsideTracker](https://www.insidetracker.com/) suggested several iron-rich vegetarian foods, including spinach, clams, and mushrooms. Working these foods into my diet, in addition to taking a more potent supplement should be enough to get me where I need to be. Before becoming a customer, I believed in the idea of the product and its potential to empower individuals to take control of their health. But I am now more than a believer; I am living proof that [InsideTracker](https://www.insidetracker.com/) can help individuals reach their optimum nutrition and health goals, one step at a time. #### 8 Ways to Biohack Your Health Free eBook ![eBook_img](https://blog.insidetracker.com/hs-fs/hubfs/inside-tracker/images/eBook_img.png?width=684&height=264&name=eBook_img.png) ### More on this topic [Manage Your Mind with These Three Strategies from Dr. Caroline Leaf](https://blog.insidetracker.com/manage-mind-strategies-dr-caroline-leaf) ###### By Michelle Darian, MS, MPH, RD, April 21, 2021 [Chasing Your Big, Wild, Audacious Goals: A Letter from Olympian Shalane Flanagan](https://blog.insidetracker.com/chasing-big-wild-audacious-goals-letter-shalane-flanagan) ###### By Shalane Flanagan, April 9, 2021 [Slowing Down to Speed Up: Olympian Tianna Bartoletta's Bedtime Routine for Improved Performance](https://blog.insidetracker.com/olympian-tianna-bartoletta-bedtime-routine-improved-performance) ###### By Tianna Bartoletta, April 5, 2021 [![New call-to-action](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/419889/4c987482-a4a3-4770-8721-a3e7cf9b89e8.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/419889/4c987482-a4a3-4770-8721-a3e7cf9b89e8) ### Longevity by Design #### The Podcast [![](https://blog.insidetracker.com/hubfs/86dzy7kt4%20-%20Inside%20Tracker%20-%20Longevity%20by%20Design%20-%20Dr.%20Andrea%20Maier%20-%20Episode%20Thumbnail_01.jpg)](https://blog.insidetracker.com/do-longevity-supplements-really-work) [Do Longevity Supplements Really Work?](https://blog.insidetracker.com/do-longevity-supplements-really-work) [![](https://blog.insidetracker.com/hubfs/86dztppxp%20-%20Inside%20Tracker%20-%20Longevity%20by%20Design%20-%20Dr.%20Uri%20Alon%20-%20Episode%20Thumbnail_01.jpg)](https://blog.insidetracker.com/what-houses-garbage-and-trucks-teach-us-about-aging-with-dr.-uri-alon) [What Houses, Garbage, and Trucks Teach Us About Aging with Dr. Uri Alon](https://blog.insidetracker.com/what-houses-garbage-and-trucks-teach-us-about-aging-with-dr.-uri-alon) [View all articles](https://blog.insidetracker.com/topic/podcast) #### Recent articles [![](https://blog.insidetracker.com/hubfs/86dzy7kt4%20-%20Inside%20Tracker%20-%20Longevity%20by%20Design%20-%20Dr.%20Andrea%20Maier%20-%20Episode%20Thumbnail_01.jpg)](https://blog.insidetracker.com/do-longevity-supplements-really-work) [Do Longevity Supplements Really Work?](https://blog.insidetracker.com/do-longevity-supplements-really-work) March 30, 2026 [![](https://blog.insidetracker.com/hubfs/86dztppxp%20-%20Inside%20Tracker%20-%20Longevity%20by%20Design%20-%20Dr.%20Uri%20Alon%20-%20Episode%20Thumbnail_01.jpg)](https://blog.insidetracker.com/what-houses-garbage-and-trucks-teach-us-about-aging-with-dr.-uri-alon) [What Houses, Garbage, and Trucks Teach Us About Aging with Dr. Uri Alon](https://blog.insidetracker.com/what-houses-garbage-and-trucks-teach-us-about-aging-with-dr.-uri-alon) March 28, 2026 [View all articles](https://blog.insidetracker.com/all) ##### Company - 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