Your labs say normal. That might not mean healthy.

FOC monthly community call recap · Expert Feature · Featuring Dr. Sandeep Palakodeti and Brock Reichert of Velocity

Founders and athletes put their bodies under similar stress. That was the starting point for our July 28 member call, when Dr. Sandeep Palakodeti, CEO and co-founder of Velocity, and Brock Reichert, Velocity's Chief Clinical Officer, walked through real blood work from Eric Hinman and Wyatt Ewing live with the Founders Only community.

"the stress applied to athletes is the same you'll see that physiologically manifested in someone's blood work. the same stress that applies to a founder or a hard charger because the body doesn't recognize stress from a running versus stress from just crazy deal"

Why normal ranges can mislead

"So look ultimately one of the takeaways is that the normal ranges for blood work in this country are developed off of population ranges."

As the general population gets less healthy, Dr. Palakodeti explained, reference ranges widen. Velocity uses tighter optimal ranges built from clinical experience and the literature, and groups markers into body systems instead of reading each number alone.

"I think it's important to kind of categorize these into different systems that are working"

Iron: stored versus circulating

Ferritin is stored iron. Serum iron is what is circulating right now. The two can tell very different stories, and ferritin can also rise with inflammation, illness, or a hard training block.

"it can be elevated just like CRP can be elevated uh for any number of reasons. Whether you have a viral illness or you have a hamstring injury or you just went really hard uh on the mountain bike"

Dr. Palakodeti added that good clinicians often come away from labs with more questions than answers, and that is the point.

Testosterone is not just one number

"And so that's why the headline here says testosterone optimization is not just a number."

Brock walked through SHBG, estrogen ratios, and the cortisol to DHEA ratio as signals of whether the body is in build up or breakdown mode. Estrogen, Dr. Palakodeti noted, protects the heart and bones, so it should not be pushed down without symptoms. Androgen receptor density and sensitivity matter too, and standard labs do not measure them.

Metabolic health: look past fasting glucose

A1C and fasting glucose alone can hide trends. Brock recommended adding fasting insulin and, when useful, a continuous glucose monitor to see what blood sugar is really doing through the day and night. Heavy training can also push glucose up through cortisol.

Inflammation, B vitamins, and vitamin D

"Like if you can have zero CRP, like that's the ideal thing."

Brock flagged homocysteine as a marker where standard ranges are too loose, and explained that low vitamin D can be a sign of inflammation rather than just a supplement gap.

Cholesterol: watch the trucks, not the cargo

"The way to think about this is LDL or or cholesterol is kind of the cargo in the trucks. What we actually care about are apo lipoprotein B apo B."

Dr. Palakodeti framed every cholesterol number around one question: what is your risk of heart attack or stroke? Context matters. An elevated ApoB with low inflammation, healthy blood pressure, and a clean coronary scan reads very differently from the same number with other risk factors. He also noted Lp(a) is largely genetic.

Test the same way every time

"the biggest thing is just doing your blood work in the same way you can possibly do it. Even even the same day of the week is even better"

Ideally, draw in the morning after a rest day, so that changes over time reflect you and not yesterday's leg session.

What we took away

• Normal is not the same as optimal. Population based ranges can hide early signs of dysfunction.
• Read labs by body system and by trend, not one red number at a time.
• Ferritin and CRP can rise with training and illness. Context matters.
• Hormone health is about ratios and receptors, not chasing a higher total testosterone.
• Add fasting insulin, and consider a CGM, to see beyond fasting glucose.
• For heart risk, ApoB and overall context matter more than LDL alone.
• Draw labs the same way each time, ideally in the morning after a rest day.

This recap is from our FOC monthly community call with Velocity. It is educational and is not medical advice. Talk with your own clinician about your results.

Want expert sessions like this with a vetted founder community? Explore Founders Only membership at foundersonlyclub.com.