Most Men Miss This Blood Marker Until It’s Too Late
I didn’t feel sick.
No obvious symptoms. No major red flags.
But at 38, during a deep dive with a functional medicine doctor, something unexpected showed up in my blood work: my iron levels were creeping up.
At first, I didn’t think much of it. I ate a high-protein, animal-based diet. I trained hard.
I recovered well (or so I thought).
But my Iron Studies panel told a different story.
My 2025 Functional Blood Work: Gut Health, Protein, and the Hidden Clues - Part 3
My gut health story goes back to around 2010, when I was deep into the endurance world — marathons, triathlons, and Ironman events. At the time, I thought endurance athletes were the fittest people on the planet. That more hours, more miles, more pain meant more health.
It took a few years (and plenty of symptoms) to realise just how wrong I was.
Endurance sports can do a number on your gut — especially when training volume is high, sleep is poor, stress is chronic, and recovery is an afterthought. If you want to read more about how that chapter impacted my health.
My 2025 Functional Blood Work flagged a 62% probability of GI dysfunction.
Do you talk to clients about their iron levels?
Iron deficiency is becoming more and more common, to a point where I often ask my clients when they last had their iron levels tested. Iron deficiency is not as common in men because they don't have a menstruation cycle each month and lose valuable iron stores. 90% of the female clients I've worked with either have an iron deficiency or have had one in the past.
Iron is an important nutrient, and it's rather scary how many people, especially women, are deficient in iron. It's also worth noting that too much iron is not healthy, and it's important to have your iron levels checked regularly.