Module 11 of 14

WEEK 10

Your Metabolic Radar

Week 10 | The Data Behind the Feeling

Ten weeks of disciplined work: protein consistent, carbohydrate quality improved, fat sources upgraded, refined sugar removed, saboteurs cleared, meal timing refined, and sleep prioritized. You have changed the inputs your body works with every single day. This week we look inside. Not at how you feel—though that matters—but at what your biology is actually doing. The Metabolic Radar is a snapshot of the key biomarkers that reveal your metabolic health from the inside out.

REFLECTION ON WEEK 9

Looking Back Before Moving Forward

Last week you addressed sleep and recovery as the engine room of metabolic health. Before we move on, take stock of what changed.

Guided Reflection

How did prioritizing sleep and recovery affect your week?

  1. Were you able to hold consistent sleep and wake times for all seven days?
  2. What changes did you notice in energy, hunger, or training performance as sleep improved?
  3. How did removing screens before bed affect your sleep quality?

THE LESSON

The Metabolic Radar

The Radar pulls from five domains: fuel handling, cardiovascular risk, inflammation, body composition, and functional strength.

Fuel Handling

  • Fasting Insulin – The earliest and most sensitive signal of insulin resistance. Most standard panels do not include it, but it is the first marker to rise as metabolism begins to dysfunction—often years before blood sugar becomes abnormal.
  • HbA1c – Your three-month blood sugar average. Unlike a single fasting glucose reading, HbA1c captures the cumulative picture of how your body has been handling sugar over time. Ten weeks of the work you have done will show up here.
  • Triglyceride : HDL Ratio – One of the best single-number predictors of metabolic and cardiovascular health. High triglycerides reflect excess carbohydrate and sugar consumption. Low HDL reflects poor fat metabolism and chronic inflammation.

Cardiovascular Risk

  • ApoB – More informative than standard LDL cholesterol. ApoB counts the actual number of atherogenic particles in circulation—the ones capable of depositing in arterial walls.
  • Blood Pressure – Elevated blood pressure is a direct signal of cardiovascular strain. Improvements in sodium quality, processed food reduction, and sleep all move this number.

Inflammation

  • hs-CRP (High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein) – The primary marker of systemic inflammation. Elevated hs-CRP reflects inflammatory fat accumulation, poor food quality, oxidative stress from industrial fats, or insufficient recovery.

Body Composition

  • ALMI (Appendicular Lean Mass Index) – Measurement of muscle mass in your arms and legs relative to height. More predictive of longevity and metabolic health than body weight or BMI.
  • Visceral Adipose Tissue (VAT) – Fat stored around the organs, not under the skin. VAT is metabolically active, producing inflammatory signals and hormones that drive insulin resistance.
  • Body Fat Percentage and Bone Mineral Density – Available via DXA scan.

Functional Strength

  • Grip Strength – Measured with a dynamometer, grip strength is one of the most reliable proxies for total-body muscle reserve and longevity.

WHY IT MATTERS

What Ten Weeks Has Done to These Numbers

  • Eliminating refined sugar and processing carbohydrates lowers fasting insulin and HbA1c.
  • Removing industrial seed oils and replacing them with real fats reduces hs-CRP.
  • Improving protein intake preserves ALMI and supports grip strength.
  • Clearing alcohol and metabolic saboteurs directly reduces triglycerides and visceral fat.
  • Improving sleep resets insulin sensitivity and reduces cortisol-driven fat accumulation.

Getting Your Own Radar

The Metabolic Health program at CrossFit Santa Cruz offers a full Radar assessment: blood markers, DXA scan, grip strength, and a complete scored report that maps exactly where your metabolism is strong and where it needs work.

YOUR TASK

This Week's Challenge

  • Review the list of Radar markers above and identify the two or three you are most curious about.
  • Reflect on the nutritional choices from the past ten weeks and connect each one to a specific marker it improves.
  • If you have had bloodwork done in the past year, locate those results and compare them against the markers described above.

You have been doing the work. This week, understand what that work is actually changing.

The Metabolic Mastery Team | CrossFit Santa Cruz