Self-Directed Lab Testing: The Crucial Health Habit No One Thinks About
Have you ever felt like you’re flying blind when it comes to your health?
Like, you’re doing all the right things - eating well, exercising, getting enough sleep, and even tracking everything like we’ve discussed - but you’re not really sure if it’s making a difference under the hood?
I’ve been there, and let me tell you, it’s frustrating.
So, I decided to do something about it. I knew I needed to go beyond day-to-day health tracking if I wanted to be truly healthy.
The problem is, most of us are stuck in this cycle of only getting basic health checks when we visit the doctor once a year (if we’re even doing that). And let’s be real, those standard tests barely scratch the surface. They might tell you “your cholesterol is high,” but they don’t give you the full picture of your health or help you optimize it for the long haul.
And even when your doctor does order testing, there are more issues:
You’re still left unsure about your actual health status most of the time
By the time something shows up on a standard test, it might already be a problem
Insurance often won’t cover more comprehensive testing unless you’re already sick
You’re at the mercy of your doctor’s schedule and what they think is important to test
You don’t assume full ownership and accountability to make informed decisions about your health and lifestyle
But here’s the thing. It doesn’t have to be this way.
There is a game-changing approach accessible to anyone who wants to take control of their health: comprehensive self-directed lab testing.
What is self-directed lab testing?
Here’s how self-directed lab testing works and why it’s superior to conventional “annual wellness visits”:
You choose what to test: Want to check your inflammation levels? Curious about your hormone balance? You got it. It’s like having access to a buffet of in-depth health data.
No doctor needed for ordering: You can order these tests online, just like you’d order something you want from Amazon. No need to beg your doc for extra tests.
Early detection: You can catch potential issues before they become real problems. It’s like having a crystal ball for your health.
Personalized health optimization: With this data, you can fine-tune your diet, exercise, and lifestyle for your specific situation.
Frequent insights: You can do this 2-3 times a year or more, so you’re always in the know about what’s going on in your body.
There’s something really satisfying about taking control of your health in this manner.
The only downside is it’s not free or extremely cheap because in most cases, you are bypassing insurance. You can expect to pay between $300 to $1,000 for comprehensive 2-3x per year testing.
The good news is there are an increasing number of self-directed lab testing options, some of which are more affordable.
Options for self-directed lab testing
The options for self-directed lab testing have grown significantly over the past few years.
These days, you can order your own bloodwork directly from labs like Quest and LabCorp without going through your doctor. You can also order them through popular wearable companies like Whoop and Oura Ring and have the results integrated into the app with your wearable data.
There are also more comprehensive options that include an annual membership to ensure you are testing regularly, clinical physician review, and AI chat with your results. Next, I’ll break down some of the specific lab testing services I’m familiar with. I have personally used all of them except for Function Health:
Own Your Labs
Own Your Labs operates as a straightforward lab ordering platform that allows consumers to order their own blood tests without requiring a doctor’s prescription. The service focuses primarily on accessibility and affordability, offering discounted lab testing at competitive prices through partnerships with major lab networks like Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp. However, Own Your Labs is essentially a lab ordering service rather than a comprehensive health platform - it provides minimal follow-up guidance or interpretation of results. Users receive their raw lab results but are largely responsible for understanding and acting on them independently, making it best suited for informed consumers who know what tests they need or those working with their own healthcare providers.
Blueprint Biomarkers
Blueprint Biomarkers is Bryan Johnson’s biohacking-focused testing service that emerged from his personal “Don’t Die” longevity protocol. The service offers comprehensive biomarker panels designed around Johnson’s optimization approach, with “the lowest cost per biomarker” pricing in the market. Blueprint emphasizes detailed tracking of aging and performance markers, providing users with comparisons to Johnson’s own data and protocols. The follow-up guidance is structured around specific interventions and protocols that Johnson himself uses, creating a unique community-driven approach to health optimization. Its accessibility is primarily online-based, though it may be more limited geographically compared to larger established services.
Superpower
Superpower.com* positions itself as a modern, tech-forward lab testing platform with an emphasis on user experience and actionable insights. The service offers competitive pricing on 100+ biomarker panels and focuses on making lab testing feel less clinical and more empowering. Superpower provides personalized recommendations and follow-up guidance through its digital platform, often incorporating AI-driven insights and text message access to their team of clinicians to help users understand their results. The service emphasizes accessibility through a streamlined mobile-first experience and partnerships with national lab networks. A unique feature is its focus on making preventive health testing feel aspirational rather than medical, appealing particularly to younger, health-conscious consumers.
*affiliate link: $50 credit on Superpower Marketplace
Inside Tracker
Inside Tracker is one of the more established players in the personalized health analytics space, offering science-backed analysis of blood biomarkers, DNA, and fitness tracker data. Pricing tends to be on the higher end, reflecting its comprehensive analysis and personalized recommendations. The platform excels in follow-up guidance, providing detailed, individualized action plans based on peer-reviewed research, including specific nutrition, supplement, exercise, and lifestyle recommendations. Inside Tracker’s unique strength lies in its sophisticated algorithm that considers how different biomarkers interact and provides prioritized recommendations. The service offers good accessibility through partnerships with national lab chains and at-home testing options, plus optional consultations with registered dietitians for additional support.
Function Health
Function Health offers a membership-based model (around $499/year) that includes comprehensive lab testing covering 100+ biomarkers performed twice annually. This represents exceptional value for the breadth of testing provided, making it highly accessible from a cost-per-biomarker perspective. The service was co-founded by Dr. Mark Hyman and emphasizes preventive, functional medicine principles. Function Health provides follow-up guidance through detailed reports that explain results in accessible language, flag potential concerns, and suggest areas for further investigation. A unique feature is the membership model that encourages consistent tracking over time rather than one-off testing. The service also offers optional consultations with functional medicine practitioners, though geographic accessibility for in-person lab draws depends on their lab network partnerships.
Going beyond traditional primary care
Even with access like this at your fingertips, I still find it helps to have someone with specialized knowledge interpret your lab data - whether it’s your PCP, a functional medicine doctor, or a membership-based online concierge medicine service you trust.
You can share the results with your local primary care doctor, but some physicians may not be receptive to you ordering your own labs. The traditional medical system is also not designed or incentivized to spend a lot of time trying to optimize your long-term health.
Anyone who has been to a traditional doctor knows what it’s like. You wait for an hour to talk to the doctor for five minutes about whatever ailment you have. They will likely prescribe some meds and send you on your way. If you don’t have any “symptoms,” there is typically no time or attention paid to your concerns.
This is why I prefer to use a virtual longevity-focused or functional medicine clinic in place of a PCP. Unlike traditional in-person primary care, this newer health care model uses a personalized, data-driven approach with longer, more consultative virtual doctor visits focused on prevention and lifestyle rather than immediately resorting to drugs (although they can still prescribe them if needed).
These services typically charge a monthly membership fee which includes access to their team of physicians and sometimes additional staff like dietitians and personal trainers. Most of them will order labs for you and some even include them in their service so you may not even need to use one of the direct to consumer lab testing services.
You can check out companies like Parsley Health, Wild Health, or Velocity Health for this.
It’s nice to see demand for this type of care increasing because if you’re like me, your objective is to prevent disease before it takes hold, not just manage it after you are already sick like conventional medicine does.
So, here’s my challenge to you: Start with a comprehensive set of lab panels and see what you discover about your body.
If you want to take it even further, find a functional medicine or longevity-focused doctor to help you interpret your results and take meaningful action towards improving your health.
Your future self will thank you for being proactive now.
Note:
I recognize lab testing is outside of the scope of the day-to-day habits emphasized throughout the rest of this book. However, I had to include it because it is of utmost importance. If you don’t have a lab testing routine in place, get one. It can literally save your life.
P.S.
This was a free chapter from my book, The Personal Health Tracking Blueprint. Paid subscribers can download the full ebook at the end of this post. For a limited time, the first 25 participants can also get a free copy in exchange for leaving an Amazon review. This helps with rankings, discoverability, and helps support my work. Send me a screenshot of your review and I’ll thank you personally.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be publishing some more free chapters from the book in my newsletter, but the discounted ebook price of $0.99 will expire soon, so don’t wait to grab a copy and leave a review if you want to support my work. Paperback version is also available.
Here are links to the free chapters:
Beyond Scale Weight: How to Measure and Improve Your Body Composition
Why You Cannot Ignore Exercise (and One Metric to Simplify Your Tracking)
Self-Directed Lab Testing: The Crucial Health Habit No One Thinks About