Knowledge is Power: Know Your Numbers

Metrics provide insight into living well, aging great

Recently, my husband Andrea was reading Born to Run 2, by running coach Eric Orton and Christopher McDougall, and he was struck that the author, who by all appearances is a very fit man for any age, was taking an at-home A1C test. This is a test that reflects your average blood sugar level for the past two to three months, which in turn indicates where you are on the prediabetes or diabetes scale. Interesting that this professionally fit 50-year-old guy was keeping tabs on his blood sugar levels…

About the same time, a friend announced with relief that after a couple years of health troubles and testing, she had finally received a diagnosis: she has type 2 diabetes. We were in a group setting, so a barrage of questions would have been wildly inappropriate, but my mind started racing. A couple of years of testing and the doctor is just now making the connection to blood sugar levels? Whaaatttt? I know there is probably a whole lot more to this story, but the bottom line is that this poor woman has been having a myriad of seemingly unconnected health troubles and the diagnosis at the end of a couple of years is type 2 diabetes, a nearly entirely preventable disease. I was incensed for her. I’d get a new doctor.

Life altering metrics
This brings me back to Eric Orton taking the A1C test. Andrea and I had recently acquired a couple of items to track a few health baselines—a blood pressure cuff and fancy digital scale for BMI and a host of other metrics—so we agreed this A1C test would be part of our newly formed self-directed wellness check-in. After some research, I placed an order for one that would give us results in 5 minutes. (Results. At home. 5 minutes. Unbelievable.)  

The box had been staring at us for over 2 weeks, so we decided that we needed to quit dillydallying and have a health check-in that morning. We took our blood pressure first. We both were in the normal range, I was on the low end at 109/64. Quick internet search showed I appeared to be well below the acceptable range for a nearly 62-year-old woman (but I discovered very disturbing metrics I’ll get to in a bit). Up next, the finger prick and the A1C test. We had a couple of snafus (thank goodness there were four tests in the package) but with bated breath, right on time, we had results in 5 minutes. We both clocked in at 5.5%, 0.2% under the normal 5.7% threshold. Phew. What a relief! But honestly, as we are barely under the normal, it showed us we could do better.

I won’t regale you with all the deep-dive metrics from the fancy futuristic scale, needless to say, it provides a host of deep insights to help keep me in check. That’s what all these modern-day monitors are: eye-opening understandings. In this quest to live well, age great, we need checks and balances. As I’ve mentioned in other posts, I’m not moored to wearables; partly because I think the constant EMGs are unhealthy, and partly because I get too obsessive constantly checking. BUT, I am able to use them sparingly and judiciously to serve as both benchmarks and guide rails.

Goals to aim for
I believe being able to utilize metrics is one of the keys to navigating the temptations and pitfalls of these present times and making intentional decisions. I often hear “Camy, you have such willpower…” And yes, that’s true to a certain extent, but my seemingly unusual willpower isn’t that extraordinary…it’s fueled by accountability and frankly a little fear. Not only am I keenly aware of consequences that matter to me—such as staying healthy, hiking with my family and carrying my own groceries—my goal numbers (and their upshot) loom large in my mind. Perhaps it’s a little bit of a competitive nature, but I find that knowing what marks to hit compels me to aim for them.

To clarify, I’m not compulsively checking this big batch of numbers; I’ve learned to control that part of my nature for a variety of reasons. Not the least of which is that it can become a fruitless and non-productive time sink and distraction. So I schedule check-ins with myself: weigh once a week; check blood pressure once a month; and I think we will probably do the A1C test once every 4 months. My husband tracks our miles. For these rudimentary checkpoints, I think we are set.

Beware vanity numbers
Speaking of checkpoints, I did see something odd when searching for “normal” age-range figures. It looks like the numbers are being adjusted for our unhealthy society. Almost like vanity sizing. For instance, multiple sources report that the normal AC1 range for adults is anything under 5.7%; a level of 5.7% to 6.4% indicates prediabetes; and a level of 6.5% or more indicates diabetes. Within the 5.7% to 6.4% prediabetes range, the higher A1C, the greater your risk is for developing type 2 diabetes.

So then I thought, hmmm, let me look at “senior” levels, age 60 or 65 and above. Interestingly, I found several sources that placed “normal” AC1 levels for age 60 at 6.5%. I was perplexed. Why set a number which, at face value is in the diabetes range, as normal for a person over 60? Is the bench being lowered to accommodate so many unhealthy people? I also saw this with blood pressure figures; the ranges adjusted fairly dramatically with age. My vex turned to irk. With approximately 96 million American adults—more than 1 in 3—in the prediabetes range, and more than 80% unaware that they have it, lowering the thresholds is nonsensical and only serves to enable people to become unhealthy as they age.

Intentional choices for a long healthspan
I’m purposefully setting levels for 30-40 year olds as my goal and as of right now, I’m grateful to be in the range. I simply don’t accept our health needlessly declines with age. We can’t control what we don’t know. Knowledge is power. Knowing and monitoring our baselines provides the framework for informed, intentional choices.

We can choose to live an overall healthy lifestyle consisting of whole foods, consistent movement and exercise, 7-9 hours of sleep, community connections, and spiritual well-being. Living well and aging great is firmly within our control.

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