Vital Metrics to Track

Personal Health Metrics: Tracking the Three Pillars of Wellbeing

This guide presents key metrics to track across three fundamental pillars of wellbeing: physical activity, sleep, and nutrition. Most physical activity and sleep metrics can be tracked using modern wearables like smart watches or fitness bands. For accurate body composition tracking, use a smart scale, measuring consistently in the morning on an empty stomach. Nutrition metrics require professional medical testing.

👉 Key Takeaways:

• Track daily active energy (target: 400-800 kcal) through 45 minutes of exercise
• Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep with 15-25% REM and 15-20% deep sleep phases
• Monitor body composition weekly: maintain 10-20% body fat for men, 18-28% for women
• Get annual blood work to check vitamins, minerals, hormones, and metabolic markers
• Use wearable data (HRV, RHR) to monitor your overall health status

1. Physical Activity Metrics

Daily Active Energy

• Typical Range: 400-800 kcal/day
• Impact: Essential for weight management and metabolic health
• Warning Signs: <300 kcal/day indicates sedentary lifestyle
• Personal Goal: 700 kcal/day at 45 min exercise

VO2Max

• Typical Range: 35-45 mL/kg/min for adults; 50+ mL/kg/min for athletes
• Impact: Measures aerobic endurance and cardiovascular fitness
• Warning Signs: Low levels correlate with increased chronic disease risk
• Personal Goal: 50 mL/kg/min

Body Composition

Personal Goal: At 186 cm height, my target is 95 kg total body weight with 80 kg lean body mass, maintaining 15% body fat.

Lean Body Mass (LBM)

• Typical Range: Males 70-90%, Females 60-80% of body weight
• Impact: Key marker of metabolic health and physical fitness
• Warning Signs: Low LBM can indicate muscle loss
• Personal Goal: 85%

Body Fat Percentage

• Typical Range: Males 10-20%, Females 18-28%
• Impact: Better indicator than BMI for fitness assessment
• Warning Signs: >25% in men, >32% in women increases health risks; <5% in men impairs testosterone production and immune function; <12% in women may cause amenorrhea and hormonal imbalances
• Personal Goal: 15%

2. Sleep and Recovery Metrics

Sleep Duration and Quality

• Typical Range: 7-9 hours total, 15-25% REM, 15-20% deep sleep
• Impact: Critical for recovery, cognitive function, and hormonal balance
• Warning Signs: <15% deep sleep impairs recovery; <15% REM affects memory
• Personal Goal: 7.5 hours total, 5 REM phases @ 30 min each, 100 min deep sleep

Heart Rate Variability (HRV)

• Typical Range: 40-70 ms (individual baselines vary)
• Impact: Indicates autonomic nervous system balance and recovery status
• Warning Signs: <20 ms suggests stress or overtraining
• Personal Goal: ~70 ms

Resting Heart Rate (RHR)

• Typical Range by Gender and Fitness Level:
  • Untrained Males: 60-70 bpm
  • Male Athletes: 40-60 bpm (average 62.6 ±11)
  • Untrained Females: 65-75 bpm
  • Female Athletes: 45-65 bpm (average 64.5 ±12)
• Impact: Indicates cardiovascular fitness and heart efficiency
• Factors Affecting RHR:
  • Gender: Females typically have 6-14 bpm higher RHR than males
  • Fitness: Athletic training significantly lowers RHR
  • Ethnicity: Studies found ~2.4 bpm lower RHR in athletes of African descent compared to those of European descent
  • Sport Type: Endurance sports (track/cross-country) show ~5.5 bpm lower RHR
• Warning Signs:
  • above 85 bpm may indicate stress or poor fitness
  • below 50 bpm in non-athletes needs medical review
  • Temporary increase of ~18 bpm per °C (~10 bpm per °F) fever during illness
• Note: RHR alone provides limited insight into cardiovascular disease risk, particularly in females
• Personal Goal: 45 bpm

Respiratory Rate During Sleep

• Typical Range: 12-18 breaths per minute
• Impact: Reflects respiratory efficiency and sleep quality
• Warning Signs: >20 breaths/min might indicate stress or sleep issues
• Personal Goal: 10-14 breaths per minute

Blood Oxygen Levels

• Typical Range: 95-99% during sleep and wakefulness
• Impact: Essential for cellular energy production
• Warning Signs: <95% requires medical attention
• Personal Goal: 95-99%

3. Nutrition Metrics

Daily Macro Goals

Set and track your daily macronutrient distribution:

• Protein: 25% of daily calories
• Carbohydrates: 35% of daily calories
• Fat: 40% of daily calories

For example, with my personal daily goal of 2400 kcal:

• Protein: 600 kcal / 150g
• Carbohydrates: 840 kcal / 210g
• Fat: 960 kcal / 107g

Note: Your specific caloric needs vary based on body weight, age, gender, activity level, and body composition.

Blood Work Recommendations

• Get comprehensive blood work done annually
• Work with a medical doctor to interpret results
• Track all available markers, particularly:
  • Vitamins (D, B12)
  • Minerals (Iron, Magnesium)
  • Hormones (Testosterone, Cortisol)
  • Lipids (Cholesterol, Triglycerides)
  • Metabolic markers (Blood sugar, HbA1c)

Aim to be in the top 25% of the recommended range for each marker.

4. Measuring Overall Health Impact

The combined effect of maintaining optimal metrics across physical activity, sleep, and nutrition can be observed through various health indicators. These measurements help assess how well your lifestyle choices are supporting your long-term health, with options ranging from simple daily tracking to advanced scientific analysis.

Basic Daily Tracking

Monitor these metrics using wearables and smart scales:

• Resting heart rate (RHR)
• Heart rate variability (HRV)
• Step count and physical activity levels
• Body composition (fat percentage, muscle mass)
• Sleep quality (duration, efficiency)

These metrics reflect overall cardiovascular health, physical fitness, and metabolic status. While they provide a general approximation of health status and are excellent for tracking trends, they lack the precision of molecular biomarkers. However, they’re invaluable for identifying the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions and daily habits.

Intermediate Health Markers

Through regular blood work, track:

• Blood biomarkers: glucose, cholesterol
• C-reactive protein (CRP)
• Liver function enzymes
• Inflammatory markers
• Continue monitoring basic metrics

Blood biomarkers add precision by indicating metabolic health, inflammation, and organ function. This approach provides moderate accuracy with a more nuanced view of internal health. Modern algorithms like PhenoAge and BioAge can analyze these markers to provide deeper insights into overall health status.

Advanced Health Assessment

For the most comprehensive health evaluation:

• Epigenetic testing (DNA methylation analysis)
• Telomere length measurement
• Multi-omics analysis: genomics, proteomics, metabolomics
• Integration with basic and intermediate metrics

This level provides the most precise assessment by directly measuring molecular changes associated with cellular health and DNA integrity. While expensive, these measurements offer the highest accuracy in predicting health outcomes.

Assessment Overview

Start with basic tracking and add more complex measurements based on your goals and resources. Remember that consistency in tracking basic metrics often provides more actionable insights than occasional advanced testing.

References

1. Landgraff et al., 2023 : Resting heart rate, physical activity, and long-term health outcomes
2. Rolland et al., 2014 : Body composition predictors of mortality in older adults
3. Kuo et al., 2021 : Genetic associations for biological age measures
4. Klemera & Doubal, 2006 : Computation and concepts of biological age
5. Chen et al., 2016 : DNA methylation-based measures of biological age
6. Earls et al., 2019 : Multi-omic biological age estimation and wellness phenotypes
7. Hatch et al., 2013 : Differences in Resting Heart Rate among Trained Collegiate Athletes
8. Corîci et al., 2018 : Gender-Related Electrocardiographic Changes in Athletes
9. Bessem et al., 2017 : Gender differences in the electrocardiogram screening of athletes
10. Gillum, 1988 : The epidemiology of resting heart rate in a national sample of men and women
11. Koenig & Thayer, 2016 : Sex differences in healthy human heart rate variability
12. James et al., 2007 : Recent advances in understanding sex differences in cardiac repolarization