PRO Lab Panels
At-Home Blood Testing, Provider Review, and Why Objective Data Comes First
PRO Sports Medicine Learning Center
Introduction
Most people judge their health by how they feel. Energy, sleep, recovery, body weight, and mood all matter, and they are often the first signs that something has changed. But feelings are a late and unreliable signal. Cholesterol can climb for years without symptoms. Blood sugar regulation can drift for a decade before a diagnosis. Hematocrit can rise quietly during testosterone therapy. Iron stores can run low in an athlete who simply feels "a little flat."
Laboratory testing turns those invisible processes into numbers that can be measured, tracked, and discussed. That is the purpose of the PRO Lab Panels: to give patients and providers objective information before, during, and after a health, performance, weight-loss, hormone, or peptide program.
At PRO Sports Medicine, we believe the order matters. Measure first. Then build the plan. Then measure again. This section of the Learning Center explains every PRO panel in detail, biomarker by biomarker, so that you understand what is being measured, why it matters, and how it fits into your care.
What the PRO Lab Panels Are
The PRO Lab Panels are at-home blood tests offered through PROpeptides and processed by a partner clinical laboratory. Instead of visiting a lab for a venous blood draw, you collect a small capillary sample at home with an EasyDraw collection device, package it with the supplied materials, and send it back using prepaid return shipping. Results are delivered digitally, with each biomarker shown next to the laboratory's reference range.
Every panel can be reviewed with a PRO Sports Medicine provider. For active PRO Foundations members, that clinical review is included. Nonmembers can add a provider review for a separate fee.
The Six Core Panels
There are six individual panels, each designed around a specific clinical question:
PRO Core Health Panel (18 biomarkers for men, 16 for women): a foundational baseline covering cholesterol and ApoB, HbA1c, hsCRP, TSH, vitamin D, ferritin, and sex-specific hormone markers.
PRO GLP & Cardio Panel (25 biomarkers): built for weight management and GLP-1 care, with an expanded lipid panel, ApoB, HbA1c, C-peptide, liver enzymes, kidney function, hsCRP, and TSH.
PRO HRT Monitoring Panel (16 biomarkers): built for testosterone and hormone therapy, combining a complete blood count with testosterone, free testosterone, SHBG, albumin, estradiol, and a sex-specific marker.
PRO Women's Health Panel (15 biomarkers): focused on female reproductive hormones, androgens, thyroid, metabolic health, and iron status.
PRO Peptide Panel (25 biomarkers): built for peptide therapy monitoring, including IGF-1, a complete blood count, liver and kidney chemistry, testosterone, SHBG, TSH, hsCRP, HbA1c, and a sex-specific marker.
PRO Performance Panel (41 biomarkers): our most comprehensive single panel, covering advanced lipids including ApoB, ApoA1 and Lp(a), glucose regulation, a full hormone profile, a complete thyroid panel with antibodies, liver and kidney function, and a detailed nutrient and iron profile.
The Six Combination Panels
Many patients have goals that overlap. Someone using a GLP-1 medication may also be on testosterone therapy. A woman beginning a peptide protocol may also be navigating perimenopause. To avoid ordering two separate kits, PRO offers six combined packages:
PRO Core + GLP Metabolic Health Panel
PRO GLP + HRT Monitoring Panel
PRO Core + Peptide Performance Panel
PRO Women's Health + Peptide Performance Panel
PRO Performance + HRT Monitoring Panel
PRO Performance + Peptide Performance Panel
Each combination joins two of the individual panels into one ordering experience. Each has its own chapter in this series, explaining who it is designed for and how the two halves work together.
How the Process Works
Choose a panel. Use this series, or a conversation with your PRO provider, to pick the panel that matches your goals and any treatment you are on.
Receive your kit. The kit contains collection supplies, one or more EasyDraw devices, collection tubes, specimen packaging, instructions, and prepaid return shipping.
Collect your sample. Follow the kit instructions carefully. Timing can matter, especially for hormones, and an adequate sample is required for the lab to report every marker.
Ship it back. Package the sample as instructed and return it promptly.
Review your results. Results arrive digitally. Your PRO provider reviews them in the context of your history, symptoms, medications, and goals, and recommends next steps.
Why We Test Before We Treat
Peptides, hormone therapy, GLP-1 medications, and even high-dose supplements all act on physiology that can be measured. Testing before starting a program does three things:
It establishes a baseline. Without a starting value, there is no way to know whether a later number is an improvement, a problem, or simply normal variation.
It screens for findings that change the plan. An unexpectedly high hematocrit, an elevated liver enzyme, a low eGFR, or an abnormal TSH may change which therapies are appropriate, or point to something that needs separate medical attention.
It allows honest follow-up. Repeat testing shows whether a program is moving the right markers in the right direction, rather than relying on impressions alone.
This approach mirrors the physiology-first philosophy of our longevity series. For a broader look at how biomarkers are used in healthy aging, see Laboratory Assessment & Biomarkers.
How to Choose a Panel
A simple way to think about it:
Starting out, or want a general baseline? Core Health Panel.
Using, or considering, a GLP-1 or weight-loss program? GLP & Cardio Panel, or Core + GLP.
On testosterone or hormone therapy? HRT Monitoring Panel, or Performance + HRT for broader coverage.
Woman with hormonal, cycle, or menopause questions? Women's Health Panel.
Using growth hormone pathway peptides such as tesamorelin, ipamorelin, or CJC-1295? Peptide Panel, or one of the Peptide Performance combinations.
Want the most complete picture available? Performance Panel, or Performance + Peptide.
If you are unsure, your PRO provider can help you choose based on your history and treatment plan.
Understanding Reference Ranges
Every result on your report is shown next to a reference range. It helps to understand what that range is and is not. A reference range describes where results fall for most of a reference population. It does not define "optimal," and it does not diagnose anything on its own. A value just outside a range may be meaningless in context, while a value inside it may still deserve attention when compared with your previous results. Ranges also differ between laboratories and methods. That is why every PRO panel is designed to be interpreted by a licensed provider, not read in isolation.
Bringing It All Together
The PRO Lab Panels exist to replace guesswork with data. They let you establish where you are starting, monitor how your body responds to a program, and catch findings that deserve a closer look. In the chapters that follow, we walk through each panel one biomarker at a time, explaining what is measured, why it matters, what can influence it, how to prepare, and how results connect with peptide, weight-loss, hormone, and longevity care at PRO Sports Medicine.
Important Information
This article is educational and is not medical advice. PRO Lab Panel results support clinical assessment and monitoring; they do not diagnose medical conditions on their own. All results should be reviewed by a licensed PRO Sports Medicine provider together with your history, symptoms, and medications. Some peptides discussed in this series are investigational and are not FDA-approved for human therapeutic use. If you have urgent symptoms, seek medical care immediately.
Key References
Grundy SM, Stone NJ, Bailey AL, et al. 2018 AHA/ACC Multisociety Guideline on the Management of Blood Cholesterol. Circulation. 2019.
American Diabetes Association Professional Practice Committee. Diagnosis and Classification of Diabetes: Standards of Care in Diabetes. Diabetes Care (updated annually).
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Safety Communication: Biotin (Vitamin B7) May Interfere With Lab Tests. 2017, updated 2019.
Clinical Perspective
Laboratory data is most useful when it answers a specific question. Ordering every available test without a plan can create noise and anxiety, while ordering too little can miss findings that matter. The PRO panels were built around common clinical questions: Is it safe to start? Is the therapy working? Is anything changing that we should watch? Paired with history, examination, body composition, and how a patient actually feels, these panels give PRO providers a measured, practical foundation for individualized care.