* CLICK HERE to watch Matt's video about InsideTracker *

Folks,

I am incredibly excited about our new partnership with Inside Tracker, but it is critical to give context to this partnership which has been months in the making, and what it means for you as a Purple Patch athlete. This is a long one, but I promise it’s worth it -- and know that we'll have additional follow ups soon on this as well.

To begin: the backbone of everything we do at Purple Patch is delivering the best education possible, filtering out the 'blizzard of bull#$%*' quick-fixes and myths. We are incredibly cautious on what we recommend, and have always been extremely hesitant on sponsorships. I personally love Hoka shoes and Cervelo bikes, but are they right for everyone? Likely not.

Yet here we are, with a partnership with InsideTracker. So what gives?

We view the experts at InsideTracker through a similar lens to our other experts-in-field like the team at IOG Bike Fit. We truly believe it can be valuable for every Purple Patch athlete. I am a massive fan of a few elements in particular:

• Real expertise: I love that their team includes longevity docs, nutritionists, and physiologists
• Science-backed recommendations, with links to legitimate peer-reviewed research.
• They don’t sell supplements or hocus-pocus. A non-starter for me would have been a scenario in which InsideTracker recommended their own supplements.
• The experience is elegant. We seriously reconsidered adding 'yet another platform', but its simple, clean format quickly made this a non-issue.

Let me expand a bit more:

What InsideTracker is (and isn't) 

The key elements of every InsideTracker package are the same: a snapshot of your blood biomarkers that helps you make informed decisions around training, habits, stress reduction and diet. InsideTracker leverages data to drive smart choices and measurable improvements. This is critical. Remember what I repeatedly say: 

Your performance is built on a platform of health.

It matters not if you are chasing a Kona Q or chasing your kids around the house: health is the gateway to our goals. InsideTracker facilitates this. You cannot be successful without being functionally healthy. And we don’t just want you medically healthy, we want you to thrive.

This isn’t a blood test that spits out an out-of-context laundry list of 'performance-boosting' superfoods. It's a multifaceted assessment that provides a broad range of insights on metrics around your supporting habits and platform of health like stress, inflammation, hormones, lipid profiles, and vitamins. It's comprehensive, but not medical: it flags what is optimal rather than what is ‘adequate’, delivering focused recommendations that take you from good to great. 

We are also not outsourcing our education or abandoning our methodology. I still believe that any information drawn from InsideTracker should be filtered through the lens of being a Purple Patch athlete.

Framing Recommendations and Interventions 

Any actions we take based on InsideTracker information must align with our Pillars of Performance. We can frame this through four questions (in order of priority):

1. What changes should I make in my training (or training load)?
2. What supporting habits should I evolve or focus on improving?
3. Are there any shifts in my diet or eating habits that could improve my performance?
4. Should I add any supplements to address specific performance-related deficiencies?

There is one final and most critical question as well: Is there anything that would elicit further evaluation or investigation with my doctor/specialist? Again, this is not medical: that’s not our role, nor theirs. The purpose is to gather real insights into your performance profile, understand how to take action, and track improvements.

This brings us to what I am most excited about:

If we utilize Inside Tracker through the lens of our Pillars of Performance, then logic says we should be able to see and actually measure meaningful changes over time. This won’t occur by way of some super-supplement, but by making consistent, smart decisions. This is why Kyla Channel and Scott Tindal utilize InsideTracker: it supports their quest, it doesn’t replace it.

A Real-Life Example

If you are struggling to imagine this in action, let me help. Again, remember that our lens is performance (optimal levels), not medical (‘adequate’ levels). 

Imagine if Robert's biomarker report showed lower than optimal iron, ferritin, vitamin D, and testosterone. It also showed elevated inflammation markers, stress hormones, and slightly raised LDL cholesterol. There’s no magic fix here, but based on those four questions from earlier, we might consider:

• Training: Is he taking on too much load relative to the rigors of life-commitments? Perhaps we adjust it within the context of his current life situation. We also consider an added focus on strength, as it is anabolic and stimulates testosterone production.
• Supporting habits: Improvement in prioritizing sleep, as his average of 5 hours a night might contribute to some of these results.
• Diet: Adopt oatmeal, meats and leafy greens (and a couple of other foods) to support LDL cholesterol management and increase his iron profile.
• Supplements: Add Vitamin D -- this is a common deficiency among high-performers, and tough to replenish completely via diet.

You can begin to see how InsideTracker can be a metric and an agent of habit change. 

This is exciting. This is why we are partnering. It is more than a platform.

The Grand Finale

The reason this relationship took a while to develop wasn't just simply that we were rigorously vetting the product, but because we wanted to build something that truly helps you as a Purple Patch athlete, and work with a team genuinely invested in YOUR success. With this in mind, we have arranged some additional details for you:

• 25% discount on access to everything on the platform, along with a Purple Patch specific dashboard of results (private to you unless you provide permission to your coach):
  • 1:1 athletes: ask your coach for your specific discount code
  • Squad athletes: use the code PURPLEPATCHSQUAD25
  • Your friends or family can use the code PURPLEPATCHPRO25 (please do not have them use your athlete code) 
• Ongoing education on specific subjects delivered from the experts at InsideTracker
• Exclusive access to InsideTracker doctors and specialists via athlete Expert Office Hours

My one caveat: 

I have one hesitation remaining. As this is not a medical survey, I would encourage females, especially those in mid-40s and beyond, to realize that InsideTracker has some limitations in providing insights into female hormonal profiles, and specifically that it will not provide medical-level insights into those associated with perimenopause. InsideTracker is passionate about developing this area, but it shouldn’t replace any work you’re doing with your doctor. Keep this in mind when interpreting the reports and recommendations on hormones. We are putting energy into investigating best practices on this and I think it is important to share this as we look forward: we are committed to expanding this and better supporting female athletes.

I look forward to many more conversations around this program, and seeing the results of your being able to objectively take action around your platform of performance: your health.

Cheers,

Matt