Weekly Update - Q1 Health Review

5 min Read ⏰

Q1 Health Review & Check-in: What’s Working, What’s Not

Three months down, nine to go. 25% of the year done. Time for a check-in.

When I switched mindset to a more preventative approach to health, I knew the real work wouldn’t just be in the gym or the kitchen—it would be in tracking progress, spotting trends, and making small adjustments before things went off course. That means running regular tests, paying attention to how I feel, and—most importantly—being honest about what’s working and what’s not.

BTW - if you have any questions on these tests and my approach, just hit the reply button. Happy to help.

So far in 2025, I’ve kept up with my scans (bloodwork, body composition, weight), refined my diet, locked in a solid sleep routine, and switched up my training with a new gym. But progress isn’t always linear. Some areas are dialled in; others need an adjustment.

Let’s break down what I’ve done and changes made so far.

Health Tracking

Q1 has been my busiest period for medical check-ups in years.

Weight - weekly

My weight has been relatively steady around 91kg (200lbs) fluctuating between 92kg and 89kg week to week. Considering my lack of consistent exercise in this period, I call that a win. My goal for Q2 is to make progress towards 86kg and <17% body fat. Is this achievable by 30th June? We will see…

Bloods - every 6 months

In January, I had a comprehensive blood panel done and results were damn near perfect. My cholesterol was slightly elevated, but had reduced over the previous six months. My HDL was low and I have since incorporated a daily snack of macadamia nuts to try to combat this. Lastly, my vitamin D was very low and I started supplementation that same day! My next draw will be in July and I expect these adjustments to rectify the errors.

Cardiac CT - every 5 years

My CAC score is something that has been on my mind for a while now. A CAC (Coronary Artery Calcium) Score measures the amount of calcified plaque in your coronary arteries using a Cardiac CT scan. This can indicate your risk of heart disease and future cardiac events, like heart attacks. It’s one of the best early warning tools for heart disease—especially for those without symptoms, like myself. My result was excellent, with a zero score and no sign of any damage. Thankfully, this means there is no concern and I can wait to have another scan in five years.

InBody Scan - monthly

At the end of March, and as part of my intro to my new gym, I had my first InBody since November. With my injuries and lack of gym time over the last 4-5 months, my hopes were less than high for this one. I have built up some solid habits when it comes to food and daily protein intake, but I was convinced I would have lost muscle mass.

What a surprise then to see improved results! Weight down 0.2kg, muscle mass up 0.5kg and body fat percentage down 1%. Now, an InBody is not a Dexa scan and there can be other factors influencing the result but, day one in the gym and I’ll take it! Let’s see what the April scan has in store…

Health Habits

I have been very happy with my food habits of late. This is always evolving and I’ve recently added two alarms to focus on my fasting periods - 8pm-12pm - which has helped to remove any decision making element. My protein is at 120-150g every day and snacking or ‘bad’ foods have drastically reduced.

It’s very early days, but my 3-4 gym days are locked in with PT sessions and programmed sessions to keep me on track. Nothing is easy after such a long break, but feels good to be back at it and sore the next morning.

Q2 What’s Next?

My V02 Max is something I want to understand, set a baseline and improve on. A fitness test is definitely on my list for this quarter. And the more I talk about this to my wife, the closer I am to having a test buddy! We’re not at all competitive, so I’m sure there’ll be no issues when we get the results 😉

Be consistent. This has always been a challenge for me, but I am determined to commit to those 3 gym sessions each week as a minimum for the next three months. I am also convinced that if I can do this, the gains will be swift and significant. Hitting my goal of 86kg and <17% body fat would be a huge win. It’s up to me now to make that happen.

You can start to see how the right system and removing decision making from a plan can start to make progress seem… easy. Like I wrote about last Friday, the right Goal / Plan / System gets you where you need to go.

Adapt and grow.

^{NOTE: I am not a financial advisor, planner or have any formal healthcare education. &Prosper is simply a way for me to share my own journey and offer resources I have found useful. With this, I am starting from near zero and I hope to show that anyone can significantly improve their health and financial wellbeing.}