The Fitness Decline You Won’t See Coming (Even With “Good” Labs)

Your annual blood work looks perfect—but what happens when you hit a physical stressor, catch a virus, or simply start aging? Most standard labs are designed to detect disease, but they completely miss your physiologic reserve.

In this episode, Dr. Hillary Lin sits down with Brooks Leitner to discuss why VO₂ max should be treated as a clinical vital sign. Using VO Health’s early-stage blood-based proteomics as a fascinating case study, we dive into how the body actually delivers oxygen under stress, why wearable estimates aren't the whole truth, and how you can actually build a "bad-day buffer" for your long-term health.