Fasting insulin
The earliest and most sensitive marker.
Functional Medicine Treatment
Insulin Resistance Treatment
You exercise. You eat well. You’re not even close to overweight. And yet your weight keeps creeping up around your middle. Your energy crashes after meals. You’re hungry an hour after eating. Your annual labs come back called “normal.”
Or maybe your labs aren’t fully normal. Your fasting glucose is climbing. Your A1c crept above 5.7. Your doctor said “let’s keep an eye on it” or wrote you a metformin prescription with little context.
Insulin resistance is the most common, most under-tested, and most under-treated metabolic pattern in adults. The earlier we identify and address it, the faster it resolves.
What Standard Care Often Misses
Standard labs measure fasting glucose and HbA1c. Both are downstream signals. By the time they’re abnormal, insulin resistance has been progressing for years.
The actual early marker is fasting insulin. Most doctors don’t run it. When they do, they often read it against a “normal” range that includes very sick people. Optimal fasting insulin is below 7. The “normal” range goes up to 24.
Catching insulin resistance at the early stage is the difference between a 90-day correction and a 10-year management problem.
What We Test
A complete metabolic picture requires more than a fasting glucose number.
For some clients we add a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) for two weeks to see real-life patterns that fasting labs can’t show.
Fasting glucose, HbA1c, and fructosamine
Standard panel plus average blood sugar markers.
Lipid panel with particle size (NMR or similar)
The triglycerides and HDL ratio is the most useful insulin resistance signal in routine labs. Particle size adds detail.
Inflammatory markers
hs-CRP, homocysteine. Insulin resistance runs with inflammation.
Sex hormones and SHBG
Insulin resistance drives androgen excess in women and low testosterone in men. SHBG is suppressed.
Thyroid panel
A slow thyroid worsens insulin resistance and vice versa.
Cortisol pattern (if indicated)
Chronic cortisol elevation drives insulin resistance directly.
A Note on GLP-1 Medications
GLP-1 medications are highly effective when used correctly, and we don’t pretend otherwise.
The right way to use them is alongside a metabolic plan that addresses the underlying drivers, not as a standalone weight loss tool you’ll have to take indefinitely. Most of our GLP-1 clients are working alongside the medication to rebuild their metabolism so they can taper the dose and eventually come off, with the gains intact.
The wrong way to use them is as a substitute for fixing the inputs. We see the rebound stories every month.
You'll get the most out of this work if:
Your weight has shifted to your middle in the last few years
You crash 2 hours after eating
Your annual labs show climbing glucose, A1c, or triglycerides
You've been told you have PCOS, prediabetes, or metabolic syndrome
You're on a GLP-1 and want to do the metabolic work alongside it
You have a family history of type 2 diabetes and want to address it early
Our Approach
This isn’t an “eat less, move more” page. That advice has failed millions of people, including most of our clients before they came to us. Our approach is data-driven and root-cause focused.
Step 1
Test the actual cascade
We measure insulin, glucose, lipids, hormones, and inflammation together so we know what's driving what.
Step 2
Targeted nutrition
Not generic low-carb. We build a plan around your labs, your activity, your cycle (in women), and your real-life schedule. Most clients eat more protein, more fiber, fewer rapid carbs, and at different times than they were before. Few are doing keto.
Step 3
Movement that moves the lab
Resistance training improves insulin sensitivity more than cardio in most cases. We adjust based on your starting point and capacity.
Step 4
Targeted supplementation
Berberine, inositol (especially myo-inositol for women with PCOS-driven insulin resistance), magnesium, chromium, alpha-lipoic acid, and others as labs indicate. Therapeutic doses, not bottle-suggested.
Step 5
Sleep and stress
Both directly affect insulin sensitivity. We don't skip this.
Step 6
Medication when it's the right call
Metformin, GLP-1 agonists (Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, Zepbound), or other prescription support, used precisely. We coordinate with prescribers when it's the right move. We don't oppose pharmaceuticals. We use them well.
Insulin resistance work spans all three programs depending on complexity.
Foundation
Most early-stage insulin resistance and prediabetes cases. Comprehensive metabolic panel, two clinical visits, 90-day protocol.
Restoration
Cases involving PCOS, established metabolic syndrome, GLP-1 coordination, or hormone involvement.
Concierge
Complex cases that benefit from year-long support and direct messaging access.
Please note specialty laboratory testing, insurance-related copays, and supplements are not included and vary based on individual needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
In most cases yes, especially when caught before full type 2 diabetes. Established type 2 diabetes can often be put into remission with the right approach.
No. Most clients don't. We use carbohydrate strategically, not religiously.
Energy and post-meal symptoms often improve in 2 to 4 weeks. Lab values shift over 8 to 12 weeks. Sustained changes take 6 months.
We work alongside it. Many clients eventually taper with their prescriber's input. Some stay on it. The medication is a tool, not a problem.
Sometimes. Not always. We don't use intermittent fasting reflexively, especially in women in perimenopause.
Why Well Empowered?
25 years of devotion to people thriving
IFM Certified Practitioner
Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine
Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS)
Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist (LDN)
Masters of Science in Nutrition & Functional Medicine
Personalized, root-cause approach
Virtual consultations available
Start with the Numbers
Free 15-minute call to confirm fit and outline the testing your case calls for.
