I was contacted and asked if I wanted to try DNAFit. I hadn’t heard of DNAFit previously but they take a sample of your DNA and give you information in relation to fitness and diet based on your genetics. I can imagine some people are thinking ‘why the hell would you do that?’ but your DNA is everywhere – every sip you take from a cup and every hair that falls out of your head.
Process
I received my DNAFit in the post for my saliva sample. The kit contained a swab for my sample, a consent form and an envelope to return the sample in. I read the instructions several times to ensure that I didn’t do it incorrectly but it was quite simple. You rub the swab on the inside of your mouth for approximately two minutes, put it back in the tub and then post it with the filled in consent form. Unfortunately for me, I received an email after posting informing me that my sample was inadequate which meant that I had to repeat the process. I realise now that the first time I didn’t pressed the swap hard enough when taking the sample.
Results
DNAFit say that it will taking ten working days for the results to come through once they receive your sample but I think mine were slightly quicker. My results consisted of three reports, a fitness report, a diet report and an infographic of the two combined. This information is based on your DNA results obtained by testing the swab sample ‘for your response to a selection of key genes that are associated with health and fitness’.
Fitness Report
Well, well, it was interesting wasn’t it… I actually found the results quite funny as the first part on the fitness report is your power to endurance response – mine was 27.3% power and 72.7% endurance! Am I supposed to be powerlifting or running marathons?! The fitness report also gave information with regards to my VO2 max response, recovery speed and risk of injury.
Diet Report
According to the diet report, a Mediterranean diet would be optimal for me as I apparently have a medium sensitivity to carbs and a low sensitivity to saturated fats. The report also detailed other sensitivities as well as the dosages of certain vitamins which would be optimal for me.
Infographic
Verdict
I found the DNAFit results so interesting to look at and was actually surprised at my power to endurance ratio based on the key genes they compare the sample to. I think that I will take away the vitamin need information and incorporate it into my diet but I do think that some of this information needs to be taken with a pinch of salt. Am I going to give up powerlifting now? No, I enjoy it and I’ve competed at an International level! I think the information could be good for people who are just starting out on their fitness journey as it gives them somewhere to start e.g. perhaps I may have been more likely to try endurance training! Is the DNAFit test accurate? Not a clue as there is still a lot of work being done in genetics.
The tests start at £99 for the diet information , £119 for the fitness information £249 for both. It’s not cheap but it is cutting edge technology and very fascinating. The DNAFit tests can be found on their website here.
emilygetsstrong 