Body Fat & Density %

[wishes]

Ive been trying to find out my bodyfat % so i can work out my goal weight. I have a fair idea on clothes size, but i know that because ive done a fair bit of weight lifting and im heavy in general compared to others my size, plus the excess skin i have, that the numbers are skewed.

Im getting increasingly frustrated at the different numbers im getting from different places and the money spent on finding out what seems to be fairly basic information.


My home scales do the biometric impedance which i know to be wrong (it says im 43% fat lol). I went in and paid for a huge machine thing which is a larger version and gave me the 52kg lean body mass and 36% bodyfat.. though it didnt actually weigh me, the lady did this and because i was wearing heavy clothes (I assumed it actually measured the fat) i was 3kg heavier and it had my height wrong etc as well.
NameSo then i got peeved and went and paid $40 for a nutritionist whos trained in bodyfat testing with calipers. She gives me the body fat % of 19.5% using the [FONT=Gill Sans MT, sans-serif]"Yuhasz equation".[/FONT]


[FONT=Gill Sans MT, sans-serif]Now i have the mm measurements of the calipers, which is the most accurate equation, and how accurate is the [/FONT][FONT=Gill Sans MT, sans-serif]Yuhasz compared to others?[/FONT]
[FONT=Gill Sans MT, sans-serif]How do body builders measure it?
[/FONT]

 

[wishes]

having looked up more info online, i found the methodology for working it out. I used the same numbers she gave me for measuring and it tells me 24.37% bodyfat from those caliper measurements using the same formula as her ... sounds a bit more accurate .. perhaps her math is bad?

 

[DCarr10760]

Hi Wishes!

I've been down the same road, because the weight loss stalled, but I was fitting better into clothes and looked thinner. So I guessed that my fat was dropping at the least.

I stumbled across this site:

which I think was posted here. I don't make any claims about its accuracy in the absence of any sort of reference, but it "seemed" about right. I've been taking the measurements every other week and there was a reassuring drop.

I suppose all of the methods would be reasonably accurate in showing the percentage loss, so long as you stick with one consistently.

Good luck with it and good to meet you!

David C

 

[wishes]

That seems similar to the Navy method. short, quick, and fairly accurate for some people. But as i said, i have a lot of excess skin, and a lot of muscle.
Some tests take into account one thing, and others take into account the other.

It seems from reading up on the web that there is no really accurate way of doing it, however all i want is a little more accuracy than 19.5%-36% ... i mean is asking it to be narrowed down a bit to much to ask?

Id love to hear from the pros here, Leigh, Steve, etc

 

[Mattymar]

I'd love to see improvements in the area of measuring bodyfat% becauase, unfortunately, most methods right now are a bit unreliable.

Bioelectrical impedence scales are the easiest and quickest way of measuring bodyfat but they are also the most unreliable. One of the biggest issue with these scales is that the results will vary depending on your level of hydration at the time of measurement. I don't put much stock at all in these readings for this reason.

Skin fold calipers are also fairly quick and easy (if properly trained) but are also fairly unreliable. For most people, however, they are the best option available and I do use these measurements as they are the only real method at my disposal.

There are better methods out there, such as underwater weighing, but these are not very practical for most people. I wish the situation were a little better because it is much more important to know how much bodyfat you are losing than simply how much weight you are losing.


Matt

 

[theleip]

Electronic scales=crap, off by as much as 40% at last I read.

Calipers=poor to excellent, a lot of room for human error, readings can range from 3-30%

Tape Measurements=poor, muscle does take up room, too much lack of accounting for muscle and even water. Range of 6-12% off, even more.

The Pod=decent, usually within a range of 3-7%

Water Submersion=Above average, usually within a range of 3-5%

DEXA (body scan)=Best, usually within a range of 1-3%

Overall opinion on importance of body fat measuring? Be it scales, bf%, clothes, the only thing that matters is there an ongoing theme of change in the right direction. Allow for enough time to pass to judge on an overall scale of "are things going down". If they are, that is all the matters until you hit the mirror and what is in front of you is what you want. Personally I support a proper use and understanding of fat calipers. Its cheap, quick and easy once you take the time to understand proper methods.