Body Fat % methods. Which is better?

Burger2066

I am 100% sure this has been answered a thousand times on here. But I've been searching and searching for answers on here using the Search feature and I'm not coming across it.

I am working on cutting body fat, I'm not worried about weight other than using it as part of the formula for how much I should eat. My overall goal is to cut fat and maintain muscle. So I need a way to monitor my BF% for this. I have the foot scale with the BF% feature on it and I have the hand held electronic BF% tool as well. I also have a set of calipers, but they are cheap and I don't have someone that can use them consistently. While I know none of these options are as accurate as the tank or chamber, what I'm looking for is something that will be fairly accurate from a % loss stand point. They both say I'm right at 17%, which isn't terrible, but my goal is under 12% again. So would one of these be better than the other to track % lost?

jemhh

I would use formulas based on various body measurements. There are multiple formulas and all will give you slightly different numbers but since you're looking to compare data rather than look at one day in a vacuum, that's the way I'd go.

This article goes over a bunch of formulas. I have them (the female versions) set up in a spreadsheet and just pop in the measurements on a monthly basis.

xcalygrl

A good read of the different methods: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/830595/body-fat-estimation-methods#

As for what I use, I have the same article as @jemhh saved. I set up a spreadsheet with all of the formulas and use the average of the DOD and Covert-Bailey formulas. They seem to give me similar numbers to when I get my BodPods done. (Yes, there is some margin of error with BodPods, but it's the best I have for the budget I'm on.)

erickirb

I find the mirror is a pretty good judge on if you are losing BF%, and that way you don't need a % goal, when you are happy with the results, you met your goal, whether it is 9% or 13% really doesn't matter if it is the look you were trying to achieve.

mburgess458

For me BodPod results are very close to those from online formulas based on measurements. My nutritionist had a handheld device (made by Omron I think) that was within a point or two of agreeing with the BodPod.

My home scale is worthless. One time of day it always says 5%, another time of day it always says 17% to 18%... the real answer according to everything else is 11%.

rybo

erickirb wrote: »

I find the mirror is a pretty good judge on if you are losing BF%, and that way you don't need a % goal, when you are happy with the results, you met your goal, whether it is 9% or 13% really doesn't matter if it is the look you were trying to achieve.

While the curious side of me really wants to know my percentage, the above answer is really the best way to go.

jemhh

I have a scale that does BF at home. It has been giving me the same BF% from the time I bought it, which was right before I started lifting weights almost two years ago through today. It is comically unchanging.

richardgavel

I've never seen such a dramatic swing on a home scale as 5% -> 17-18%. I measure after wake up + moving around for a few minutes to try and normalize the distribution of water in the body and day-to-day don't get wild swings. It's enough to me to measure trends.

As far as absolute value, I recently saw 18%. A handheld bioimpendence device showed 20%. DEXA scan, though, shows 31%, which I'm still not sure I trust. I might try a BodPod to get an alternate measure or use online formula.

Burger2066

Thanks for the ideas everyone. I'll check out those articles. I'm not keeping track of it for how I look in the mirror. I'm recovering from a knee injury and trying to get back to playing hockey. I prefer my playing weight to be around 200-205 with 10-12% body fat. When I'm there, I feel better during and after games, I recover quickly, I play at the level I want to play at, etc. So the reason I'm wanting to track it rather than look in the mirror is to see if what I'm doing (with nutrition and workouts) is efficient. I've got a May 1st goal to get back to hockey, I want to make sure I'm making every day count so I don't go out there and disappoint myself. Haha.

Thanks again.

closetlibrarian

I just did a DEXA scan and found it to be pretty comprehensive as far as not just BF%, but muscle distribution and imbalance as well. It also shows (and this is probably not an issue for you, since you are young and male, and I am middle aged and female) bone mass markers.

Yi5hedr3

Use foot model.