Body Fat Percentage Goal
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MarkusDarwath wrote: »
Why does it go from average to obese though when BMI goes average overweight obese why is there no in between on body fat you could be 1% over average and classed as obese one way to f*** up someone's mind1 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »Just like a body weight goal...it's something that should be assessed and reassessed as you go. My first goal was to be in at a healthy BF%...as with BMI, this is a pretty wide range. After that, it was aesthetics and ease of maintenance. Very low levels of BF are difficult to maintain.
I'm typically in the 12%-15% range...
https://www.builtlean.com/2010/08/03/ideal-body-fat-percentage-chart/
Omg I'm obese my BMI says overweight which I could deal with but my bf is 37%
It's one of the reasons they BMI and BF% should be used in conjunction...it can go the other way too...BMI says I'm overweight by about 6 Lbs, but I'm typically around 15% BF.2 -
MarkusDarwath wrote: »
Why does it go from average to obese though when BMI goes average overweight obese why is there no in between on body fat you could be 1% over average and classed as obese one way to f*** up someone's mind
The problem is that "overweight" on BMI is still within the range of "average" aggregate BF. Which can be confusing.1 -
MarkusDarwath wrote: »
Why does it go from average to obese though when BMI goes average overweight obese why is there no in between on body fat you could be 1% over average and classed as obese one way to f*** up someone's mind
It's based on health risk. Up to the "obese" percentage there is no statistically significant increase in risk for cardio-vascular and metabolic diseases.
The BMI categories, on the other hand, don't even correspond to the actual study numbers. Increased health risk actually begins at the top couple points of "overweight" and is not found in the rest of the category. The overweight BMI designation is truthfully just someone's aesthetic viewpoint... or at best, a potential indicator that someone might possibly be trending toward obesity.
In other words, the BF% scale doesn't have an 'overweight' designation because it's basically meaningless. Our body fat is either high enough to endanger our health (more than the 'average') or it is not.
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MarkusDarwath wrote: »MarkusDarwath wrote: »
Why does it go from average to obese though when BMI goes average overweight obese why is there no in between on body fat you could be 1% over average and classed as obese one way to f*** up someone's mind
It's based on health risk. Up to the "obese" percentage there is no statistically significant increase in risk for cardio-vascular and metabolic diseases.
The BMI categories, on the other hand, don't even correspond to the actual study numbers. Increased health risk actually begins at the top couple points of "overweight" and is not found in the rest of the category. The overweight BMI designation is truthfully just someone's aesthetic viewpoint... or at best, a potential indicator that someone might possibly be trending toward obesity.
In other words, the BF% scale doesn't have an 'overweight' designation because it's basically meaningless. Our body fat is either high enough to endanger our health (more than the 'average') or it is not.
This is why I never pay attention to BMI and care about BF% instead.1 -
VeggieBarbells wrote: »@midwesterner85 I love this video because percentages look different on various frames.
https://youtu.be/1oWcpweTuXs
@suzfoley yer there is a female version https://builtlean.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/body-fat-percentage-women-1.jpg
In general I think its so easy to get all twisted on the 'hey thats not X, Y or Z percent' - For me at least, I'm only bothered if I'm comfortable in my own skin - When thats a yes I am, then who cares what the number is - not me!
Great video! Thanks for posting. I have a 17%BF on a 7 point caliper test, a 22.5%bf on my scale, and based on pics I think I'm around 20%. So who knows!2 -
Never had a specific BF "goal."
My only goal was to drop to 160# (from 196) and maintain my weight there. Achieved 160 in 5 months and have maintained my weight at 158 +/-3 for 14 months.
Dropped my BF from 16 to 10% in the process, which I just considered a bonus.
PS: My BMI is around 24 at the high end of" normal," which is fine as far as it goes.
BMI is a free and convenient way to track your progress and is reasonably accurate unless you are old, have very high LBM and low BF or are Asian, which are all acknowledged limitations to the BMI model.3 -
BeccaLoves2lift wrote: »VeggieBarbells wrote: »@midwesterner85 I love this video because percentages look different on various frames.
https://youtu.be/1oWcpweTuXs
@suzfoley yer there is a female version https://builtlean.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/body-fat-percentage-women-1.jpg
In general I think its so easy to get all twisted on the 'hey thats not X, Y or Z percent' - For me at least, I'm only bothered if I'm comfortable in my own skin - When thats a yes I am, then who cares what the number is - not me!
Great video! Thanks for posting. I have a 17%BF on a 7 point caliper test, a 22.5%bf on my scale, and based on pics I think I'm around 20%. So who knows!
@BeccaLoves2lift - The images and video, clearly demonstrate its not an exact science. Are you happy with how you look and feel? If so, whether you're 17%, 22.5% or somewhere in between doesn't really matter. I take your point tho, who knows. I've had some mad readings, as long its trending in the right direction then I'm a happy chappie. Btw I'm glad you found the video useful.
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@VeggieBarbells That chart is really helpful. Especially since the navy method has me at 22 and I look like the 20 in the images. I’m just trying to stop judging by the scale weight and don’t find BMI that helpful since the range seems so wide to me (118-154). I wish I could forget about aesthetics entirely and focus on fitness gains which was what helped me lose weight in the first place.2
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Hm. I just had myself dunked the other day, and I have to say the Navy Method -- which I hadn't actually heard of before seeing this thread -- was almost spot on for me.
Now, if only I looked like the picture for my BF%, I'd be very happy.1 -
@VeggieBarbells That chart is really helpful. Especially since the navy method has me at 22 and I look like the 20 in the images. I’m just trying to stop judging by the scale weight and don’t find BMI that helpful since the range seems so wide to me (118-154). I wish I could forget about aesthetics entirely and focus on fitness gains which was what helped me lose weight in the first place.
@suzfoley The scale is short sighted, stressful and not helpful in isolation. All methods are an indication you are going in the right direction. So one can include BMI, Scale, BF%, NSV's, pictures, measurements, strength, endurance, stamina etc if they're are all trending in the right direction then you're doing something right.
I'm glad the chart helps - I hope your fitness gains continue 1 -
VeggieBarbells wrote: »BeccaLoves2lift wrote: »VeggieBarbells wrote: »@midwesterner85 I love this video because percentages look different on various frames.
https://youtu.be/1oWcpweTuXs
@suzfoley yer there is a female version https://builtlean.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/body-fat-percentage-women-1.jpg
In general I think its so easy to get all twisted on the 'hey thats not X, Y or Z percent' - For me at least, I'm only bothered if I'm comfortable in my own skin - When thats a yes I am, then who cares what the number is - not me!
Great video! Thanks for posting. I have a 17%BF on a 7 point caliper test, a 22.5%bf on my scale, and based on pics I think I'm around 20%. So who knows!
@BeccaLoves2lift - The images and video, clearly demonstrate its not an exact science. Are you happy with how you look and feel? If so, whether you're 17%, 22.5% or somewhere in between doesn't really matter. I take your point tho, who knows. I've had some mad readings, as long its trending in the right direction then I'm a happy chappie. Btw I'm glad you found the video useful.
So, I'm getting to my happy place. It's slow and steady for me. I'm at the lower-middle end of a healthy weight for my height so I've been recomping since last July. My bf has definitely gone down. I think as long as I'm making strength gains I'll stay recomping. I tried cutting again at the beginning of the year and was just way too fatigued to keep it up.2 -
BMI is a free and convenient way to track your progress and is reasonably accurate unless you are old, have very high LBM and low BF or are Asian, which are all acknowledged limitations to the BMI model.
Or if you are tall or short. The squared mathematical relationship in the BMI formula doesn't actually scale correctly with height. But for population studies, tall and short people balance each other out so that everything really applies to 'average'.
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