Body Fat

Sunibc22

OK, I have a question. I have one of those scales that is suppose to measure your body fat %, your water %, etc. I know I have a lot of weight to lose but it says I am 40.5% fat and 40.5% water. Does that mean that all the muscle, bone, organs, etc in my body only make up 19% of my weight? That seems shocking to me!!! I know I am stronger physically than alot of my friends so I know there is muscle buried in there somewhere!!

Can this be right?
:ohwell:

Sunibc22

OK, I have a question. I have one of those scales that is suppose to measure your body fat %, your water %, etc. I know I have a lot of weight to lose but it says I am 40.5% fat and 40.5% water. Does that mean that all the muscle, bone, organs, etc in my body only make up 19% of my weight? That seems shocking to me!!! I know I am stronger physically than alot of my friends so I know there is muscle buried in there somewhere!!

Can this be right?
:ohwell:

firegirlred

Your muscles contain a SIGNIFICANT amount of water. So do the materials in your bones. Don't worry too much about it. Your muscle weight doesn't even appear to be measured by that scale.

cp005e

I have one of those scales, too, but I have not found it to be all that accurate. Some of them have handles that you grab onto as well as the pads you step on - those might be better.

That being said, try doing the math yourself and see what you get.

If, say, your weight is 200lbs and 40.5% fat, then
(200 x .405) = 81lbs fat
and (200 - 81) = 119lbs lean body weight (bones, organs, muscle, water)

I see your goal is to lose 55lbs. If you did that and your muscle mass stays exactly the same (it probably will change a little, but let's say it doesn't), then:
(200 - 55) = 145lbs goal weight
(145 - 119) = 26lbs fat
(26 / 145) = 17.9% body fat

That's pretty low for a woman, but not impossible. I got a fitness assessment done at the YMCA, and they recommended 23% body fat as a healthy goal for women. 40% body fat is not that bad as a starting place - I suspect that I started out around 43%, and am now under 30% with about 10lbs to go to 23% (again, assuming a consistent lean body weight).

jlauren6

I have one of these scales, and it doesn't seem to be accurate. I will lose a couple lbs of water weight overnight and my bodyfat drops 1-2% which is not right. Oh well, it at least gives you an idea.