Measuring body fat percentage

sheep_dog
sheep_dog Posts: 82 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Now that I'm starting to get down to a low body weight, I'd like to start working out in the gym instead of just cardio for weight loss. Soon my weight won't be much of an indicator for me, as I'll be gaining muscle and losing fat (so I might not change weight at all or even go up).

I'd like to start using my body far percentage as a gauge as how I'm doing. I'm trying to find a simple but precise way to do this at home but ways I've found online seem complicated and easy to mess up. I don't mind "complicated" math, but I don't want things like the tools that measure a pinch of skin flap. What do you guys use?

http://www.livestrong.com/article/240077-how-to-calculate-body-fat-percentage-at-home/

This way seems fairly simple and straight forward, but the simplicity is making me question it's accuracy. What do you guys think?

P.s. how do I switch to start recording BMI instead of weight in MFP app? I've read things that say "there is an add new measurement" but I don't see that option with the options to change to like waste measurements, etc.

Thanks in advance!

Replies

  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    If you're going to a gym they should have calipers (they do these for free i think) or an Bioelectrical impedance analyzer (the handheld device). I would think they should be more accurate.

    Keep in mind that you are not actually BUILDING new muscle if you are not eating in a caloric surplus. While you can repair atrophied muscle, help combat muscle cannabolism, and lose fat making your muscle more visible- you will not be "building muscle" in a caloric deficit.

    You will, however, likely gain water weight. ;)

    Ask one of the guys/girls at the front desk they should be able to help!
  • lilsweetwright
    lilsweetwright Posts: 35 Member
    I measure my body fat using a few methods. I used the Katch-McCardle method, a caliper, and a bioelectric impedance scale. The scale is the easiest, but about 6% less than the other methods. I used my doctors expensive scale for the first 5 months of weight loss, and it calculated 6 % higher than my home scale as well. I just add 6% to the scale measurement, and then check with the other methods every few weeks.

    As far as tracking your BF,
    under MY HOME click on CHECK IN
    click on Add measurements, and it will ask you what measurments you want to add.
    I also keep track of waist, hips, and so forth for my Katch-McCardle calculations. It helps me see progress over time
  • sheep_dog
    sheep_dog Posts: 82 Member
    If you're going to a gym they should have calipers (they do these for free i think) or an Bioelectrical impedance analyzer (the handheld device). I would think they should be more accurate.

    Keep in mind that you are not actually BUILDING new muscle if you are not eating in a caloric surplus. While you can repair atrophied muscle, help combat muscle cannabolism, and lose fat making your muscle more visible- you will not be "building muscle" in a caloric deficit.

    You will, however, likely gain water weight. ;)

    Ask one of the guys/girls at the front desk they should be able to help!

    What do you mean a "caloric surplus"? Right now I just eat the 1200 calories a day MFP suggested for my height/weight/age to lose 2 lbs a week. When I start working out should I change some kind of settings so that it knows I'm now building muscle and therefore gives me more calories or something?

    I just want to tone and build some muscle, but not bulk up at all. More like a Ryan reynold type of body.

    Does that make sense?

    Also, I read a lot of sources that say those electro things you grab with your hands are barely accurate.

    @lilsweet

    Is that on the website or something? I only use the app. If I change that, will it appear on my app?
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    If you're going to a gym they should have calipers (they do these for free i think) or an Bioelectrical impedance analyzer (the handheld device). I would think they should be more accurate.

    Keep in mind that you are not actually BUILDING new muscle if you are not eating in a caloric surplus. While you can repair atrophied muscle, help combat muscle cannabolism, and lose fat making your muscle more visible- you will not be "building muscle" in a caloric deficit.

    You will, however, likely gain water weight. ;)

    Ask one of the guys/girls at the front desk they should be able to help!

    What do you mean a "caloric surplus"? Right now I just eat the 1200 calories a day MFP suggested for my height/weight/age to lose 2 lbs a week. When I start working out should I change some kind of settings so that it knows I'm now building muscle and therefore gives me more calories or something?

    I just want to tone and build some muscle, but not bulk up at all. More like a Ryan reynold type of body.

    Does that make sense?

    Also, I read a lot of sources that say those electro things you grab with your hands are barely accurate.

    @lilsweet

    Is that on the website or something? I only use the app. If I change that, will it appear on my app?

    Well... firstly if you are eating1,200 calories a day to lose 2 pounds per week, you probably aren't at a deficit for 2 pounds per week.

    secondly, a surplus means eating more than your body needs everyday to build muscle.

    It doesn't sound like you actually want to "build muscle" but instead cut fat and keep as much muscle as you ALREADY have to look "toned". Mind you this will all depend on how high/low you let your body fat percentage go. I have found the handheld device is 1-2% off versus a DEXA scan so as long as you are using the same device under the same conditions it should be satisfactory in measuring your progress.

    Best of luck!
  • sheep_dog
    sheep_dog Posts: 82 Member
    If you're going to a gym they should have calipers (they do these for free i think) or an Bioelectrical impedance analyzer (the handheld device). I would think they should be more accurate.

    Keep in mind that you are not actually BUILDING new muscle if you are not eating in a caloric surplus. While you can repair atrophied muscle, help combat muscle cannabolism, and lose fat making your muscle more visible- you will not be "building muscle" in a caloric deficit.

    You will, however, likely gain water weight. ;)

    Ask one of the guys/girls at the front desk they should be able to help!

    What do you mean a "caloric surplus"? Right now I just eat the 1200 calories a day MFP suggested for my height/weight/age to lose 2 lbs a week. When I start working out should I change some kind of settings so that it knows I'm now building muscle and therefore gives me more calories or something?

    I just want to tone and build some muscle, but not bulk up at all. More like a Ryan reynold type of body.

    Does that make sense?

    Also, I read a lot of sources that say those electro things you grab with your hands are barely accurate.

    @lilsweet

    Is that on the website or something? I only use the app. If I change that, will it appear on my app?

    Well... firstly if you are eating1,200 calories a day to lose 2 pounds per week, you probably aren't at a deficit for 2 pounds per week.

    secondly, a surplus means eating more than your body needs everyday to build muscle.

    It doesn't sound like you actually want to "build muscle" but instead cut fat and keep as much muscle as you ALREADY have to look "toned". Mind you this will all depend on how high/low you let your body fat percentage go. I have found the handheld device is 1-2% off versus a DEXA scan so as long as you are using the same device under the same conditions it should be satisfactory in measuring your progress.

    Best of luck!

    Ok glad I'm not at a deficit lol. It's working, if I do the math for my 45 days/13.6 lbs lost that's 2.05 lbs per week which is right on track. And I do want to gain muscle but not "bulk up". I understand that I need to get a low body far percentage to show off muscle I already have under a layer of fat, but I have next to no arm muscle :D. So tone with a bit more muscle.

    And ok maybe like every Friday or something ill have the gym people do my bf%. Hopefully they don't mind ;)
  • mirthfuldragon
    mirthfuldragon Posts: 124 Member
    I finally broke down and bought a nice scale with the electric impedance test. However, so far it hasn't proven the most reliable/consistent measure in the world; I would speculate it is +/- 0.5% in terms of reliability. I can't guess at its accuracy because I have not compared it to a caliper test.

    However, if your goal is to track body fat % and its change, one of the impedance devices is probably a cheap way to do it, since you would be comparing the same measure on the same device against itself. It's also easy to do.

    Don't worry about bulking up, either. Just lift heavy, lift hard, and if you find yourself getting big muscles that are too big, stop adding weight.

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