Need recommendation for a good scale that measures BF %

Bettyeditor
Bettyeditor Posts: 327 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Does anyone have a good WiFi scale that measure bodyfat % that you recommend? I'm trying to help my aunt find a good scale. She tried the Fitbit ARIA (three times!) but each time it just displayed an error message and she had to send it back. :(

We were looking at the Withings Smart Body Analyzer, but we didn't buy it because we couldn't find the app for it on her smartphone. She has a Samsung Galaxy (S5 I think) that is running Android. Withings *says* that they have an Android app but we couldn't find it.

Does anyone have a Withings Body Analyzer with an Android phone? Or is there any other scale you recommend that measures bodyfat %? Thanks!!

Replies

  • airangel59
    airangel59 Posts: 1,887 Member
    Galaxy S3 ??? Did you check http://www.withings.com/en/app or http://www.withings.com/en/bodyanalyzer/faq
  • tizzypic
    tizzypic Posts: 27 Member
    There's also the Fitbit Aria.

    http://www.fitbit.com/aria
  • Bettyeditor
    Bettyeditor Posts: 327 Member
    I should clarify that we TRIED to find the Withings Health Mate app (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.withings.wiscale2) on my aunt's phone. We searched the app store on her phone, the same place where we found the apps for MFP and for her Fitbit Flex, but we couldn't get any results for "Withing" "Withing Scale" "Withings Health Mate," etc.
  • Bettyeditor
    Bettyeditor Posts: 327 Member
    There's also the Fitbit Aria.

    http://www.fitbit.com/aria

    Yes, she tried the Fitbit Aria. THREE TIMES. Each time, after we got it connected to the WiFi network and stepped on, it would just display "ERR." We were never able to get anything other than an error message no matter how many times we tried. I have a Fitbit Aria and it works like a charm. It was very frustrating that hers only gave an error message. I stepped on it too, same result. She even tried a different color (white) instead of black and still no luck. :(
  • Bettyeditor
    Bettyeditor Posts: 327 Member
    Galaxy S3 ??? Did you check http://www.withings.com/en/app or http://www.withings.com/en/bodyanalyzer/faq

    Yes. Been there, tried that, didn't work.

    Can anyone recommend any other brand/make/model of scale that measures bodyfat???????????
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
    Galaxy S3 ??? Did you check http://www.withings.com/en/app or http://www.withings.com/en/bodyanalyzer/faq

    Yes. Been there, tried that, didn't work.

    Can anyone recommend any other brand/make/model of scale that measures bodyfat???????????

    I like my old Tanita.
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    They all suck. None of them are accurate. Get calipers.
  • leebesstoad
    leebesstoad Posts: 1,186 Member
    For me, trying to get a scale to get body fat is like trying to get flight out of an elephant. Get calipers or use the body fat calculators that are at Fat2FitRadio.com. They have 3. Use all 3 and take the average if you want. You just need to take body measurements. Remember, body fat measurements are pretty must estimates, even with calipers. Even underwater testing has to make assumptions which can be inaccurate. There is no way to definitively say "my body fat is X %" with any degree of scientific accuracy.
  • Bettyeditor
    Bettyeditor Posts: 327 Member
    For me, trying to get a scale to get body fat is like trying to get flight out of an elephant. Get calipers or use the body fat calculators that are at Fat2FitRadio.com. They have 3. Use all 3 and take the average if you want. You just need to take body measurements. Remember, body fat measurements are pretty must estimates, even with calipers. Even underwater testing has to make assumptions which can be inaccurate. There is no way to definitively say "my body fat is X %" with any degree of scientific accuracy.

    That's true. However, I don't need scientific accuracy. I just need convenience and a trajectory.

    For example, I have a Fitbit Aria scale, and every time I step on, it measures my body fat % for me automatically. I now have an historical record online that I can view and see trends. I'm sure that it makes assumptions and that its inaccurate, but at least it is consistent. It gives the same reading within a 1/10 of a percent from day to day and week to week. And slowly as I lose weight while eating lots of calories and lots of protein and doing strength training, I see the bodyfat % decline. Today, I am consistently down 5% than where I was two months ago. Even accounting for the less-than-scientific-degree-of-accuracy, as long as it's heading downward instead of upwards I can feel like I'm on the right track.

    So that's all we need: a scale that measures body fat (with an acceptable margin of error) and that makes it easy to track progress. :flowerforyou:
  • JennyNotSoSkinny
    JennyNotSoSkinny Posts: 93 Member
    http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Precision+GetFit+Digital+Body+Fat+Scale/3167332.p?id=1218382027719&skuId=3167332&st=scales&cp=1&lp=10

    I've had this one for a couple of weeks and love it thus far. It got really great reviews on Best Buy and Amazon. I'd never heard of the brand before, but everything is working out so far for me.
  • simonc14
    simonc14 Posts: 76 Member
    They all suck. None of them are accurate. Get calipers.

    This. Mine are crap. :laugh:
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    I use the "Omron BF508 Body Composition and Body Fat Monitor Bathroom Scale" to use the full title!!

    It has hand and foot sensors and has been quite consistent - not quite so consistent when you are doing IF though.

    As for accuracy - it was within 1% of a BodPod analysis.
  • oscarsson
    oscarsson Posts: 32 Member
    I also have a question regarding my BF% reading. I have an Ozeri ZB13 scale and I believe the weight to be accurate as I consistently get the same reading on a different scale. I also get a consistent reading of 21.77% body fat...the problem is that I can grab handfuls of fat on my stomach and hips so I have a hard time believing that my actual % is this low. I do however have a long history of running and sports, and I have been running 6 km per day every day for the past month and a half.

    So I guess my question is, is it possible to have a low body fat % but still have big pockets of fat? I figure that to completely get rid of my belly I would have to be around 7% fat, at least according to my scale. Such a low % kind of scares me. Any thoughts?
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    @oscarsson

    People's body fat distribution is very different. For example there are people who are fat on the inside (visceral fat) and thin on the outside. My arms and legs are quite lean but my stomach certainly isn't - sadly.:grumble:

    You might also find that your fat loss seems to come from different areas at different stages of your weigh loss - mine certainly did. Love handles are the last to show any improvement for me. Sounds like hips and stomach are yours.

    7% for a woman should scare you as you are already in the "good" range for body fat.
  • Joehenny
    Joehenny Posts: 1,222 Member
    They all suck. None of them are accurate. Get calipers.

    Agreed calipers or scanning and water dunking. The rest are TRASH
  • oscarsson
    oscarsson Posts: 32 Member
    ok, thanks sijobial for you response. Do you think I can trust the 21.77% which the scale is consistently showing? Intuitively it seems too low compared to what I am seeing in the mirror.
  • paulperryman
    paulperryman Posts: 839 Member
    the manual way or a doctor is the most accurate but any Biometric scale will give you a good idea, my Watcher Watchers WW125A tells me i am 28% atm and according to online calculators and my supplied tape measures i am somewhere between 27 and 29 so it's pretty close to what it likely should be, this scale also measures the following

    Ofcourse these aren't guarenteed to be accurate :-
    Body Mass Index %, Body Fat %, Water Weight %, Bone Mass, Overall Weight, Weight Lost since last weigh in, Weight Loss since Profile was created

    it has 4 Profiles so upto 4 people can use it and all store there own info or you can use it as a regular old weight scale. it can also be set to Kg's or Lbs.

    http://www.myshopping.com.au/ZM--1216757024_Weight_Watchers_Weight_Tracking_Body_Composition_Monitor_Scale_WW125A

    as the person you took advice on is saying, jsut cause you don't see the fat loss doesn't mean it's not gone, fat is lost evenly over the whole body not just one particular spot and it could be visceral fat which is the fat around the organs and in the arteries so you'd never notice that directly, only in a slight depression in the midsection but you should be able to see a difference on the tape measure if it's significant enough.
  • oscarsson
    oscarsson Posts: 32 Member
    Thanks for your responses. Got me thinking along the right lines. Very helpful.
  • oscarsson
    oscarsson Posts: 32 Member
    Since you were so helpful the first time, I have another question. According to the same scale I have a bone density of 2.1 KG. For My weight and age the recommended is 2.2 kg. How does one increase bone density? Calcium and exercise? Any more info on bone density would be appreciated! For example is more better or should one aim for the target (in my case 2.2 KG or would more be even better?)
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    ok, thanks sijobial for you response. Do you think I can trust the 21.77% which the scale is consistently showing? Intuitively it seems too low compared to what I am seeing in the mirror.

    Consistency is good for tracking progress but as for accuracy it's impossible to say without doing a comparison against one of the "gold standard" methods - hydrostatic immersion, DEXA scan or BodPod seem to be the ones with the highest regard. Every method has pros & cons.
    For example a couple of people in this thread say use callipers but they are only as good as the person taking the measurements, can't measure visceral fat, not so good if you are older or have loose skin. On the other hand they are inexpensive, very good if you are young and lean.

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