Scales that measure body fat percentage

Magic beans. The scales have algorithms based on your inputs, but they're not measuring body fat percentage.

Yeah, I can't see how they're all that accurate. I would stick with a pair of calipers.

Not sure on a scale I know there is a electronic method to record body fat that is not as accurate. Send a small amount of current through you and measures the resistance. I used one of these and then had my trainer do all the proper measurements and it was off by about 1%

Mine uses an electromagnetic pulse (there are metal things you stand on) and it sends out the pulse, and depending on how fast it reads it sent back, it can tell (roughly) how much body fat you have. It is actually quite accurate. I used the military equation to get my body fat estimation online and it came out the same as my scale. I never had to input anything except height into the scale, and the military thing asks for all sorts of measurements. Just my 2 cents.

Not true, and not magic beans - but you need to know how to use them. The majority of these scales work by electrical impedance - which means it sends an electrical impulse up one leg and measures how long it takes to get the signal down from the other leg - since electricity travels slowly through fat. Yes, they use algorithms to calculate the final number based on the impedance, but that is why these scales ask you if you have an athletic build or not - to be sure to use the correct algorithm. There are some that have a handheld unit, that sends the signal from your hands and measures it at your feet that is supposed to be more accurate, but not as convenient. My scale, a Withings Wi-Fi, just has the feet sensors.

Here is the problem that people face: most people get wildly different readings from measurement to measurement. This is due to the fact that the electrical signal is slower when passing through a dehydrated body, and most people weigh themselves first thing in the morning. What you need to do is get in the habit of weighing yourself twice - for weight in the morning, for body fat percentage in the evening. You will get much more consistent results. You will also have to take an average, as the body fat will vary (but then, so does your weight from day to day). And how do I know it's not magic beans? Because a fat analysis based on a water immersion test produced the same result as on the scale!

I've found it to be a great tool, and helps me calculate my max deficit (since the body can only metabolize 31 calories per pound of body fat a day, and you can't calculate that without the fat number). Knowing this keeps me from having too big a deficit and risking breaking down lean mass.

Good luck with your new scale!

Not true, and not magic beans - but you need to know how to use them. The majority of these scales work by electrical impedance - which means it sends an electrical impulse up one leg and measures how long it takes to get the signal down from the other leg - since electricity travels slowly through fat. Yes, they use algorithms to calculate the final number based on the impedance, but that is why these scales ask you if you have an athletic build or not - to be sure to use the correct algorithm. There are some that have a handheld unit, that sends the signal from your hands and measures it at your feet that is supposed to be more accurate, but not as convenient. My scale, a Withings Wi-Fi, just has the feet sensors.

Here is the problem that people face: most people get wildly different readings from measurement to measurement. This is due to the fact that the electrical signal is slower when passing through a dehydrated body, and most people weigh themselves first thing in the morning. What you need to do is get in the habit of weighing yourself twice - for weight in the morning, for body fat percentage in the evening. You will get much more consistent results. You will also have to take an average, as the body fat will vary (but then, so does your weight from day to day). And how do I know it's not magic beans? Because a fat analysis based on a water immersion test produced the same result as on the scale!

I've found it to be a great tool, and helps me calculate my max deficit (since the body can only metabolize 31 calories per pound of body fat a day, and you can't calculate that without the fat number). Knowing this keeps me from having too big a deficit and risking breaking down lean mass.

Good luck with your new scale!

Thanks for this info. Even though it sounds "sciency" I am able to follow and understand it. I've been avoiding these scales and avoiding buying one in general but know I'll need one near the end of my "journey" to keep an eye on "maintenance mode" so I've been wondering if these fat measuring one's are something I should look into. With this explanation it seems like a much easier and more independant way than calipers of me getting this kind of info whenever I'm interested. For the time being, as long as I'm slimming down and making gains in energy, I'll assume my body fat percentage is going down sufficiently. I did have it measured by calipers at the start so I do have a baseline to compare to when I near the end.