Scale that measures more than weight

jonipecson
jonipecson Posts: 29 Member
edited November 25 in Health and Weight Loss
The scales that measure not only weight, but BMI, Body Water, Body Fat and Bone Mass; is that truly better than a scale that measures weight alone? I want to get healthy, I don't have to be ripped...lol. I just wanted to seek out some ideas on this.

Thanks.

Replies

  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
    I don't think a scale can measure bone mass, and as I understand it, the ones that measure body fat are easily interfered with by water retention. But then, I don't think I have ever heard of measuring body water, so perhaps there is some miracle technology out there...but probably not.
  • seska422
    seska422 Posts: 3,217 Member
    edited October 2015
    All a scale can reliably measure is weight.

    You don't need a special scale for BMI. BMI is based on height and weight so you can look it up on a chart or use an online calculator once you know your height and weight.

    The other things you listed can't be accurately determined by a home scale. They will just be estimates and may not even be good estimates.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    seska422 wrote: »
    All a scale can reliably measure is weight.

    The things you listed can't be accurately determined by a home scale. They will just be estimates and may not even be good estimates.

    This^

    If you look at all the criteria that need to be "managed" to keep the numbers as accurate as possible.....no way am I going thru 12 steps (or whatever)....just to weigh myself.

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    seska422 wrote: »
    All a scale can reliably measure is weight.

    You don't need a special scale for BMI. BMI is based on height and weight so you can look it up on a chart or use an online calculator once you know your height and weight.

    The other things you listed can't be accurately determined by a home scale. They will just be estimates and may not even be good estimates.

    pretty much this...scales that give BF% aren't accurate...they can't tell the difference between fat and water.
  • spiritlevel9
    spiritlevel9 Posts: 48 Member
    I had a go on some scales in town that measure body fat and although my BMI is 21, it said my fat mass was 29 percent which is still high according to the machine! I am not even getting into an argument with a machine. I can see my ribs and when I was measured for a bra, I was directed towards the vests! I am a typical pear and lay down fat on my hips and thighs. I am 5 ft 7 and a UK 10. That is good enough for me.
    If I took it too seriously, I may be feeling under pressure to lose more pounds and that may start messing with my head. I don't think it is worth my while trying to bulk up. I get totally fed up with repetitive exercise and wouldn't keep it up. I walk everywhere and do a little yoga. That is good enough for me. I poked my tongue out at the mocking scale and will never feed it another 50p as long as I live!
  • jonipecson
    jonipecson Posts: 29 Member
    Thanks for the feedback everyone. So basically I'll just take it as an estimate and I know that when I feel healthy and I no longer need blood pressure meds I've truly succeeded on the weight loss front :smile:
  • ElPasoMark
    ElPasoMark Posts: 47 Member
    Depends on what you want to spend and what functions you want/need. Some can get spendy. I've been looking at Tanita body composition monitors for a while. Maybe something like the BC-1000 though the higher priced models look good too-

    http://www.tanita.com/en/products/184-catId.520093811.html

    Good review on the BC-100 here-

    http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2010/02/tanita-bc-1000-scale-review-in-depth.html

    And lo, when I went to the above website to get the URL I found this, an initial write up on a new Garmin scale-

    http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2015/10/garmins-weight-scale.html

    And then there's the Withings-

    http://www.withings.com/us/en/products/smart-body-analyzer

    Cheers



  • cnbbnc
    cnbbnc Posts: 1,267 Member
    My digital scale that also measured body fat was so inaccurate that I gave up and just bought a plain ole analog scale.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    jonipecson wrote: »
    The scales that measure not only weight, but BMI, Body Water, Body Fat and Bone Mass; is that truly better than a scale that measures weight alone? I want to get healthy, I don't have to be ripped...lol. I just wanted to seek out some ideas on this.

    Thanks.

    No it's crap and innaccurate to the point of pointless

    But it's hard to buy a decent scale that doesn't

    So if you get one just ignore the numbers

    (Mine tells me my BF is 32% ...laughs)
  • lkpducky
    lkpducky Posts: 17,645 Member
    And mine claims I have gained a pound or two of fat even after one night where I ate 500 calories more than usual for that day, and much more sodium (shouldn't that have been mainly water weight, so my body fat % should have decreased)? I finally said "bugger it for a game of soldiers" and only tracked weight trends and measurements, and I'll get a DEXA after losing a few more pounds.
  • MostlyWater
    MostlyWater Posts: 4,294 Member
    I got one on Amazon, the same that gyms use. I think it was $38 with tax
  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
    Yes, they are much better. Not super accurate, but very consistent
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