How do you measure your body fat %

Calipers are inexpensive and accurate. Sometimes the body fat scales are way off.

You want the Metal ones not the plastic ones .

I use Tanita scales but I take each measurement with a pinch of salt - it gives you a rough indication but as people have said it's not terribly accurate.

You want the Metal ones not the plastic ones .

Can I ask why the plastic ones are not as accurate? I'm curious about this.

I bought one of those little machines, waste of money, I get the same reading with an online body fat calculator :-/

My doctor has a scale that measures body fat that I use. The scale is as accurate as underwater body fat tests.

I wish I could say I had found a reliable way to measure body fat %. I was obsessed with finding out my body fat for a while, convinced this was the best measure of progress.

I ordered the calipers (plastic ones) off amazon for about $5. Granted I had to do it to myself since I live alone, I just did the 3 spot test and it came out to be about 25%. I thought that seemed about right since at the time I was 150 lbs (at 5'9")
The obsession continued so I had it done with the official calipers at the gym by some guy who said it was his first time (lol). He told me I was 15%, I thought that was ridiculously low.
Then I got on one of those scales that can do it and it told me I was 32%. Even now at 135lb it still says 30%.
Of the three, I think my own self measuring was the most accurate, which is kind of sad.
I gave up on measuring my body fat %, I then became focused on the scale and seeing if my clothing size changed.

I did mine at the gym and also found this site http://www.healthcentral.com/cholesterol/home-body-fat-test-2774-143.html
The readings were about .5 lb off

Wow! That site says my body fat is only 23.3%. Hmmmm... bookmarking that!

Yeah I'd take that one with a lb or so of salt... It says I have 23% as well and there is no way thats accurate. The last time I was measured by a personal trainer (about a month and a half ago) I was 29%. I'd definitely improved since then but I'd be suprised if it was that drastic of an improvement.

You want the Metal ones not the plastic ones .

Can I ask why the plastic ones are not as accurate? I'm curious about this.

Becasue they are Cheap and made of Plastic. They will give you a round about Body Fat But again not very accurate. Plus you really can no measure it yourself and be accurate. There are 7 point 4 point or 3 point pinch tests that we do. If you see a professional using plastic ones I would question that. We generally get the metal ones from a medical supply company.

accumeasure calipers. cheap and easy. Just measure the mm, don't worry about what % it comes up with. MM don't lie

I have been looking into this quite a bit and I do agree with some of the posters. Here is my "common sense" stand on BF testing.

a) the Most accurate measurement is a DEXA scan. YES. it is more accurate than water test, as some inaccuracy can be introduced if volumetric capacity of the lungs is not correct and if the subject does not fully exhale (more buoyant). the DEXA scale has its limitations, as very large people might not be able to fit on the table for the tests, but I would think that would only apply to the over 350ish range. DEXA is an expensive machine, so I was only able to find it through a local hospital. the fee was $50US for the first time, and $25 for additional tests. (can not do more than every 6 months)

b) water weight is the second most accurate. this has been considered the "gold standard" for quite some time and is still quite accurate if done properly. large equipment, and can be a bit claustrophobic.. limited availability but is probably available somewhere near you.

c) calipers. consistency is the key. can be about 4%+- in terms of accuracy. having the same person test each time and following a measurement guide like the ones at http://www.linear-software.com/online.html can help improve accuracy. the inexpensive accumeasure calipers are good because they have a little force gauge, this prevents reading too small of a number (and probably a few bruises) by indicating the correct amount of pressure. I will note that its easy to test if you are very low body fat, but I still have a belly and it is known to be harder to get a good skinfold for larger subjects. I think that if you measure in consistent locations, same tester, multiple tests per location (I do 3 caliper tests per site and use the average) then you can track progress. I love the comment that was made that you can just look at the Millimeter measurements and not obsess about the percentage, as you can still watch your numbers shrink.

d) on the website i listed above you can find several tests to perform with the calipers, as well as the body measurement calculator created by the military to estimate body fat percentages. the US Army method is a formula that utilizes neck, waist and height to determine body fat. more info on this method can be found at: http://www.bestlodging.com/diet/body-fat-percentage/us-army-method.htm

The "U.S. Army method" body fat percentage formula for men is:

Men: % body fat = [86.010 x Log (waist – neck)] – [70.041 x Log (height)] + 36.76

The "U.S. Army method" body fat percentage formula for women is:

Women: % body fat = [163.205 x Log (waist + hip – neck)] – [97.684 x Log (height)] – 78.387

Note: what I did was to purchase calipers and test myself after a dexa scan. If I am getting accurate results on the calipers, I should be able to predict the results of the more accurate, but far less frequent DEXA/Water weight tests.