DEXA/Body Composition Scan
Liadin123
Posts: 67 Member
Hi all,
I thought I'd share a positive experience today. I had a DEXA Scan... to show me my body fat percentage (boooo) but also showing my lean mass, and what kind of calories I should be eating etc. Kind of a snapshot of where I am now, and where I need to go. It was SO informative - the owner and administrator of the scan was very pro Keto, which was very encouraging. It was also informative just to see what kind of muscle and bone density I was working with. Turns out, I'm pretty muscled! Yay me! But it also means I need to eat more.. and do some light strength training to keep up the muscle mass. It was GREAT when it comes to news about weight... all my life I have wondered why I couldn't get my 5'4" frame to a "teeny" size.. turns out, I'm not supposed to be teeny. He said that if I got to a weight of 160-170, I'd be fit and healthy, and strong. Man, was that an eye opener.
I'm sharing this b/c I think it's important to know this stuff.. .I think the scale can be our greatest demon sometimes... always dictating what we SHOULD weigh, and the BMI, is downright flawed!
I also had a great perspective take away: all my life I have HATED my tree trunk legs... but the first thing this very fit man said was " you have amazingly strong calves!" and he was just so excited about it... lol. I came home and told my hubby who said "yeah I KNOW that! They're sexy too!". I was just floored. I thought they were awful. What a perspective eye opener!
Anyway, well worth the experience, thought I would share! Thanks for letting me have the floor
I thought I'd share a positive experience today. I had a DEXA Scan... to show me my body fat percentage (boooo) but also showing my lean mass, and what kind of calories I should be eating etc. Kind of a snapshot of where I am now, and where I need to go. It was SO informative - the owner and administrator of the scan was very pro Keto, which was very encouraging. It was also informative just to see what kind of muscle and bone density I was working with. Turns out, I'm pretty muscled! Yay me! But it also means I need to eat more.. and do some light strength training to keep up the muscle mass. It was GREAT when it comes to news about weight... all my life I have wondered why I couldn't get my 5'4" frame to a "teeny" size.. turns out, I'm not supposed to be teeny. He said that if I got to a weight of 160-170, I'd be fit and healthy, and strong. Man, was that an eye opener.
I'm sharing this b/c I think it's important to know this stuff.. .I think the scale can be our greatest demon sometimes... always dictating what we SHOULD weigh, and the BMI, is downright flawed!
I also had a great perspective take away: all my life I have HATED my tree trunk legs... but the first thing this very fit man said was " you have amazingly strong calves!" and he was just so excited about it... lol. I came home and told my hubby who said "yeah I KNOW that! They're sexy too!". I was just floored. I thought they were awful. What a perspective eye opener!
Anyway, well worth the experience, thought I would share! Thanks for letting me have the floor
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Replies
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How much was the dexa scan? Is the body fat calculator as accurate at the "bod pod"?0
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Just as an aside for those located in Southern California or in the San Francisco Bay Area, DEXA body scans are now relatively inexpensive and mobile:
https://www.bodyspec.com/what-is-dxa
They also do Resting Metabolic Rate testing:
https://www.bodyspec.com/what-is-rmr
and VO2 Max Testing:
https://www.bodyspec.com/what-is-vo2
VO2 Max testing "measures how much oxygen your body is able to consume during maximum intensity exercise, quantifying your level of cardiovascular fitness." In other words this test will help you answer the question: "How hard can I train?"1 -
@LolaDeeDaisy23 - I am not sure what a bod pod is, sorry! The DEXA scan is supposed to be one of the most accurate tools available. As for cost, I'm in Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada), and it was pretty inexpensive... 120 for the DXA scan, 220 including the Bone Density Scan. I got the bone density scan due to an injury and my mother having Osteo.
I got mine done at bodycomp.ca - they have some sample scans on their website 2 -
That's awesome and a message many people need to hear. Without really knowing what's under our skin, it's hard to accurately pick the right goals (scale and calorie). I wish I could find a cheap/local place to get it done.
It is important to set our long-term goal to be great health and fitness and not a scale number. It is better to be healthy and strong, but 10 pounds above what you "think" you should weigh than weak and flabby but exactly what you "decided" was your best weight.4 -
@FIT_Goat exactly... here I am thinking I should eat 1200 calories a day and if I go over I'll never get to goal... and I find out yesterday I should probably be closer to 1600 calories a day b/c of my lean muscle mass - and to not be scared of eating more (within the realm of keto that is).
Better to be healthy and strong indeed... you are 100% right on that one!3 -
I
this thread. Kudos @Liadin123. 1 -
@FIT_Goat exactly... here I am thinking I should eat 1200 calories a day and if I go over I'll never get to goal... and I find out yesterday I should probably be closer to 1600 calories a day b/c of my lean muscle mass - and to not be scared of eating more (within the realm of keto that is).
Better to be healthy and strong indeed... you are 100% right on that one!
That was almost exactly my situation last fall, when a DEXA scan showed loss of LBM. I've since raised my call from 1200 to 1600 and protein from 75g to 110g.
Q - Any suggestions as to when it would make sense to go back for a second scan?
Thx!
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@RalfLott - I did ask about when it would be good to come back - he suggested about six months, but it's a personal preference. He gave me a monthly body fat % loss breakdown and weight suggestions.. so I have a 6 month target and will probably go back then.
I used to joke that "underneath all this fat is a bunch o muscle, so watch out!"... lol, guess I was right! *flexing muscle*... okay, I'm not there yet, but hey.. I'm working on it 3 -
@RalfLott - I did ask about when it would be good to come back - he suggested about six months, but it's a personal preference. He gave me a monthly body fat % loss breakdown and weight suggestions.. so I have a 6 month target and will probably go back then.
I used to joke that "underneath all this fat is a bunch o muscle, so watch out!"... lol, guess I was right! *flexing muscle*... okay, I'm not there yet, but hey.. I'm working on it
Thanks! Are you lifting during your 6 months in purgatory?0 -
@LolaDeeDaisy23 Yes, the Dexa is as accurate as the BodPod. In fact, it is a bit more accurate because of method. The truly valuable difference between BodPod and Dexa is that Dexa tells you where on the body fat is at.
I'll warn everyone thinking about Dexa, though: Some people get upset when Dexa shows a higher BF% than other tests, such as BodPod.
For the record, my last Dexa was 4/14/17 and I was at 15.8% BF. Was hoping to be around 13% at the time, and my ultimate goal is 10% or less (almost 10 lbs. of fat as of the test date... and about the same as of right now).1 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »@LolaDeeDaisy23 Yes, the Dexa is as accurate as the BodPod. In fact, it is a bit more accurate because of method. The truly valuable difference between BodPod and Dexa is that Dexa tells you where on the body fat is at.
I'll warn everyone thinking about Dexa, though: Some people get upset when Dexa shows a higher BF% than other tests, such as BodPod.
For the record, my last Dexa was 4/14/17 and I was at 15.8% BF. Was hoping to be around 13% at the time, and my ultimate goal is 10% or less (almost 10 lbs. of fat as of the test date... and about the same as of right now).
Even if DEXA reads high, it shouldn't matter for tracking purposes, eh?0 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »@LolaDeeDaisy23 Yes, the Dexa is as accurate as the BodPod. In fact, it is a bit more accurate because of method. The truly valuable difference between BodPod and Dexa is that Dexa tells you where on the body fat is at.
I'll warn everyone thinking about Dexa, though: Some people get upset when Dexa shows a higher BF% than other tests, such as BodPod.
For the record, my last Dexa was 4/14/17 and I was at 15.8% BF. Was hoping to be around 13% at the time, and my ultimate goal is 10% or less (almost 10 lbs. of fat as of the test date... and about the same as of right now).
Even if DEXA reads high, it shouldn't matter for tracking purposes, eh?
It doesn't read high... most others read low. And as long as you stay consistent, then it doesn't matter. The problem comes when you try to switch from bio-electrical impedance or BodPod and expect the results to be the same.1 -
This is really wonderful, thank you for sharing your experience. I had a similar experience when setting up training sessions at my new gym. The trainer used a hand held body fat device (less accurate but better than nothing) and told me my muscle mass was really good and that at 5'2" I should aim for a goal weight of about 155-160 lbs. That's something that feels really doable and a good healthy place to be. It's nice to hear that health professionals are starting to see how our overall composition needs to be taken into account.2
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Very cool!1
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@RalfLott not lifting yet, just using my own body weight for exercise (push-ups, pull-ups, planks etc). My first goal is to get under 200lbs - at which point I can start doing more training/lifting. I have a back injury so I need to be careful (I don't want to end up on a cane again, NOT fun) - and I have had fascioctomy's on both my legs and have some nerve damage from undiagnosed Compartment Syndrome for 18 years - so I have my physical challenges I just need to be aware of and be careful with. Nothing that cannot be overcome though!2
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This company has a lot of offices, found one near me. Pricing is good and from time to time, Groupon has discounts for them.
http://www.bodyfatusa.com/services
They do a DNA test, RMR, and VO2 testing. They offer a discount if you order more than one scan, so will probably go for 3, one now, one in 6 months, and another this time next year.
I want the info to decide how much more weight I want to lose. Knowing a good LBM number would be very helpful for that. And I want to see if I add a tad more muscle. I'm thinking at least a year of tracking for that.0 -
That's great! Thanks for sharing.
I'd love to get a DEXA scan (my calves are the opposite, scrawny; I envy women with muscular calves!) but haven't yet found a good place around here to get one. 0 -
retirehappy wrote: »This company has a lot of offices, found one near me. Pricing is good and from time to time, Groupon has discounts for them.
http://www.bodyfatusa.com/services
They do a DNA test, RMR, and VO2 testing. They offer a discount if you order more than one scan, so will probably go for 3, one now, one in 6 months, and another this time next year.
I want the info to decide how much more weight I want to lose. Knowing a good LBM number would be very helpful for that. And I want to see if I add a tad more muscle. I'm thinking at least a year of tracking for that.
Yep, same goes to the place I linked to above in CA!1
