How accurate as body fat analyzers?

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SuccessHere
SuccessHere Posts: 240 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Yesterday, at my gym, I stepped on one of those expensive body fat analyzer's that give you all the details of your body weight, ect....

To my shock, my body fat percentage went up to 29.9%!! I can't believe it. I've been trying to cut back on fattening foods and go to the gym. I don't understand why I gained body fat.

So just how accurate are these expensive body fat analyzers?

Replies

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,872 Member
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    Not very accurate, so don't fret.

    But cutting back on fattening foods only works for fat loss if you cut back enough that you're eating fewer calories than you burn, over a decently long period of time. You can cut back on any foods, and eat any foods, to get there calorically . . . though food choice is important for satiation, body composition, and health.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    They're just inaccurate gimmicks to make money. When you think about it, how in the world would a scale know all that by having you just step on it?
  • 100_PROOF_
    100_PROOF_ Posts: 1,168 Member
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    Not very accurate at all.

    In 2014 I stepped on one in front of several ladies who where visibly upset by the readings. I showed them how it also read my numbers way off even though I was clearly not obese or even overweight. I was @ 17- 18% bf at the time but the fancy scale said I was 27% . Lol! They said that they felt better and had no idea that those scales where inaccurate, they assumed it would be an accurate reading because it was in a gym and not a home scale.
  • SuccessHere
    SuccessHere Posts: 240 Member
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    Thanks for the input. Why is my high end gym using this gimmick? Why aren't they doing body fat the old fashion way with fat measuring clamps?
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,872 Member
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    SuccessHere wrote: »
    Thanks for the input. Why is my high end gym using this gimmick? Why aren't they doing body fat the old fashion way with fat measuring clamps?

    Calipers can be moderately accurate when used by someone skilled/experienced, but those people aren't everywhere, and it's time consuming. The device is a one-time expense for the gym.

    Really, none of the easy/inexpensive things are all that accurate, and the more accurate ones tend to be expensive and inconvenient.

    For most of us, body composition precision isn't as important as trends anyway, and those are mostly observable over time . . . and I say that as a data geek. ;)
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    High end commercial grade analysers can actually be reasonably accurate - but they have to be used sensibly and under consistent conditions.

    Using them at the gym is potentially the worst time and place to use them!
    (They are very sensitive to variations in hydration.)
    Same time of day, not after eating, not after drinking, not after exercise and you may well get a perfectly reasonable trend over multiple tests.
    Randomly jumping on them once or using them under inconsistent conditions is going to give you poor quality data.

    That you have cut back on foods and go to the gym doesn't remove the possibility you are indeed around 30% BF.
    Post a picture or look at sample BF photos online will give you an idea.
  • JulesBooth
    JulesBooth Posts: 26 Member
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    I did exactly the same on Friday. My fat percentage had gone up and my muscle percentage down. So annoyed as I've been calorie counting and exercising. I can see my body shape has changed. Really put me off.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
    edited June 2018
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    kirk136 wrote: »
    I did exactly the same on Friday. My fat percentage had gone up and my muscle percentage down. So annoyed as I've been calorie counting and exercising. I can see my body shape has changed. Really put me off.

    Nothing significant happens in a few days as regards body composition.

    Think weeks/months, not days!

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