Body fat percentage.

Barrera1010
Barrera1010 Posts: 58 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
Whats a good method to calculate?

Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Post pictures on here, there's knowledgeable people on here who will give you a decent estimate
  • rhauser44
    rhauser44 Posts: 43 Member
    All the previous posters give great advice. While a precise measurement is always great, maybe even more valuable is tracking how you are trending and the rate of change. That you can do with any method.
    I use the three-site caliper skin-fold test myself. If I’m carefully measuring the same locations the same way ever time, you can track the trend + or -. I also compare that percentage and my build against the many photo examples you can Google online;

    body fat percentage men
  • fb47
    fb47 Posts: 1,058 Member
    I just estimate visually. It's not precise, but I look for ballpark numbers, not precision.
  • SummerSkier
    SummerSkier Posts: 5,133 Member
    I have a little hand held machine. It's not going to be exact but over time I do think it tells you if you are improving or getting worse. About $30 on Amazon. I have used it for a few years and seen it go from 29% to 19% so I know it does register changes. I like it because I am in control of the variables from measurement to measurement.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
    SummerSkier wrote: »
    I have a little hand held machine. It's not going to be exact but over time I do think it tells you if you are improving or getting worse. About $30 on Amazon. I have used it for a few years and seen it go from 29% to 19% so I know it does register changes. I like it because I am in control of the variables from measurement to measurement.

    I had one of those but it didn't track changes much for me. I carry fat over my hips and the lower your fat is on your body, the less accurate those seem to be. Unless it has both hand and feet sensors.
  • Johnd2000
    Johnd2000 Posts: 198 Member
    I use a cheap pair of calipers (7 point method) and slightly more expensive scales. There tends to be 1-2% difference between the two readings, which is close enough to give me a rough idea.

    As with all measurements, it’s the trend that matters, not the individual data points.

  • feisty_bucket
    feisty_bucket Posts: 1,047 Member
    The US Navy method is the easiest I know of. Takes maybe two minutes and you just need a scale and a measuring tape. Like every other technique, use it to track change over time.

    http://fitness.bizcalcs.com/Calculator.asp?Calc=Body-Fat-Navy
  • rhauser44
    rhauser44 Posts: 43 Member
    feisty_bucket wrote: »
    The US Navy method is the easiest I know of. Takes maybe two minutes and you just need a scale and a measuring tape. Like every other technique, use it to track change over time.

    http://fitness.bizcalcs.com/Calculator.asp?Calc=Body-Fat-Navy

    I use the Navy method along with the three site caliper method and average them together. And again, I’m following the trend.

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