Body Fat Estimate - Where do I stand?

Okay. Following on from my other thread about how to calculate it...

What does this actually mean? :embarassed: LOL

Fat Mass 28 lbs

Have I really got 28lb of excess fat?

No, if your estimate is correct, you have 28lbs of fat. You don't have 28lbs of EXCESS fat, as it's not reasonable to expect to have zero bodyfat. (Not possible).

Okay. Following on from my other thread about how to calculate it...

What does this actually mean? :embarassed: LOL

Body Fat 20%
Fat Mass 28 lbs
Lean Mass 112lbs
Body Fat Category Athletic

Have I really got 28lb of excess fat? I don't really want to weigh 8 stone (well I wouldn't say no but I know I shouldn't).

Is it reasonable to say that with another 14lb of weight loss I should be less wibbly wobbly or do I have to go further into that 28lbs?

As you can see, I'm not very knowledgable in fitness and exercise at all :embarassed:

Hi Allie1904, first off, I want to say that scale weight loss and fat loss aren't the same thing. A lot of people think they are the same thing and they are not. Why? For example, a person can lose 5 pounds of scale weight in an hour, but they can't lose 5 pounds of fat in a hour.

Your pounds of fat is 28. You don't want to lose 28 pounds of fat. If you did, you would die.

I know how much you weigh. If you want me to, I can break things down further for you and show you how much fat (Not scale weight), you need to focus on losing. and no, it will not be 14 or 28 pounds of scale weight.

Just leave your yes or no answer. I'm about to soon go work out. When I return, I will check to see if you want me to break things down for you.

Here are the body fat ranges for women.
So I would say you don't want to loose more than 6% more body fat. As a previous poster said that 28 lbs includes essential fat
Essential Fat 10-12%
Athletes 14-20%
Fitness 21-24%

Question. Has someone had their bodyfat done to successfully calculate where their ideal weight should be? Instread of relying on the bmi or some other arbitrary weight goal?

Allie1904,

Lets look at your results again:

Weight: 140
BF: 20%
Pounds of fat: 28
Pounds of lean body mass: 112 (Your lean body mass number is the requirement for your body. You want to maintain it or increase. When it starts to decrease, it's because you are losing lean body mass)

Scale weight loss and fat loss aren't the same thing. When a person say they want to lose weight, they really need to ask themselves if they are talking about scale weight or fat. Anyone can lose 5 pounds of scale weight in an hour, but no one can lose 5 pounds of fat in an hour.

I try to get people to see the difference between scale weight loss and fat loss.

If you are aiming to lose 100% fat, then this formula is for you. It will show you what a healthy body fat percentage and future weight are, according to fat loss and not scale weight loss.

Formula: Attention: The key is to get your current body fat percentage and your future pounds of fat to match.

Original body fat percentage number written as a number / Original weight = Future body fat percentage

Original weight x Future body fat percentage = Future pounds of fat

Original lean body mass + Future pounds of fat = Future healthy weight

Original pounds fat - Future pounds of fat = Pounds of fat loss at 100% fat loss

Original weight - Future healthy weight = Future scale weight loss at 100% fat loss

Original body fat percentage - Future body fat percentage = Body fat percentage loss


I know that' a lot to digest.

Lets take your information and see what a 100% fat loss would be:

20 (Original body fat percentage written as a number) / 140 (Original weight) = 14% (Future body fat percentage)

140 (Original weight) x 14% (Future body fat percentage) = 20 (Future pounds of fat)

112 (Original lean body mass) + 20 (Future pounds of fat) = 132 Future healthy weight

28 (Original pounds of fat) - 20 (Future pounds of fat) = 8 (Pounds of fat loss at 100% fat loss)

140 (Original weight) - 132 (Future healthy weight) = 8 (Pounds of scale weight loss at 100% fat loss)

Attention: When a person loses 100% pounds of fat, their fat loss and scale weight loss will be the same

20% (Original body fat percentage) - 14% (Future body fat percentage) = 6% body fat percentage loss

Fat loss takes time. It's easy to lose scale weight, but it's not easy to lose fat. Just because you lose 8 pounds, it doesn't mean that it's 100% fat loss.

For example: On 10-25-11 your results are:

Weight: 140
BF: 20%
Pounds of fat: 28
Pounds of lean body mass: 112

On 11-2-11, your results are:

Weight: 132
BF: 19%
Pounds of fat: 25
Pounds of lean body mass: 107

The difference:

140 (Original weight) - 132 (Current weight) = 8 pounds
20%(Original bf%) - 19% (Current bf%) = 1% body fat percentage loss
28 (Original pounds of fat) - 25(Current pounds of fat) = 3 pounds of fat loss
112 (Original lean body mass) - 107 (Current lean body mass) = 5 pounds of lean body mass loss

Although, you have lost 8 pounds, it doesn't mean you have lost 8 pounds of fat at 100%. Your end results shows that out of the 8 scale weight pounds you have lost, 3 of them were from fat and 5 of them were from lean body mass.

It's said that the healthy weight loss is to lose between 1 to 2 pounds a week. This is not talking about scale weight It's talking about fat loss. 1 to 2 pounds of fat loss a week, equals 4 to 8 pounds of fat loss a month.

Is it possible to get 100% fat loss in a week or month? The answer is yes. You can see 100% loss sometimes and sometimes you won't. Don't get discouraged. It's about reaching your future body fat percentage goal. When you get there, you will know that you have lost 100% fat.

Please keep in mind that 100% fat loss can have you overweight on the height/weight chart and your bmi can be high and that should be fine. Why? Because although your numbers are high, you will look leaner.

I know to reach my body fat percentage goal, it will take a year or more to get there and I'm fine with that.

What does this actually mean? :embarassed: LOL

Body Fat 20%
Fat Mass 28 lbs
Lean Mass 112lbs
Body Fat Category Athletic

That is a very good body fat percentage. Women can have up to up to 30% body fat and be considered "average", though a more normal healthy range would be 21 - 25% and where you are is considered "athletic". 13% is the absolute minimum a woman should go to before they start eating into their essential body fat, but I'm not sure why anyone who wasn't a professional athlete would want to go that low.

Have I really got 28lb of excess fat? I don't really want to weigh 8 stone (well I wouldn't say no but I know I shouldn't).

Is it reasonable to say that with another 14lb of weight loss I should be less wibbly wobbly or do I have to go further into that 28lbs?

As you can see, I'm not very knowledgable in fitness and exercise at all :embarassed:

I doubt you need to lose any weight if that body fat % is correct - it would only be for vanity.

Thank you for the calculation, so helpful!!! I just got my BF% tested this morning at 21.4% so this thread was perfect

You are welcome ladies.