I see occasional references to Body Fat %. I am wondering if there are any good references for that information?

Also is it reasonable to aim at a specific % as a goal?

I've read that athletic body fat for men should max at 15 percent and for women at 18 percent. For the average person, I've read that body fat should not exceed 19 percent for a man or 22 percent for a woman.

Here's one formula for calculating appropriate body weight and percentage of body fat.

FWIW, I am nowhere south of those percentages!

It's also age dependent. As you get older, it's "normal" to carry a bit more body fat.



A % body fat target seems a much more sensible approach than a weight target to me.

I'd say <20% is a good healthy target to aim for.

@ Ron
I tried that formula and it says that for me to be 15% body fat I would need to be 176lbs. I have not been near that weight since I was in 6th grade. I seem to remember the military has a tape measure system for figuring it out. I will scrounge around and see what I can find and see if it works any better.

I can see 215 or 225 being very fit, very healthy weight for me, 176 just seems extreme. I dunno I will keep looking into it.

OK I found an online tape test calculator here.

According to their calculations I am currently 32.7% fat. Meaning I am carrying 117lbs of weight around with me at all times. I cannot say how sobering and sucky those results are.

It is one thing to know I am chunky and for my long term health I need to ditch the weight. It is another to have a reasonable guesstimate just how much weight I have to loose.

Due to prior experience I am saying that test was on the nice side. I have weighted 240lbs before (9 years ago) and my height has not changed any. Well as much as this blows, I will use it to spur my generous backside into the gym and continue this odyssey.

I think the formula that Ron linked to suffers from the same problem as the BMI: it doesn't take muscle mass into consideration. The more muscle mass you have, the higher the average density your body will have, and so the more you will weigh. I don't have an alternative measurement, but I'll look around and post again if I find something.

I think that the best way is with calipers.

http://www.intense-workout.com/body_fat.html

<snip>
How do I measure my body fat percentage?

There are 2 usual ways people measure their body fat. However, only 1 way actually works and only 1 way is actually accurate. That first way is by using these online calculators that some web sites have. I'm going to recommend you avoid these online calculators because, at best, they just give far off estimates of what your body fat percentage really is. The point of measuring your body fat is so you can track your progress as accurately as possible, and a far off estimate is hardly accurate tracking. You might as well just use a scale then.

There is only one true way to get an accurate measurement of your body fat percentage, and that is by using something called body fat calipers. Calipers are a measurement device used to measure thickness. In this case, it will be the thickness of parts of your body. There are a few specific spots (referred to as "skinfolds") that you measure with the calipers, and then you do some basic math, and... that's it. Within seconds you will know your body fat percentage.
</snip>

I should add that I used to use these when I was a rower (several pounds ago *grin*) and if you use the calipers wrong you can really pinch yourself quite badly! LOL

@ Kamal -- Very good point on muscle mass. Not clear that this is factored into the formula.

@ Jeremiah -- I hear you. The formula says that I'm supposed to weigh what I weighed in high school. Not especially encouraging, but perhaps something to aspire to ...

I use an Omron Body Fat Analyzer.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00006WNPU/104-69 65456-5399117?v=glance&n=3760901

Fat Calipers are a great way of measuring relative progress (that is changes week over week). As absolute tools for measurement they are not as great because the skill of the measurer matters a lot.

If you use calipers make sure it is always the same person doing the measurement.

The most accurate tool for body fat measurement is called an immersion test. The fancier gyms have this test available for you. The test is based on the fact that muscle and fat density are very different.

I think it is great you are focusing on body fat % but dont get too hung up on an exact number. Start moving now! Your body will tell you when you reach your healthy weight.

According to this site, the best method for measuring lean body mass is a technique called Bioelectrical Impedance. It basically takes into account that muscle / tissue / fat have different eletricial conductivity. This test is more accurate because the skill of the practioner is less of a factor, and it's quite accurate. The only thing is that you must be well hydrated and not eat food / alcohol several hours before the test.

A good fitness trainer should know about Bioelectrical Impedance and should do this measurement as part of initial consultation.



I checked out the link. The device uses impedeance as measurement method. Thanks for that. I should check it out.

For more information check it out here:
http://www.new-fitness.com/body_fat_measuring.html

This test is fairly accurate but measurements will vary day by day depending on your consumption that day. This test runs an electrical current through your body and then depending on your height and weight calculates your body fat. Fat and bone conduct electricity poorly (they have high impedance) when compared to muscle. Hence the more muscle you have the less impedance your body has.

The Bally's where I go has a scale with the same kind of metal tabs for you to hold onto that measures in a similar fashion. I definitely agree with this statement.

coincidentally i just bought some scales that pass a current through you when you stand on them to measure your body fat %. they seem a lot better than the hand held tests you can get. my scales also give me a water % reading - does anyone know how important this is? apparently im 58% water and 16% fat lol, dunno what the other 26% is... possibly beer.

mmmmmm....beeer....

anyone know what the optimal body beer % is?

80% by volume if a lager, 70% by mass if an ale.

In seriousness, you'll actually find that those water and fat %ages overlap each other. The remaining %age represents solid matter - i.e. bone. Fat tissue holds a lot less water than lean muscle, so if you've a high water percentage that's not necessarily a bad thing - normal percentage for a 20-40 year old male is 60% or so, and about 50% for a woman.

Here's a useful reference:

http://www.seps.org/oracle/oracle.archive/Life_Sci ence.Biochem/2001.06/000991410254.7589.html

I'd just like to add a personal concern that makes me skeptical about the BIE devices available for consumers. Most of the studies I have seen comparing the accuracy of BIE are based on "full-body BIE" where one conductor is placed on a wrist and another is placeed on an ankle.

The scales that measure body fat % are only running the current up one leg, through your hips, and down the other leg. Likewise, the hand-held omron device is running the current through one arm, your upper torso, and your other arm.

All these consumer BIE devices have you set a myriad of other things like age, height, activity level, etc to help "guestimate" how to extrapolate from their "one-third body measurement" to something usable.

I'm a man. I carry the bulk of my fat around waistline. Neither running the currennt through my hips or across my chest is going to measure the most important area for determining my actual body fat percentage.

I'd buy a wrist & ankle BIE device if they ever made a consumer priced version, but I don't see that as being feasibly marketable. The results of the current top-body or bottom-body devices I view with heavy skepticism.

While certainly not the most accurate measurement, I do personally prefer using the US Navy's circumference mesaurement estimation: http://www.bblex.de/en/calc/navy.php

At least that method is directly measuring the areas where men and women are most prone to storing the bulk of their fat.

The only true-accurate measure of BF% is to be submerged entirely in water and an impedence test taken...

Hydrostatic weighing is a method in which a person's mass is measured both in and out of a tank of water. I found useful body fat articles and calipers here.

exactly. You guys aren't remembering if you are working out you are carrying muscle mass on you're frame. Go and get tested properly in the dunk tank on the results will show what you should weight at a given BF %. For me im currently 228lbs and have a BF% of 17%. So its all realitve to how much muscle mass index you have.

for refference I have a little over 60lbs of pure muscle on my frame and a LBM of 197lbs.