Know Your Body Fat: Your Fat Calculator
Most people rely on scales as the means to determine whether their weight is at a healthy level. Most use bathrooms scales or occasionally have their weight checked by the family doctor. Either way, this often forms the basis for deciding on whether to diet, exercise or take slimming pills.
However, health experts say that weight alone is not a clear indicator of good health and fitness. That is because it does not distinguish between pounds that come from body fat and those that come from lean body mass or muscle. Athletes generally weigh much more than traditional measures would permit, yet are much more fit than the general population. If you are regularly engaged in physical activities, particularly strength training routines, or you are athletic then don’t rely too much on your standard home bathroom scale.
Having excess fat and being overweight are not the same. Being overweight just means that you are heavier than the average given your height and frame type. Thus you can actually be underweight yet obese. Obesity is simply having and excess of body fat, irrespective of total body weight.
To determine fitness levels, it is important to know the amount of body fat.
Here are three ways of measuring your body fat:
1. Use a Home Body Fat Scale. These scales claim to measure your body fat quickly and easily. They use the Bio electrical Impedance method where a low level of electrical current passes through the body and the opposition or impedance to the flow of current is measured.
2. Calipers – A tool that looks a bit like large tweezers pinches the skin at various points on the body. Measurements are then compared to standard measures reflecting your age and gender to calculate estimated body fat. You can use fore finger and thumb to pinch the proverbial inch or more. Not quite as precise but still can provide an idea about how much fat is present.
3. Underwater Weight – or hydrostatic weighing is generally the most accurate. It involves sitting in a tank of water and expelling all of the air from the lungs. Your underwater weight is then determined. Since fat is less than water, the fattier your are the more you float. Accuracy is about 2-3 percent but is very dependent on expelling all of the air.
The best approach is the one that is convenient and will do consistently. Take a measurement, then repeat this regularly over time. Track the measurements and note the changes from previous measurements. This will provide a reliable indication of your progress or lack thereof.
Body fat scales and calipers are available at many health-related stores. Both are also easy to find on-line. I recommend the body fat scale as both the easiest and most convenient. If your are serious about improving your health and fitness level, then this is a modest investment.
Homeworkoutsexpress.com is dedicated to fighting obesity. We provide the tools and the information to make achieving fitness goals effective, fun and affordable.
