Hydrostatic body-fat testing

geoblewis · 04-19-2011, 08:43 PM

I'm seriously considering going in to have my body-fat percentage tested in one of those water tanks. There's a local company that has a mobile truck with all the equipment on board. They post their locations and people can show up to get dunked.

I'm quite large and caliper testing doesn't work on me. I've done the body measurement thing and results vary depending on what equations are used. For me it goes from 33% to 60%. That's quite a range! I want to know, once and for all, what my real RMR (resting metabolic rate) is so I can stop guessing what my caloric intake should be.

Has anyone else had experience with this? If so, please share!

4star · 04-22-2011, 11:20 AM

If you really want to know, this is the most scientifically accurate way to go and if you can't get an accurate measurement elsewhere, it could be very much worth your time and money. I have never had it done but I have seen it done in documentaries.

JohnP · 04-22-2011, 11:55 AM

Discovering your BF percentage is not going to tell you your BMR or RMR which are measured by gas analysis through either direct or indirect calorimetry.

I've never looked into it but it would likely be quite a chunk of change.

4star · 04-24-2011, 02:38 PM

Oh I got confused for a bit b/c you were asking about hydrostatic weighing for a body fat percentage but wanting to know your RMR. It will vary from person to person. Getting an exact figure generally requires a person to do a metabolic study where you are put in a room and they measure gases, energy expenditures, etc..basically, as usual, what JohnP said.

Do you really NEED to know an EXACT figure? It might be nice but it's very costly and not really necessary. You could always eat at one solid calorie allotment for a week or two and tell by reversing the math approx how many calories you tend to burn in a normal day. Some of the online calculators have been pretty accurate in my experience in calculating what I "generally" burn. Really, it all depends on IF spending that money will make or break your weight loss. I have to say though, even if you were to get THAT number, you can't be guaranteed to lose weight predictably. Loss is rarely the same week to week for any person. It's really a matter of staying in the game.

4star · 04-25-2011, 08:12 AM

So I have been looking around on the web and found most sites reporting hydrostatic weighing (measures body composition) costs to be less than $100. You might call around to some physical therapy places and colleges in your area to see if any of them offer this service b/c you might be able to get it done for even less.

Some people said they've gotten their BMR tests done by nutritionists that work in conjunction with their gyms. Most people are reporting having to wear a mask or something for X amount of minutes and then calculations being done off that. The cost was generally reported to be $150-175. I haven't heard of this before but maybe I'm just behind the curve. I think that would be just an estimate as well tho b/c the studies I've seen were very controlled and done over the course of a day. I dunno. I know what they do but I haven't heard of this as being "the thing" with BMR measuring so I think I'd have to ask my doc if it's for real before spending that kind of cash on it. Losing weight doesn't have to cost a fortune.

geoblewis · 04-25-2011, 03:51 PM

I found a local affiliate of a hydrostatic testing company. They've got their tank on a truck and they travel around the region doing testing at various sites. $50. The issue is that they haven't come near my location in some time. The next scheduled testing is this week. It's nearly two hours away.

I found a place just 45 minutes from me that utilizes a Bod Pod. It's a device that does the same thing but doesn't require going under water. I found a site that promotes a $40 fee.

I want to know what my body composition is, my BMR and my TDEE. It's important to me so I can honestlty see where I am and track my progress over time. I currently weight 309 lbs. I want to weigh 175 lbs. It is my goal to achieve 25% body fat. I want to know my current body composition so I can make sure I maintain a healthy level of muscle while I'm losing fat. If I'm eating so little that I start losing muscle instead of fat, I'm off track.

4star · 05-05-2011, 08:43 AM

If it's really important to you, it might be worth the $50 and 2 hr drive. Whatever you think will keep you motivated and help gauge your success is worth using as a tool(so long as it's healthy)IMO.

kaw · 05-05-2011, 12:31 PM

If you really want to know how many calories you expend in a day, a Body Bugg is a better investment than any type of body fat testing. You can find them used on e-bay. You'll still have to pay a subscription fee to access your data, but after a couple of months you'll know pretty much more than you wanted to know about your calorie expenditures in various activities (including sleeping!). You can then cancel your subscription and resell the Body Bug, making the total cost pretty minimal.

Even hydrostatic weighing isn't 100% accurate, and best used to measure trends ... which means multiple tests.

//b. strong,
Kim