[TheActress]

I feel like I've been posting here non stop! I hope you guys don't get completely sick of me.

But I was reading one of the posts earlier about how one should not just rely on BMI so I wandered over to the other sites and decided to see what it was all about. To be honest, I've not taken my own measurements in about two years (I've taken a kajillion other people's however) so I was kind of wary about it, but I whipped out my kit and grabbed my measuring tape to use on myself for the first time so I could figure out my waist-to-hip and my body fat %...

What I'm confused about is my body fat % I don't see how it can possibly be right. With correct measurements (I know how to measure, and I remeasured about 4 times) it says my body fat is 31.53% which is.. '.5%' above acceptable? Uh, I don't know what "acceptable" is but I'm surely confused. This would mean that my "Lean Body Mass" 182......

Update: I've now used a different calculator that required different types of measurements... but its still saying my body fat is only 36%. I'm not saying that this is BAD, just very confusing, because again this would leave me at something like 168 for lean body mass.... I'm so lost.

[ORSewmama]

I personally think the measurements are really subjective, and just like BMI - still don't take into account body shape. The one I did a few weeks ago also put me at 31% body fat or something like that, which would leave me at 164 with zero body fat. I can't believe this is true. In high school, I was very fluffy with hardly any muscle honestly, and I weighed about 180.

But for me, I am really a pear shaped person, and I have huge legs. I just do I can fit size 16 pants everywhere but the legs - not just the thighs, the knees, the calves, etc. I still need 18s for that part of my body, and even then - they're snug. So when I measure waist (small) and hips (12 inches larger than my waist!), and my arm parts (large frame, so they're large, but not huge), it doesn't tell them that I have big thighs, large calves, a lot of fat on my thighs, etc. I just doubt their accuracy. I think if you really want to know, go to a trainer or a dr. and have them measure your body fat, either electronically or with the pinchy meter thing.

[TheActress]

I'm really pear shaped too, so maybe thats it!!!!!!!

My waist is 38in whereas my hips are 52in. And then both my thighs are at 31in circumference! LOL.

I should be going to get a bodyscan done by a trainer in like two weeks to get my actual body fat and all that good stuff checked out. But I totally did not even consider that body shape might factor into why I was getting all these crazy results. Thanks for your reply, it makes a lot more sense now (well not the answers, but why they're probably wrong!)

[ORSewmama]

Yeah, we are totally similar sized. My waist is 36, hips are 49, thigh is 29! I know when I was 260ish? My doc did a digital body fat, and it was around 50% body fat, and that (although mortifying) I did believe. I could believe my lean mass is 130, and that 20% body fat would put me around 160 - that I can buy

[TheActress]

Now THAT makes sense. THAT I can totally buy. And my goal is 160, so I'd be a happy camper.

And I don't mind being pear shaped, I actually prefer it. I want to be fit and healthy, but I don't want to lose being "thick" in my thighs and booty... and maybe its because I'm from the South or maybe its just people I'm around and what I find attractive, but a healthy weight woman who is still thick is the most attractive thing in the world to me. Squats and lunges here I come! (sorry, went WAYYY off topic )