Hi,

I was wondering what the best way of getting an accurate body-fat reading is. I know there are a lot of scales under 100 dollars that measure bodyfat but I do not know how accurate they are. I have heard that being immersed in water is the most accurate but I probably don't have the time or money to do that. I do have health insurance so I wondered if there was some middle road at a doctor's office during a walk-in visit that I could get my body fat measured or if one of those scales is ok. If so I will just go to my Target and break one out of the box, hehe. Seriously, for health reasons I would like to get a measurement and a little effort to get a good one is OK with me so I was wondering what the best approach would be.

Thanks,

Larry.

Wealth without a good heart isn't worth squat, a good heart with your needs met...priceless.

[MrsJim]

First off - don't waste your $$ on one of those Tanita bodyfat scales. They are woefully inaccurate!!

Hydrostatic testing (immersion) is supposed to be the "gold standard" according to what I've read (I can't find a place near my town to try it myself). Second best is calipers. I use the Accu-Measure calipers which you can get for around $12. Netrition.com will send you a pair for free if you order $75 worth of merchandise (they sell nutritional supplements, etc) from them.

I generally measure in my sacroiliac area (above the hipbone). It's supposed to be accurate within 1-2% which is good enough for me!

http://www.hussman.com/eas/#measure - this link will give you a step-by-step on using calipers, including a Javascript link to interpret your caliper readings.

Hope that helps!

[lexxy2]

I was wondering if you've tried the Accu Fitness Digital calipers which does all the calculations for you, or if you just use the regular calipers. Obviouslythe digital are mnroe expensive but they could be worth it if they're more accurate.

Thanks!

[MrsJim]

I actually have a digital caliper but I hate to use it. I really like the Accu-Measure - just follow the instructions on Hussman and you'll get a reading that's pretty close - be advised though that bodyfat measuring is by nature an inexact science...that's why there are three simple, reliable ways of measuring your bodyfat:

1) Calipers
2) Measuring tape (periodically measuring hips/waist/bust/calves/thighs/upper arms and keeping a record)
3) The "Pants-o-Meter" (how your clothes fit!) - the GOLD STANDARD as far as I'm concerned!

The WORST way of measuring bodyfat is using a scale! Especially those overpriced Tanitas that aren't accurate or consistent.

[carriej]

I was part of a study that measured body composition along with bone density as part of a DEXA scan. I think it's very accurate, although not something you would do routinely.

I found, though, that cicumference measurements give bodyfat results that are pretty similar. This is just a quantified version of following your measurements -- in this case at the navel and the hip. I go to the website http://www.makingfitterbodies.com/sslybodyfat.htm.

I have Accu-Measure calipers, but found that at my bodyfat level (above 35%) I wasn't getting accurate results. I'm going to keep trying though, as my bodyfat goes down (I'm doing Body for Life)

Carrie

[2BFIT1]

I do my body fat testing with calipers and I believe that the more sites you use, the more accurate the results. The 3-site test is easy to do , but you might need someone to get the tricep measurement for you.

There is a great site that gives instructions on taking these measurements and it also will automatically calculate your BF % using the measurements that you plug into the calculator.
www.enforcergraphics.f2s.com/bodyfat.htm

The reason I think that the 3-site is better than just the suprailiac is that people carry their weight in different areas. My problem areas are the hips and thighs. If I did not include the HIGH thigh measurement, it would show that I was leaner than I really am. Conversly, my friend has no hips and has very lean thighs but she carries her weight in her waist and upper body. If she only used the suprailiac, it would not average in her low-fat thighs.

Of course, this is just my $.02.