I know we discussed this in another thread but i can't remember which one, so i apologize for bringing this back up but i can't remember. What is the "goal" for women again?? I measured mine on my boyfriends little scale and at 136 it says 32%. I know that is too high, but what should i be aiming for???

These are the guidelines from the American Council on Exercise (ACE):

Essential Fat: 10-12 percent
Athletes: 14-20 percent
Fitness: 21-24 percent
Acceptable: 25-31 percent
Obese (or high risk): over 32 percent

Hope that helps! And keep in mind that body fat scales can sometimes be inaccurate and their results vary depending on the time of day and your degree of hydration.

Thanks meg...I'm gonna write that down now. I'm telling ya...i gotta lot of belly fat. People think i am soo skinny because i look thin in my clothes...but i'm not. I don't know if that 32% i got off his scale is right...but it does show that i have too much fat. I can't wait to get a trainer next month to start helping me tone up to burn off the fat.

Some of the scales are REALLY far off

My gym measured me at 23% as did navy circumference method and my scale at home still said 32 or 33, something around there. I've quit listening to it

Those scales are unreliable. You should either get tested by calipers or by hydrostatic (dunking).

I was 27% by hydrostatic back in August, but have been a little lazy since and probably a little more fatty.

Lumi, the best thing you can do for yourself is to forget about all the numbers on the scale and focus on your fitness instead. At this point, I don't think you're "fat" -- in reality, you're "undermuscled", probably from a few years of yo-yo dieting. Getting a trainer is an awesome idea! Start building some muscle and I promise that you'll see your body change right before your eyes, even if you never lose one more pound of scale weight.

BTW, you might want to check out this book for a great weightlifting program and a lot of common sense about muscle building: The New Rules of Lifting for Women: Lift Like a Man, Look Like a Goddess