9 replies to this topic

[sweetj]

Howdy Y'all,

I am currently 11 lbs away from the "normal" BMI catagory, but my body fat % is still through the roof (40% falls in the obese category). I do strength training twice a week and have been running my a$$ off. The weight continues to come off (yay!), but my body fat % creeps down at such a sloooowwww pace. Is it because I'm pushin' 40? Anyone else experiencing the same or have some advice?

[vampi]

how do you know your body fat %?

[dijarm]

I've never calculated the %of body fat. I think it's your BMI and your waist measurment that are the key components to being "healthy" I think I might calculate my fat % now that you mention it though, just out of curiosity.

[sweetj]

I have a scale that determines body fat %. Not 100% accurate, but in the ballpark.

“Body fat scales work using a process called bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). When you step on the metal plates of a body fat scale, a safe electrical current is sent through your feet into your body. The current travels through your body tissues until it returns to the scale. Because electrical current runs better through water and other tissues of the body than fat, the scale can measure how much impedance occurred during the transfer of electricity. From that impedance measurement, the scale uses a host of complex mathematical equations to determine an estimate of your body fat.” http://www.livestrong.com/article/35082-body-fat-scales-work/#ixzz1l3qFGuuY

[jenrdn69]

I am working with a nutritionist and personal trainer who measured my body fat with this machine that runs an electric current through the body (basically). Similar to how the scale works. However, its important that this be done when well hydrated (in the afternoon, not first thing on the scale in the morning) and also after not eating for 4 hours and NOT within 10 hours of a really hard workout.

Nutritionist noted that body fat % fall very slowy and you shouldn't expect more than a 1% drop in one month.

My BMI is nearly normal and I have only 7 pounds to loose to be technically NOT overweight. BUT, my body fat % is horribly high (33%). You can have a normal weight and normal BMI and look slim, but still have a body fat % that is too high (women should aim for 22-24% I'm told.

One reason that woman who diet often have high body fat is because when we loose weight on a restricted calorie diet (even when exercising), we loose muscle mass. And then, if we do every regain the weight (as many do), the body fat % goes up because you gain fat, not muscle. So, for anyone who has yo-yo dieted, you will have a higher body fat %.

That is why the nutritionist I am working with is suggesting way higher calories than anyone on JC could imagine and for me not to get on the scale. My measurements are taken as are my body fat --- the idea is to feed the muscles and not the fat --- but also to have enough calories (and 1500 isn't enough for people working out hard with cardio and resistance training) so that the body doesn't turn to the muscles for energy -- because THAT is where it goes first --- to the muscles -- and you'll loose muscle mass, hence increasing the body fat %.

Hope that made some sense. I'm quite displeased with my high body fat % and even if I loose 10 lbs, I'll have a LONG way to go to loose the icky body fat % an increase the lean muscle mass %.

[dijarm]

Okay, so I just did a couple of websites that calculate body fat % and came up with 25% which is apparently in the normal range. whew, everything is "normal". Now to stay this way!

[jenrdn69]

dijarm, on 31 January 2012 - 10:56 AM, said:

Okay, so I just did a couple of websites that calculate body fat % and came up with 25% which is apparently in the normal range. whew, everything is "normal". Now to stay this way!

I don't want to 'alarm' you at all, but my hip to thigh ratio and numbers put into calculators show my body fat between 25 to 27%, which is lower than the 'machine'...really, what is important in my opinion is two things: (1) very restricted calorie diets = muscle loss in addition to fat loss and any regain of weight (in lbs) - regrain in fat, not in muscle. (2) the more weight bearing workouts you do, the more you retain muscle mass.

What I would recommend to anyone who wants to get a body fat measurement. Ask your JCC about using one of their tatinia scales (those are the ones they sell at JC) --- those measure body fat. When you go to you WI, don't worry about the number on the scale (use the normal JC scale for that one). Use it for the body fat measure: they will have to set up your height in the machine, but they can do this. Then, make sure you go in the afternoon (not the morning) and make sure not to have eaten within 2-3 hours (4 hours is better, I'm told, but I don't know how much that matters)...and don't workout right before you go. That will give you a good body fat reading. I know they will do that at my JC center (not where I got mine, but I know they have the scale to use for anyone who wants to).

Me, I love to do cardio. Hate to do resistance work. sure, jogging may be weight bearing, but I need more to preserve my (lacking) muscle mass as I've got lots of fat on me. There are people who are healthy weight and have a very high body fat because they have not preserved muscle mass. And, I read an interesting article about people with eating disorders (anorexia) -- they can have a VERY high fat % (even when underweight), because the body breaks down the muslce not the fat.

[FrankieMarie159]

WOW - Interesting information, Jen! I've always been curious about body fat % too and I do have a Tanita scale at home. I bought a JC one from a website called QuickMedical.com but I think it came to me damaged because the display doesn't work right. Well, I was too lazy to return it so I found a Tanita Iron Man one. I have no plans to ever train for an Iron Man (Ha! The thought of that cracks me up ), but I know my body fat % is really high because I've lost and gained weight so many times over the years. Heck, I don't even NEED a scale to tell me how much muscle I've lost and fat I've gained, but the reading I get is between 33 and 35%. Now, that is a number I get first thing in the morning without being hydrated so I'm really curious what the # will say when I try weighing in the afternoon and having not eaten in the past 4 hours. Pretty sure I can't expect a miracle reading of 25%, but I'll still check it out Thanks for the helpful info!

[sweetj]

Thanks Jen for all of your great information - makes me feel better that I'm not the only one with such a high BMI/body fat discrepancy. When I finish my JC weight loss, I'm thinking of joining a gym with my extra $$ to work on this problem. Until then, I'll keep up my strength training and try to slow the disappearing muscle mass.

[NaturalWoman205]

I have the Tanita scale and it great for displaying your body fat%. I did a bod pod test (like the ones done in The Biggest Loser), where you sit in a pod and they measure your FAT\LEAN % using air ,etc. The results from the FAT% are pretty close to the what displays on my Tanita scale. I have been on diets on and off, so my fat% is high and it is not going down as I lose weight. Like Jen, I am working on strength training, working on cardio in a specific heart rate zone that will burn fat than muscle and a diet program that has more protein in it. I am one of those people who have gotten fatter as I lost weight, and I am over 50, my metabolism is slow to add to it.