| ArubaLover1105
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| I am going to bite the bullet and get my body fat tested. I think that this is something that I really need to do to figure out my "true" goal weight. Question is, which is more accurate: skin calipers or the Bod Pod? Has anyone had either done and what do you think of them? Are there any special instructions for either one or an ideal time of day/month to do it to get the most accurate and true result? |
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Tue May 20, 2008 12:42 am |
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| TeeniBikini
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I don't know what a BodPod is, but I've had the caliper thing done before. I like it because, even when you don't see changes on the scale, you'll see changes in the numbers on the caliper. And sometimes, when you think what you're doing is not working, because your clothes don't feel looser or whatever, then you can see where the fat is actually coming off......like the back of your arm, or something usually. Or perhaps your toes? LOL
It's a good idea to have the same person do the measurements each time though. I don't know why, but two different trainers were measuring me at the gym, once, and each time, they both got different numbers. But their numbers were consistent with their previous numbers for me. Now that I've cleared that up..... |
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Tue May 20, 2008 9:25 pm |
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| RedRox
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No that's a good tip. Calipers depend almost solely on the person using them for any kind of accuracy/repeatability and perhaps also on the quality of the calipers themselves. So if you go that way, having the same person do it each time at least ensures that the readings should be somewhat comparable. I think they have somewhere in the neighborhood of a 5% accuracy band if administered by a competent individual with experience taking the measurements. Also the methods that use more "pinch points" would seem to be more accurate to me than those that only take a couple.
Didn't know what a BodPod was so searched on it. Looks like it uses displacement as well like hydrostatic (underwater) measurements, but uses air displacement instead. If you have access to one of these, I would guess that it would be more accurate, although reading through the FAQs you do need to be careful with certain paramters/instructions to help insure the accuracy of the test, so I'd review that with whoever is administering it before you get there so you can plan and prepare accordingly.
BodPod website here: http://www.bodpod.com/products/overviewBodpod |
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Wed May 21, 2008 4:11 pm |
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| ArubaLover1105
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I did it...it's actually pretty easy and considered the new "gold standard" in place of hydrostatic weighing due its simplicity. I measured out at 23% which is in the acceptable range of 23-30% per guidelines. It's great to know that number because I am now aware that my previous goal of 125 is completely unrealistic because of my lean mass (everything else that is not fat) being 104 pounds. Based on some quick calculations that goal weight would give me a body fat percentage of 17%, which is "ultra lean" and not really what I am looking for--too low for me. So my new goal is 20% which puts me in the "lean" category and based on that my goal weight is 131. I also underwent a fitness assessment and it looks like all that running paid off! My estimated VO2 based on my submax test was 46.5 which is excellent for my age!!
I highly recommend a test like this for anyone who has had a significant plateau (mine has been over a year!!) Now I am going to increase my strength training while continuing cardio and add in some yoga for flexibility and have the test done again in 6 months. |
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Sat May 24, 2008 1:57 pm |
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