unmotivated because of stats

plastic glass

ok on a real downer. Being going to the gym for nearly a year now pretty much non stop every weekday. Since I have started people have said i look really well, beefed up etc. Am VERY broad shoulered, and look taller than I am. I am 26, 5ft 10 and bout 13 1/2 stone upwards. When i started in the gym got my various things measured one which was my body fat %. it came out as 21%. Know that the ideal for my age was below 20% but as i was just starting i didnt mind as knew i could get that down. Got it measured again by a different instructor (if anything he was more experienced). It came up as 26%. Was devastated. Feel like the last year has been a total waste. Officially i am obese even though i dont think i look anyway near obese. i have always had trouble with my weight hence the reason i joined the gym and i still defo do have a bit of a belly but i still dont understand how it went up 5% when i wasnt even going to the gym. My diet while not impeccable is still pretty ok and if anything is better since i joined the gym.

feeling very unmotivated now and am begining to think ill never achieve my ideal body. Just wondering how accurate the body fat % tests are(it was a machine you stand on) and how important they are. I hear they are the best way to see how fit you are/ how good you look.

had been feeling really good about myself until last week. any advice or opinions would be really appreciated

Smellyirishman

plastic glass wrote: »

feeling very unmotivated now and am begining to think ill never achieve my ideal body. Just wondering how accurate the body fat % tests are(it was a machine you stand on) and how important they are. I hear they are the best way to see how fit you are/ how good you look.

had been feeling really good about myself until last week. any advice or opinions would be really appreciated

Ignore the machine. If you were happy with yourself and others noticed a positive difference then why are you getting worked up over a simple number? The best way to see how good you look is by standing in front of a mirror.

If you want a body fat measurement then have it done with a calipers but whatever about the measurement don't destroy your motivation because of a questionable number.

Hanley

Youve been feeling really good about yourself and feel you made grear progress until some trainer told you your BF %? With all due respect, fcuk him.

Nothing has changed since last week, just some "number" which is probably wrong anyway. THere's multiple different methods of measuring BF, there's multiple different forumla's to use to calculate BF when you've got all your info, and depending on the person, time of day, hydration levels etc etc the results can fluctuate WILDLY.

Standing on one of those machines is probably the worst way to measure bodyfat. They're completly unreliable and have no basis in reality. And the fact he's "experienced" will have absolutely zero relevance as to what number machine gives out.

How was your original measurement done? Same method?

Has your weight changed much?

Did you get a waist measurement before you started? And if so, do you know what your current is?

Dragan

stats are stats.

Find a picture of you from a year ago and look at it closely.

Still feel bad?

rubadub

plastic glass wrote: »

Since I have started people have said i look really well, beefed up etc. Am VERY broad shoulered, and look taller than I am.

Well done & congrats.

plastic glass wrote: »

It came up as 26%. Was devastated. Feel like the last year has been a total waste.

It has not, no way. Do you feel better, have your jeans got tighter at the waist? because if you put on that much fat they should be.

plastic glass wrote: »

Officially i am obese even though i dont think i look anyway near obese.

A few of the posters before would be "obese" too, by BMI standards which ignore muscle mass completely. One guy here who was 8%BF was warned by a doctor to watch his weight :rolleyes:

plastic glass wrote: »

I hear they are the best way to see how fit you are/ how good you look.

They are the worst IMO, a mirror and mates are a good guide, and you seem to be fine. Electrical resistance (what they measure) of your body is a crap measurement tool, as is your weight. Get it done with a calipers if you must, but even they are inaccurate due to differing forumlas. Get it done on calipers and note your readings, next time if they are down then you have lost fat. But the formula might give odd answers. If I measure myself I could be 10 or 18% BF depending on which forumla I use, so I ignore formulas and just record total mm. Take photos, change is gradual.

Gyms like these electronic gadgets so people feel their membership fee was a good investment, value for money.

plastic glass wrote: »

had been feeling really good about myself until last week. any advice or opinions would be really appreciated

Forget last week. Keep going. All the experience has let you know is that those gadgets do not work. I don't know where you heard they were a good guide (perhaps the ignorant trainer)- have a search on google and you will see them slated.

itsallaboutheL

what sorta machine u stand on measures bodyfat.....................

Dragan

itsallaboutheL wrote: »

what sorta machine u stand on measures bodyfat.....................

This could be a statement, a question or a strangely coincidental accident in a Scrabble factory.

Please try and post some kind of clear and concise post, thank you.

rubadub

itsallaboutheL wrote: »

what sorta machine u stand on measures bodyfat.....................

None that I know of. This machine measures electrical resistance of your body, how much current it allows to flow through it. You get electrocuted in a bath of water since electricity flows through water well. Similarly if you are hydrated current will flow well and vary your reading.

It makes a attempt to estimate your bodyfat, and is woefully inaccurate at doing so. I can drink about 5 pints of water and hold it, almost a half stone, this is extra weight in my system, but not extra fat, but both my electrical resistance and wieght will be effected by it.

Jimmy Bottlehead

Balls to the BF reading, sounds like you're doing great, so just keep it up. Pics are the way to go. I got a calipers there a few weeks ago, but I don't trust the damn thing. Go by how you look in the mirror.

itsallaboutheL

it was a questionable statement, it kinda was actually.

davyjose

I have a bf% scales. Yesterday it was 2.8% lower than it was today. The only reason I used it was to measure my weight, and I happened to have bare feet both times.

jumbopalumbo

Ive been involved in the fitness industry for many years now and i can tell u body fat measurements are very unreliable, Charles Poliquin recommends that someone must take bodyfat readings over 1000 times to be profficient at it, were both of those guys up to that standard? i would say a better way to guage ur progress would be a basic waist measurment every month and looking at urself in the mirror, these are more accurate and somethin u can do urself so ul know there will be no variance, start from now and move on

rubadub

If you want an easy method then some here have recommended the hip to waist ratio

http://www.bmi-calculator.net/waist-to-hip-ratio-calculator/

Hanley

rubadub wrote: »

If you want an easy method then some here have recommended the hip to waist ratio

http://www.bmi-calculator.net/waist-to-hip-ratio-calculator/

Score. 0.87. Finally one of those scales that puts me low risk/not obese!!

plastic glass

thanks for all the replies and comments guys esp smellyirishman and hanley. after seeing your two posts i left work and hit the gym for a good workout.i know i defo am looking better and my jeans have never been looser so feeling pretty good now about the whole thing.

perhaps the scare was good as it given me a kick up the backside about my diet and know it needs to be a little stricter. i see a lot on these threads about eating five small meals a day. is this good for loosing weight esp around the belly?

once again guys thanks for the advice

Dragan

Hey dude, the whole five/six small meals a day thing can help.

Because your regularly taking in food you have more control over you appetite and food volume.

It can be a big help for people who are looking to lose weight as a way to avoid cravings and such as well.