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Body fat analysis

  • 14-11-2013 12:34am
    #1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 258
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    Can anybody point me in the direction of, or can recommend somewhere in Dublin, that does body fat percentage analysis (either by body scan, or by good old fashioned calipers and maths!)
    I've been looking to get this done for a while now, so any information would be appreciated

    HSB


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Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,366 cmyk
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    Any decent trainer in your locality will probably do caliper testing, just make sure you get them done by the same person when you have them retaken.

    Where are you based and we can point you in the right direction?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,059 crazyderk
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    I bought this in Argos and I find it quite good, I don't pay attention to the BMI part but its good to know the body fat and water %

    http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/8334747/Trail/searchtext%3EWEIGHT+WATCHERS.htm


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 939 chriity139
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    crazyderk wrote: »
    I bought this in Argos and I find it quite good, I don't pay attention to the BMI part but its good to know the body fat and water %

    http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/8334747/Trail/searchtext%3EWEIGHT+WATCHERS.htm

    Them scales are generally a good bit off your actual bodyfat percentage


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,059 crazyderk
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    chriity139 wrote: »
    Them scales are generally a good bit off your actual bodyfat percentage

    really? I just assumed it was ok as I never got it verified.

    I had a bit of a Google and couldn't find any negative reviews, have you any links to back up yuor claim?

    I'm due to meet my personal trainer in the gym in the next week or so, I might ask him if he can measure it and if so I'll post the results of the two and let you know!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,512 runawaybishop
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    crazyderk wrote: »
    really? I just assumed it was ok as I never got it verified.

    I had a bit of a Google and couldn't find any negative reviews, have you any links to back up yuor claim?

    I'm due to meet my personal trainer in the gym in the next week or so, I might ask him if he can measure it and if so I'll post the results of the two and let you know!

    How does it measure your body fat? If it is only taking your weight and height into consideration then its estimates are not to be taken heed of.

    edit; googled it, it uses bioelectrical impedience. Its crap.

    example: http://weightology.net/weightologyweekly/?page_id=218


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  • Moderators, Category Moderators, Music Moderators, Politics Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 22,360 Dravokivich
    CMod ✭✭✭✭


    crazyderk wrote: »
    really? I just assumed it was ok as I never got it verified.

    I had a bit of a Google and couldn't find any negative reviews, have you any links to back up yuor claim?

    I'm due to meet my personal trainer in the gym in the next week or so, I might ask him if he can measure it and if so I'll post the results of the two and let you know!

    You should think about who's posting the reviews. A lot of the time it's going to be people with an amateur/casual understanding of what they are talking about. I rarely read reviews on the likes of Argos/Amazon because of that.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 39,902 Mellor
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    crazyderk wrote: »
    really? I just assumed it was ok as I never got it verified.

    I had a bit of a Google and couldn't find any negative reviews, have you any links to back up yuor claim?
    You don't need links you can test it yourself.

    Get up in the morning, go to the bathroom. Weigh yourself and check BF%.
    Go have breakfast, drink some water, a lot of water. Hydrate yourself as best you can. 2 or 3 pints with breakfast.
    Wait as long as you can without going to the bathroom. Go back and check BF% again.

    Your weight should increase slightly due to the food and water, so a small drop in bf% would be expected. But I bet you'll see a big drop, maybe around 4 or 5%.

    There's no way your BF% could have changed, which means the accuracy is all over the place.
    If you do try it, please post the results, you can post the difference is % is you don't want to post the actual BF%.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 203 shakedown
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    Is there a reasonably reliable way then to measure body fat at home?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 990 laoisman11
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    How does it measure your body fat? If it is only taking your weight and height into consideration then its estimates are not to be taken heed of.

    edit; googled it, it uses bioelectrical impedience. Its crap.

    example: http://weightology.net/weightologyweekly/?page_id=218

    Not sure where your info is coming from, but bioelectrical impedance is a reliable way of measuring body fat, although there are differences between models and capabilities. DEXA (normally used for measuring bone density) is the most accurate and is considered the gold standard. An alternate method is body volume, i.e. submerging a body in water and seeing how much water it displaces, but this is rarely used anymore.
    Measuring body fat with calipers is the poor cousin of all other techniques, highly variable depending on who does it and even with the same person measuring, poor reproducibility.

    Measuring your body fat should always be carried out at the same time of the day, preferably in a fasting state and not immediately after waking up.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 39,902 Mellor
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    shakedown wrote: »
    Is there a reasonably reliable way then to measure body fat at home?
    No really.
    Photographs and tape will give you a very good indicator of progress though. Bodyfat is just another number.
    laoisman11 wrote: »
    Not sure where your info is coming from, but bioelectrical impedance is a reliable way of measuring body fat, although there are differences between models and capabilities.
    No it isn't. It's not accurate or consistent enough to be considered reliable.
    It's too easily affected by everyday bodily functions to be considered accurate. Eating, drinking, hydration all effect the reading. Even the top manufacturers state that values are +/-2% (a 4% range), which is massive when we dealing with values from 8 to 18.

    Obviously, if you take a series of reading over a period of time and they are trending downwards, you could safely assume that fat is decreasing. But I'd have no confidence in any one reading.
    DEXA (normally used for measuring bone density) is the most accurate and is considered the gold standard.
    Agreed. Pisses all over the others tbh.
    An alternate method is body volume, i.e. submerging a body in water and seeing how much water it displaces, but this is rarely used anymore.
    Air displacement is more common, but I have my doubt about it after something I seen recently
    Measuring body fat with calipers is the poor cousin of all other techniques, highly variable depending on who does it and even with the same person measuring, poor reproducibility.
    In the hands of somebody who doesn't know what they are doing, its useless.
    In the hands of an experienced trainer. It can be very consistent.


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,366 cmyk
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    shakedown wrote: »
    Is there a reasonably reliable way then to measure body fat at home?

    If you're really set on home measurements here's what id do...buy a cheap set of accumeasure calipers. You'll be able to take at least two measurements yourself...suprailiac and abdominal (google them). If you're male, bets are that's where you'll both be carrying the most, and want to see go down.

    Just record mm at each site and measure it at regular periods, it won't give you an overall bodyfat percentage but you'll know if those pinches are coming down.

    Couple that with the other methods people mentioned, pictures, tape measurements, how your clothes fit and it'll be pretty apparent whether you're losing fat/changing shape. Unless you're an athlete there's really no need to get too hung up on numbers.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,512 runawaybishop
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    laoisman11 wrote: »
    Not sure where your info is coming from, but bioelectrical impedance is a reliable way of measuring body fat,

    Even that scales itself states that it isn't reliable or accurate in its manual.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 306 innad
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    I've tried a body fat scale. When I lose weight, the percentage goes down. When I lose inches but no weight, the % does not change (other than varying by c5% depending on the time of day I weigh myself, which it does anyway).

    So as far as the one I tried, I wouldn't trust it to be a valid, or reliable, measurement of body fat.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 258 Hill St Blue
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    cmyk wrote: »
    Any decent trainer in your locality will probably do caliper testing, just make sure you get them done by the same person when you have them retaken.

    Where are you based and we can point you in the right direction?

    Apologies for the slow reply. I'm on the Northside...D7


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 990 laoisman11
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    Mellor wrote: »
    No really.
    Photographs and tape will give you a very good indicator of progress though. Bodyfat is just another number.


    No it isn't. It's not accurate or consistent enough to be considered reliable.
    It's too easily affected by everyday bodily functions to be considered accurate. Eating, drinking, hydration all effect the reading. Even the top manufacturers state that values are +/-2% (a 4% range), which is massive when we dealing with values from 8 to 18.

    Obviously, if you take a series of reading over a period of time and they are trending downwards, you could safely assume that fat is decreasing. But I'd have no confidence in any one reading.


    Agreed. Pisses all over the others tbh.


    Air displacement is more common, but I have my doubt about it after something I seen recently


    In the hands of somebody who doesn't know what they are doing, its useless.
    In the hands of an experienced trainer. It can be very consistent.

    My experience in this area is with people with bodyfat from 25-45% (overweight/obese people from the general population) so I suppose it is normal that our opinions differ on which method is the most suitable. In any case, daily variations can and should be kept to a minimum.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 990 laoisman11
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    Even that scales itself states that it isn't reliable or accurate in its manual.

    There are lots of models out there, you get what you pay for.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,512 runawaybishop
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    laoisman11 wrote: »
    There are lots of models out there, you get what you pay for.

    I was talking about a specific model. In general though, BIA is ****e enough as it has a ton of external factors that influence it.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,545 tunguska
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    Can anybody point me in the direction of, or can recommend somewhere in Dublin, that does body fat percentage analysis (either by body scan, or by good old fashioned calipers and maths!)
    I've been looking to get this done for a while now, so any information would be appreciated

    HSB


    DEXA scan is the buachaill. Those bio-impedance scales are a good bit off. My own scales told me my body fat was 7% but I knew that was dodgy so I went to UCD and got a DEXA scan. Result: 15% body fat. Its about 90bills but worth it, you get a reading for your bone mineral density aswell, which in itself is great information to have.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 39,902 Mellor
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    laoisman11 wrote: »
    My experience in this area is with people with bodyfat from 25-45% (overweight/obese people from the general population) so I suppose it is normal that our opinions differ on which method is the most suitable. In any case, daily variations can and should be kept to a minimum.
    TBH I don't think that people between 25-45 %BF need to be concerned with the accuracy a body fat assessment.

    I'm aware that you can take steps to limit variations from everyday life, and if that the method that you'll use then its obvious that you should try to limit them. But the fact that these potential variations exist, is what called into question their accuracy. People at home simply aren't be consistant. And they also quote these things as if they are infallible.
    laoisman11 wrote: »
    There are lots of models out there, you get what you pay for.

    Can you give an example of a good quality brand. Say for personal use.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 56 Diaz
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    UCD do DEXA scans


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,754 avfc1874
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    Mellor wrote: »
    You don't need links you can test it yourself.

    Get up in the morning, go to the bathroom. Weigh yourself and check BF%.
    Go have breakfast, drink some water, a lot of water. Hydrate yourself as best you can. 2 or 3 pints with breakfast.
    Wait as long as you can without going to the bathroom. Go back and check BF% again.

    Your weight should increase slightly due to the food and water, so a small drop in bf% would be expected. But I bet you'll see a big drop, maybe around 4 or 5%.

    There's no way your BF% could have changed, which means the accuracy is all over the place.
    If you do try it, please post the results, you can post the difference is % is you don't want to post the actual BF%.
    i have a bf scale that i used the other night before bed,bf 23%. next morning bf 28%. :confused::unless someone broke in and fed me cream cakes all night:D in my sleep i'd agree you can't rely on them


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,908 Alkers
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    Anywhere that does this in Dublin without being part of a gym? Callipers is fine, looking for as cheap as possible.


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