guest439437484421 Posted November 13, 2012 Report Share Posted November 13, 2012 We had a health care at work today. At one of the booths they had one of thoese hand held body fat things that you put in your height and weight, then squeeze the handles and it figures out your body fat percent. It said I was at 41.4% bodyfat. I'm rather budious to trust that number as it seems to be a lot higher than it should be. you can see by body shots hereso, how reliable are these? Lvl 5 Penguin Warrior: 10 Str, 3.5 Dex, 6.5 STA, 23.5 CON, 12.25 WIS, 5.75 CHAIntro | Current Challenge Thread | Character sheetMy Personal Blog | My Food Blog There are no failures, only learning pains Link to comment
jimmie65 Posted November 13, 2012 Report Share Posted November 13, 2012 I've read some reviews that don't give any of them high marks. Others seem to trust the very expensive models.Have you tried using calipers? HALF-OGRE Level 3 Ranger / Level 1 Sexy GrandpaStr: 10.75 Dex: 11 Sta: 9.25 Con: 7.5 Wis: 6.75 Cha: 5.75"The chief cause of failure and unhappiness is trading what you want most for what you want right nowâ€. ― Zig ZiglarIntroductionCurrent 6 week challengeMy workout logSpecialization is for insects. Do all the things! Link to comment
Zorch Posted November 13, 2012 Report Share Posted November 13, 2012 We had a health care at work today. At one of the booths they had one of thoese hand held body fat things that you put in your height and weight, then squeeze the handles and it figures out your body fat percent. It said I was at 41.4% bodyfat. I'm rather budious to trust that number as it seems to be a lot higher than it should be. you can see by body shots hereso, how reliable are these?Not very. My gym had one of those that said <5% for me, when in reality I'd put my best guess at 10-12% at the time. In my case, it was probably my height(6'6") that threw things off. In general, they use a formula that's tailored to "average" people, so the further away from "average" you are, the less accurate they'll be.I've read some reviews that don't give any of them high marks. Others seem to trust the very expensive models.Have you tried using calipers? Calipers aren't perfect either - there are several different formulae out there that you can find if you look around; some were way off for me(again, the ones that said I had 4% BF were obviously wrong), others were reasonably close to the mark.In the end though, the absolute number is less important than being able to measure progress over time. I think that's the most important thing to keep in mind with regards to all fitness topics. "Restlessness is discontent - and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man-and I will show you a failure." -Thomas Edison Link to comment
jimmie65 Posted November 13, 2012 Report Share Posted November 13, 2012 Calipers aren't perfect either - there are several different formulae out there that you can find if you look around; some were way off for me(again, the ones that said I had 4% BF were obviously wrong), others were reasonably close to the mark.In the end though, the absolute number is less important than being able to measure progress over time. I think that's the most important thing to keep in mind with regards to all fitness topics.I agree with all of this. The biggest benefit of any of these tools is being able to keep track of progress. HALF-OGRE Level 3 Ranger / Level 1 Sexy GrandpaStr: 10.75 Dex: 11 Sta: 9.25 Con: 7.5 Wis: 6.75 Cha: 5.75"The chief cause of failure and unhappiness is trading what you want most for what you want right nowâ€. ― Zig ZiglarIntroductionCurrent 6 week challengeMy workout logSpecialization is for insects. Do all the things! Link to comment
LRB Posted November 14, 2012 Report Share Posted November 14, 2012 I own one of those -- I input my height, weight, and age, and then hit "start" and hold it according to the directions. I think it is pretty close to accurate -- maybe high by 2 percentage points or so. But really I use it to see variation and trends over time, rather than to have an absolute number. LRB, Lifelong Rebel Badass || June 3 challenge thread"What I lack in ability, I make up in stubbornness" -me"Someone busier than you is working out right now" -my mom Link to comment
Tanktimus the Encourager Posted November 14, 2012 Report Share Posted November 14, 2012 One thing to consider is the difference between accuracy and precision. Accuracy means that when something 33.46 units is measured, the device reports it is 33.46 units. Precision means that the gradations are correct. In other words, if something is 23.53 units and the device reports it is 21.67, but adding .6 units means the device reports 21.73, then it is precise. If you can get a device that is consistently precise, it can be useful for tracking changes, even if it does not tell you what your BF% really is. Steve has a very early article on his blog about calculating BF%, basically the only really accurate means are expensive. Current Challenge "By the Most-Righteous-and-Blessed Beard of Sir Tanktimus the Encourager!" - Jarl Rurik Harrgath Link to comment
EmCee Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 Agreed with everyone above. My dad has one of the handheld ones and I just consider it to be -/+ 2 either way. More concerned with tracking progress versus the actual number. Letting go is the hardest asana. Instagram: WholeBodySwoleHeart Link to comment
eseng666 Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 i think the best way to monitor your body fat percentage is to take pictures like every two weeks or so. "If what you did yesterday was your best, you haven't done anything today"" Body Weight: 190 lbs Height: 5'8 Lifting Stats as of Aug 14, 2013 Bench Press: 240 lbs 5RM Squat: 325 lbs 5RM Overhead Press: 140lbs 4RM Deadlift: 345lbs 5RM Link to comment
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