scales and body comp.

[snowshoe_hare]

Any thoughts on weight scales and body composition monitors...???



I have a device that is a great scale, but the body composition part P!SSES me OFF! Says I have 16.something% body fat.... while I know I'm not an elite with the perfect running body... "what the gun?"

 

[Barefoot TJ]

16.something% body fat...is

16.something% body fat...is that good or bad for you?

 

[snowshoe_hare]

I'd like to think that it is

I'd like to think that it is a little less.... That is the high end of normal for guys my age...

I know it's quite relative, especially whatever NORMAL is......

I think my body fat is lower than 16%.........

It would be nice to know how (what equations) these devices calculate the data....

BMI is another one of those "special" data sets.... which is VERY relative.....

Body composition is a tricky, I know... gotta be submersed or have super, fancy gagdets to get a better number....

[I guess their are the calibers and such...hhhhmmmm.... I'm have to ask my physician at my bi-annual.

My rant is almost done..... ...............

 

[Barefoot TJ]

At one point, my brother had

At one point, my brother had 5% body fat. He was into everything athletic, karate, sky diving, paragliding, skiing, you name it. His doctor told him if he didn't get some fat on his body, he could die. That's what he said.

 

[Norm Deplume]

I did some research before

I did some research before buying one of those body composition scales, and found that they can be really inaccurate, depending on the level of hydration in your body. (I decided to save my money, buy a regular scale, and use the "jeans-fit" method of body fat measurement.)



I wonder if the thicker skin on barefooters' feet can also screw up the readings?

 

[barefoot.zumba.runner]

I'm with Norm on this one, I

I'm with Norm on this one, I don't see how they can be accurate personally. Not sure what the best way to figure it out is, aside from going to a trained professional with proper tools. kwim?

 

[snowshoe_hare]

I agree.... body composition

I agree.... body composition is so, very relative from person to person... a shiny device with a few mathematic logarithm plugged in is A PILE...

The scale is quite good though...

and it's good to keep a "relative" sample of data for where I'm at.....