A BMI (Body Mass Index) is a tool that calculates the ratio of your body mass and height. Many organizations use this calculation to estimate body fat and tell clients that they are obese or overweight even if the clients have 15% body fat or less! Collin Kaepernick, quarterback for the 49ers, is a 6’4” 230lb male with a BMI of about 28, which is overweight. Compare him to a sedentary couch potato with the same proportions and they will have the exact same BMI. The difference between the two people is that one has more fat free mass (muscle, bone, anything other than fat) while the other has more fat mass. BMI is not an accurate indicator of body fat percentage!
For an ACCURATE body fat percentage there are tools out there to help! One of the best ways is to do underwater (hydrostatic) weighing but that is expensive and only a few locations offer it. Also you can ask your doctor about x-rays, or air displacement plethysmography, which are really expensive, as well. Some clubs and studios also have equipment to analyze body fat that is less accurate but less expensive, such as handheld machines. With the handheld equipment you will get a ballpark range on your body fat percentage. Another method for estimating body fat percentage is to get your skinfolds measured, which is the next best thing to hydrostatic weighing. This is where a caliper is used to measure the amount of fat in a skinfold pinch on various areas of the body.
Here at Guiding Fitness we have a handheld machine to estimate your body fat percentage! I also have a skinfold caliper to provide for skinfold testing. Let’s stop over analyzing about our BMIs and find out our body fat percentage correctly I am offering free skinfold tests to anyone who would like their estimated body fat percentage!!! Please contact me or Guiding Fitness for details.
By Melissa Patrick
(916) 532 - 8779
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