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How effective are those scales that tell you your bf?

E

etalns

Diamond Member
I'm starting to work out again and wanted to track my BF, and was wondering how accurate those scales are which calculate your BF.

Like this for example. If they are good, what is a good company to try and buy one from?
 
Wow, 5 replies and not a single useful response 😛

and Purbeast0...I'm tracking my progress to a T...guesswork isn't sufficient.
 
They aren't as good as a BF Calipers. However, I have a Tanita scale with the BFM, and it is fairly accurate. Its within 2-3% of actual, if its off.
 
Originally posted by: MogulMonster
They aren't as good as a BF Calipers. However, I have a Tanita scale with the BFM, and it is fairly accurate. Its within 2-3% of actual, if its off.
Click to expand...

How do the calipers work, and where could I get them? And am I able to check it myself using calipers? or does a traine ro rsomeone with the know how have to do it.
 
The scales approximate body fat measurement by measuring your electrical resistivity. You can decide just how accurate that is.
 
If you're going to be tracking things yourself, then stay away from calipers. For that tool to be accurate, you need good amounts of experience working with it, and it's best not to measure your own percentages.

While scales aren't all that accurate, they are pretty good for keeping tabs on things over time. That's what I'd recommend in your case.
 
You can get the Calipers at most sports / fitness stores. They range from ~$20 (which is just fine) to >$200. Basically, it measures skin folds at different points of the body, and then based on those measurements, you can tell what your body fat % is.
 
i was told by the sales guy at gnc not to get one because it is based on electric pulses sent through your body. muscle is denser than fat so the pulse will move slower.

this is inaccurate because a lot of factors come into play here... basically your hydration level can change the reading by a lot.
 
Originally posted by: rahvin
The scales approximate body fat measurement by measuring your electrical resistivity. You can decide just how accurate that is.
Click to expand...

= not too accurate

Too many variables to skew the results, eg. water in body, what's on your skin etc etc
 
I've discussed these with an exercise physiologist (when I was representing a guy the AF wanted to discharge for being overweight). He said they are less accurate than any of several manual methods, even including the relatively bogus taping method we used to use in the AF (which involved measuring the ration between one's waist and neck).
 
I forget which brand mine is, but it is pretty accurate. My dad tried it and then had a doc check his. He got on the doc's body fat scale and the numbers were identical. He then had the doc do another bf test and I think my scales was a few percentage points off.
 
As eakers said the measurement can vary based on your hydration, but if you take the measurement at the same time every day (say right after getting up before hoping in the shower) and don't rely on the exact percentage but the change over time they are said to be fairly accurate. (and disregard days when you are dehydrated such as after drinking binges)
 
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