Measuring body fat percentage is an important part of your initial assessment and also for your progress checks. How do you know if you are making any progress if you don’t know how much body fat you have? Knowing only your bodyweight is not giving you enough information since it’s a weight of all tissues including bones, muscles, fat. You might think that if you look skinny, you must be fit, but there is such a thing as skinny fat people. People who are skinny, but have excessive levels of body fat compared to their lean body mass are not considered fit. High levels of body fat are associated with cardiovascular disease, cancer, and other tings that you want to avoid. Knowing your body fat percentage will also help you to get more motivated if you can check your progress and see that you made some positive changes. I will show you how you can find out your body fat percentage and I will give you again my measurements as an example.

You can measure your own body fat percentage at home using The Technique of Measuring Skinfolds. It is an easy and inexpensive method and the only thing you need are Calipers.

The Calipers measure the thickness of the skinfolds. The thicker the skinfolds, the greater the amount of fat a person is carrying. Calipers are available for about $12 at most fitness stores where they sell protein etc.

How to use the Calipers

1. When taking measurements, do so directly on the skin, not through the clothes.

2. Grasp the caliper in one hand and pull out the fold of skin with its underlying layer of fat with your other hand.

3. Pull it out in the appropriate direction  and continue to hold the skinfold as you apply the caliper.

4. The teeth should be about 1/4” (quarter of an inch) from the fingers of your hand that is holding the skinfold.

5. Do not release the skinfold while taking the readings.

6. You will need measurements from 3 different anatomic locations. Upper body, midsection and thigh.

See these 4 examples of measured skinfold sites. I am giving you these specific examples, for which you don’t need anyone’s help.

1. Pectoral

Measure about one inch below the colar bone and two to three inches out from the inside edge of the pectoral muscle. Pull the skinfold in a vertical direction. (women have to make sure to avoid breast tissue)

2. Abdominal

Measure about one inch to the left of and one inch down from the belly button. Pull the skinfold in a vertical direction.

3. Suprailiac

Measure about halfway between the belly button and the top of the hipbone. Pull the skinfold in a horizontal direction.

4. Quadriceps

Measure in the middle of the quadriceps. Pull the skinfold in a vertical direction. If the area is too tight you may need to go up one to two inches.

Calculating Body Fat Using Skinfolds : Women

1. Take skinfold measurements (in millimeters) from 3 different locations and add them together to find the sum of skinfolds.

Example:

Pectoral measurement + Abdominal measurement + Quadriceps measurment = Sum of skinfolds

6mm + 8mm + 22mm = 36mm

2. Take the sum of skinfolds and your age and plug it into the body density equation bellow.

a) 0.0009929 x sum of skinfolds

0.0009929 x 36 = 0.0357444

b) 0.0000023 x (sum of skinfolds x sum of skinfolds)

0.0000023 x (36 x 36) = 0.0029808

c) 0.0001392 x age

0.0001392 x 26 = 0.0036192

d) 1.0994921 – (a + b – c) = body density

1.0994921 – (0.0357444 + 0.0029808 - 0.0036192) = 1.0643861

My Body Density is 1.0643861 and now I have to plug it in body fat equation below to get my body fat percentage.

Bodyfat equation:

([4.570 ÷ body density] – 4.142) x 100 = body fat percentage

([4.570 ÷ 1.0643861] – 4.142) x 100 = 15% of body fat

I just calculated that I have 15% of body fat which means that I have made a positive progress since the last month (about 6 weeks ago)  when I have measured myself the last time. I had 18% of body fat and my goal was actually to get to 15% so I am very happy about that and I’ve got to tell you, that when you see that you are really doing positive changes, it will put you in better mood and you will be even more motivated to continue with your progress.

Calculating Body Fat using Skinfolds: Guys

Chest measurement + abdominal measurement + Quadriceps measurement = Sum of skinfolds

Example:                                            12mm + 16mm + 11mm = 39mm

a) 0.0008267 x sum of skinfolds

0.0008267 x 39 = 0.0322413

b) 0.0000016 x (sum of skinfolds x sum of skinfolds)

0.0000016 x (39 x 39) = 0.0024336

c) 0.0002574 x age

0.0002574 x 33 = 0.0084942

d) 1.10938 – (a + b – c) = body density

1.10938 – (0.0322413 + 0.0024336 – 0.0084942) = 1.0831993

Body density is 1.0831993 and now I plug it into the body fat equation below.

Body fat Equation:

([4.570 ÷ body density] – 4.142) x 100 = body fat percentage

([4.570 ÷ 1.0831993] -  4.142) x 100 =  7.6%