Lifehacker will help to correctly assess the condition of your body, measure the percentage of fat in the body and lose weight without harming your health.

How to find out your percentage of fat and change it

In an effort to lose weight, we dream of getting rid of fat reserves. Lifehacker will help to correctly assess the condition of your body and lose weight without harming your health.

What does the percentage of fat in the body mean

In the most general form, the percentage of fat in the body is the attitude of the existing fat to everything else that is in the body (organs, muscles, bones, tendons, etc.). Fat is necessary for survival: it protects the internal organs, serves as a backup source of energy and performs many other important functions.

How much fat do we need

This table provides generally accepted percentage of fat for men and women.

Women	Men
Necessary fat	10–12%	2–4%
Athletic physique	14–18%	6–13%
Sports physique	21–24%	14–17%
Ordinary physique	25–31%	18–25%
Obesity	32% or more	36% or more

The necessary fat is the minimum that is needed for survival. For this reason, bodybuilders dry the body to this mark only before the competition. The rest of the time they support a higher percentage of fat so as not to undermine health and train effectively.

• If you strive to be thin, focus on the percentage of fat for athletic physique.
• If you want to look healthy and fit, strive for a percentage of fat for sports physique.

If the percentage of fat in your body approaches the maximum permissible value of normal physique or falls under obesity, you would not prevent you from reducing this indicator.

What does this or that percentage of fat on the body look like

It is important to understand that the percentage of fat reflects only the amount of fat and has nothing to do with muscle mass. Two people with the same percentage of fat, but different muscle mass will look completely different.

How to measure a percentage of fat

There are seven main methods that differ from each other with accuracy, simplicity and cost.

1. The visual method

It consists in comparing yourself with the above pictures and determine who you are approximately similar to. Very inaccurate way.

2. With the help of a caliper

Pull the skin with subcutaneous fat, grab it with a caliper and find the percentage of fat corresponding to the testimony of Kaliper in the table. As a rule, potassiums show a lower percentage of fat than in fact.

3. Using the formula

For example, you can use the US fleet formula or the YMCA formula. This method is usually mistaken in the larger way.

4. Using electric monitors

A weak electric current is passed through the body, and then the “biometric resistance” is analyzed. As practice has shown, this method gives very inaccurate results.

5. Using the BOD POD system

With the help of a special device, the air displaced by the body is measured, based on the data obtained, the body mass, its volume and density are calculated. This method is considered very accurate, but expensive.

6. Water displacement method

Very accurate (with an error of only 1–3%), but an expensive, complicated and inconvenient method.

7. dexa scan

This method is considered the most accurate and consists in a complete study of body composition using x-rays. It's also a very inexpensive way.

Whatever method you choose, try to take measurements at the same time and under similar conditions: for example, on a certain day of the week, in the morning, on an empty stomach. Even if the data received is inaccurate, you will be able to understand if there is progress.

How to reduce body fat percentage

calorie deficit

Spend more than you consume. But keep in mind that if you do not do strength training at the same time and limit yourself in carbohydrates, then you will lose muscle mass along with fat. This is not the best way, but fat loss is guaranteed.

Pull the iron

When training with weights (as well as during intense training with your own weight), you maintain muscle mass, as well as accelerate your metabolism and achieve a afterburn effect, where calories continue to be consumed after the workout is over.

Short distance running

Sprints also cause a calorie-burning effect.

Eat no more than 100 g of carbohydrates per day

By limiting yourself to carbohydrates, you deprive the body of its favorite source of energy. In this case, he has to extract it from fat reserves.

Train on an empty stomach

Your first meal will be after your workout. Difficult, but effective.

How is body fat percentage different from body mass index?

BMI takes your weight and height into account and decides based on these data whether you are thin, slim or overweight. Body mass index does not correlate with body fat percentage. BMI does not care what your 90 kg consists of: meat or rolls.

However, BMI will do to draw attention to the problem. If you have more than 30% body fat, then both BMI and body fat percentage will indicate that it is time to lose weight.