How to measure body fat without a caliper

Video: How to Measure Body Fat Percentage at Home Without Calipers

Content

Steps
Method 1 of 3: Use the US Navy method
Method 2 of 3: Measure your waist circumference
Method 3 of 3: Calculating Body Mass Index (BMI)
Tips
Warnings
What do you need

Calculating your body fat percentage will come in handy to create an exercise plan or find out how much weight you've lost. A caliper is often used to calculate changes in body fat. It is an inexpensive and convenient tool that makes it very easy to get the data you need, but only if it is in the right hands. You will not be able to do your own skin fold test. If you want to measure your body fat percentage yourself and you do not have a couple of calipers and knowledge of how to use them, you can use other calculation methods.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Use the US Navy method

1 Measure your height. Do not wear shoes and stand up to your full height.
2 Measure your waist. Women should measure their waist at the tightest point where the waist narrows or "falls in." Men need to measure their waist at the level of their navel. Don't suck in your stomach.
3 Measure your neck circumference. Place the tape under the larynx, tilting it slightly downward. Do not bend or tilt your neck.
4 If you are a woman, measure your hip circumference. Measure your hip circumference at the widest point.
5 Insert values into one of the following formulas or use the online calculator. Round the result to the nearest full percentage.
- Formula for men in centimeters:% Fat = 86.010 * LOG (waist - neck) - 70.041 * LOG (height) + 30.30
- Formula for women in centimeters:% Fat = 163.205 * LOG (waist + hips - neck) - 97.684 * LOG (height) - 104.912

Method 2 of 3: Measure your waist circumference

1 Strip down to your underwear or swimsuit. Ideally, the tape should be applied directly to bare skin, but you can wear a thin T-shirt if you wish. To ensure that the calculations are not different, always wear the same clothes during measurements.
2 Measure your waist. Place a flexible measuring tape at your waist, just above your hipbone. The measuring tape should fit snugly against your skin, but not dig into it.
- Use a mirror to make sure the measuring tape is at the correct height and that it adheres to your skin everywhere.
- Always measure at the same location and try to use the same measuring tape.
3 Be careful. Waist circumference does not provide an accurate percentage of body fat, but it does provide useful relative measurements.
- Non-pregnant women with a waist circumference greater than 89 cm and men with a circumference greater than 102 cm have an increased risk of developing obesity-related diseases such as hypertension or diabetes.
- If you are not expecting a baby or trying to gain weight, but your waist circumference is growing, you should see your doctor. You may be pregnant or have a medical condition.

Method 3 of 3: Calculating Body Mass Index (BMI)

1 Measure your height. Do not wear shoes and stand up to your full height.
2 Measure your weight. Step on the scales that have been calibrated and find out your weight in kilograms.
3 Compare your performance with the BMI chart. Take a reliable BMI chart and find the intersection of your height with your weight on it. The number indicated on the suppression will be your body mass index.
- You can find the BMI table here.
- With age, a person's body mass index usually rises.
- BMI readings for children and adolescents: You should calculate the child's BMI using the height and gender chart. Otherwise, the result will be inaccurate.
- You can also use an online calculator to calculate your BMI. Click if you want to determine the BMI of an adult and a teenager / child.
4 Understand your BMI values. BMI is the ratio of your height to weight or your body weight. Your body is made up of fat, bone, blood, muscle, and many other tissues that combine to make up your weight and your BMI. Your BMI does not directly depend on the percentage of body fat, it is just a calculation with which you can monitor your weight. Descriptions of results for adults are provided below.
- BMI less than 18.5 indicates insufficient body weight
- A BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 indicates normal body weight.
- A BMI between 25 and 29.9 indicates overweight.
- A BMI over 30 indicates obesity.
- Many low-fat, muscular people fall into the overweight category due to the weight of their muscles. Talk to your doctor to find out what your BMI means to you.
- If you are not exercising and gaining muscle mass, but continue to gain weight, chances are that all this weight is made up of fat.
- If you are exercising and eating healthy food while gaining weight, this weight may be made up of muscle and partly fat.
- If you lose weight, you lose both muscle mass and fat.

Tips

Ask your doctor what percentage of body fat you should aim for and why it matters to you.
Body fat measurement is not a comprehensive or accurate form of health monitoring.
Click here to calculate the US Navy's Body Fat Percentage. This is a convenient way if you don't have a calculator.
Typically, men and women have an average of 15.9 to 26.6% and 22.1 to 34.2% body fat, respectively (depending on age).
In addition to the caliper, the percentage of body fat can be calculated using the electrical impedance of body tissue, during which a harmless electrical current is passed through the human body. Also, hydrostatic weighing or weighing in water can be used for this, in which a person is immersed in a tank of water. Find out about the availability of these calculation methods in hospitals and large fitness centers.
Log means logarithm to base 10 or Log10, not base "e" or "Ln". Log (100) = 2.

Warnings

For men: Your body percentage should never go below 8. If your body fat is 8% or less, see your doctor.
Women: Your body fat percentage should never go below 14. If your body fat is 14% or less, see your doctor.
If you have any questions, ask your doctor, dietitian, nutritionist, trainer, therapist, or other doctor.