Probably everyone understands that the percentage of body fat is important indicator.
It should not be overlooked, focusing only on kilograms and the arrow on the scale when losing weight. Because we want to get rid from fat, not muscle.
In addition, people with the same weight can look completely different. Therefore, knowing exactly how much fat is in the body is much more useful.
Subcutaneous and visceral
How to determine quantity visceral fat? Excess is easy to notice by the disturbed proportions of the body: the stomach noticeably protrudes forward.
What percentage of internal fat should women and men have? No more than 15% of total body fat, regardless of gender. You can also understand that the norm of visceral fat is exceeded by simply changing your waist. For women, the dangerous figure will be 80 cm, for the stronger half of humanity - 90.
Of course, these are not ideal and not completely reliable methods, but they are the only ones available to people at home!
Why is it necessary to know?
Muscle is heavier than fat Therefore, even with the same weight, two people can have completely different body quality. The lower the percentage of body fat and the higher the percentage of muscle, the more prominent the body will be. So beautiful, athletic body- not kilograms on the scales, because the “quantity of the body” does not always correspond to its “quality”. Women, for physiological reasons, have more fat cells than men, so it is always more difficult for women to build muscle mass.
Beautiful body- it's really a lot of work on yourself. Not a search for “miracle diets”, magic pills or the cunning technique of the third wife of the Chinese Emperor Tsin, but daily nutrition control, regular classes in the gym and a desire to understand how it all works. Like the work of a sculptor who calmly and methodically carves a beautiful statue out of shapeless stone.
If you are losing weight and monitoring the quality of your body, then try to measure your body fat percentage at least once a month. This will help you avoid mindlessly dumping extra pounds, and systematically improve body composition.
Besides:
- You can track changes in your fat mass both while losing weight and while gaining muscle. This is much more revealing than the arrow on the scale.
- Knowing your dry weight muscle mass, you can use it to find out your calorie intake.
The norm for women and men: what should it be
So, what is the normal percentage of body fat for a woman?
- up to 30 years – 15-23%;
- from 30 to 50 years – 19-25%;
- from 50 years old - 20-27%.
Normal percentage male body fat:
- up to 30 years – 11-18%;
- from 30 to 50 years – 14-20%;
- from 50 years old – 16-22%.
If there is more than 32% fat, a person develops obesity.
More visual tables:
How to find out on your own at home?
There is no exact way to find out how much fat is in the body. There are more accurate methods, there are simple methods that show this approximately.
How to determine from a photo
Cheap and cheerful: to determine your body fat percentage, you need to find a body shape that is as similar as possible to yours:
For girls and women, an athletic physique is characterized by 14-20% body fat, good physical shape - 21-24%, intermediate level fat - 25-31%. At the same time, a fat level below 10% is extremely dangerous for the female body and leads to the cessation of .
For men, 6-13 percent body fat means a toned, athletic physique and enough relief press, 14-17% - good physical fitness with no availability large quantity fat in problem areas, 18-25% is the average level of shape, above 25% is obesity.
On the positive side: This is the fastest, free and easiest way. To determine your body fat percentage, you need to find a body shape that is as similar as possible to yours.
From the negative: requires your assessment of yourself, which is not always objective. We may unconsciously “throw off” a few pounds in our minds and compare ourselves to the slimmer version in the photo. In a word, with a probability of 80% this method is a “finger in the sky.”
How to measure with a caliper
Caliper- a special device that measures the thickness of the skin-fat folds in different parts of the body. Based on the obtained figures, the percentage is determined using special tables or formulas subcutaneous fat.
How to measure body fat with a caliper -!! only for women!!
- Rear surface shoulder: the fold is taken vertically in the middle between shoulder joint and elbow.
- On the side: The fold is taken from the side diagonally in the middle between the lower rib and the hip bones.
- On the stomach: The fold is taken vertically at a distance of +-2.5 cm away from the navel.
% fat = (A-B+C) + 4.03653, where:
- A = 0.41563 x (sum of all three folds in mm),
- B = 0.00112 x (sum of all three folds in mm squared),
- C = 0.03661 x age in years.
Measurement common for women and men
We add the resulting numbers in mm and find out the percentage of subcutaneous fat using the table:
On the positive side: inexpensive, fast, you can do it yourself at home, fairly accurate indicators.
From the negative: You need practice to learn how to use it correctly or someone else's help, calculations using formulas are required.
How to calculate online
There are also many fat percentage calculators online based on different body measurements. So you can easily calculate online. For example, these:
On the positive side: fast, does not require any activity.
From the negative: the calculation is unreliable.
How to calculate with scales and analyzer
How scales determine the amount of fat and muscle in the body: the device passes a weak current through you and calculates tissue resistance.
On the positive side: fast, suitable for regular use home use.
From the negative: the same as for bioimpedance - not always accurate indicators, since the figure may be affected water balance(edema). High-quality scales will cost more than 10,000, but it’s better to refuse cheap ones - it’s money down the drain. When repeated measurements, fluid loss may show on the scale a decrease in the percentage of fat mass, although in fact it has remained unchanged. The only way to use such scales is to track the trend - let the number lie, but what is important is its increase or decrease over time.
How to Calculate Body Mass Index from Lyle MacDonald
The method is only suitable for untrained people, i.e. for beginners who have not yet started training strength training. For the happy owners of visible muscles built in gym above the “norm”, this method is not suitable.
To determine your body fat percentage, you need to know your body mass index: BMI = weight in kg/height in square meters
How to check with professionals
How to calculate quantity by bioimpedance analysis
And water in the body. The question is relevant because by determining the proportions of fat, water and muscle mass, you can find out exactly how much fat you lost during weight loss. Perhaps only water left?
If in the process of losing weight you lose fat, but not muscle mass or water, then you are definitely on the the right way. But how in the body and what is the average? There is a special table that shows all the numbers. Let's briefly go through its data.
The average is calculated depending on the age and gender of the subject. So, due to the hormone estrogen, the female audience has 5% more fat than the male audience. Therefore, the usual normal rate is 23% for women and 17% for men.
Depending on age, the percentage of normal body fat increases and muscle mass decreases.
So, for an average student aged 20 years, the fat content should be approximately 15% of total mass bodies. And older men with a clearly sedentary lifestyle have rates of 25% or more. The ideal indicator is considered the limit of obesity. Anything higher is full-fledged clinical obesity with all the ensuing consequences.
Why is body fat needed?
As paradoxical as it sounds, the human body still needs fat. Weight loss fanatics can convince you otherwise until you are blue in the face, but still pay attention to this point so as not to cross the boundaries of acceptable weight loss.
Fat is necessary for the normal functioning of the body. Therefore, its content cannot be equal to zero.
Fat needed:
- For thermal insulation;
- To protect internal organs and/or the fetus during pregnancy;
- As energy reserves. This is the so-called emergency protection of our body for a “rainy day”.
For women, the required fat level is at least 8-10%, but for men this figure is 3-5%. A low percentage of fat is extremely dangerous for health, which especially concerns the female body. So indicators below 10-13% inhibit estrogen production, disrupt reproductive function and the menstrual cycle. There is also a risk of developing osteoporosis much earlier than old age due to decreased bone density.
By the way, women often cannot get pregnant due to lack of body weight. This is why doctors recommend certain fat-building foods for those who are “morbidly thin.”
How to find out your fat percentage
There are various methods that reflect the fat content in the body. The most accurate:
- Body composition and its analysis;
- Waist-hip ratio;
- Skin fold measurement.
This way you can find out what proportion of your body is occupied by fat and what proportion by other tissues. Similar studies can be easily done in sports centers and clubs. They may also offer you special products that will help you lose weight or. This means high-quality official drugs like thermogenics, and so on.
Pharmacies and not very good sports clubs often sell products that remove fat from the body. The drugs simply do not allow lipids to be absorbed during the digestion process, are harmful to the body and, moreover, can embarrass you in public.
Skinfold measurement
One of the most accurate and popular methods for determining the percentage of fat is measuring the thickness of the folds in certain places.
The scale on this instrument will show the thickness of the fat layer. Similar pinching is done in certain places - the upper back, stomach, hips, chest. Next, the indicator is inserted into special formula and calculate the percentage.
Believe it or not, the instrument was originally invented to determine the thickness of pig fat. Later they adapted it to human needs.
The measurement has a high degree of accuracy, but tomography is considered the most accurate. Thanks to the unit, it is possible to accurately separate adipose and non-adipose tissue in the body. But due to the high cost of the procedure, it is practically not used in practice.
Pinching
To pinch, you need to pinch the fold of skin in several places with your index finger and thumb. The help of an outsider is necessary, since you need to pinch on the hips, stomach, and slightly above the armpit. Next, trying not to spread your fingers, measure the distance between them with a ruler. If the distance is more than 2.5 cm, then overweight you have.
Body mass index
To calculate, you need to divide your weight by your height squared. The normal value is from 18.5 to 24.9. But the indicator is very inaccurate, since the same athletes have more muscle mass, and the indicators will reflect obesity at the same figures.
Clothing size
With clothes, too, everything is not clear. Clothes tend to both stretch and shrink. You could simply have overeaten salty foods and water simply accumulated in the body, that is, a banal swelling occurred, which will subside a little later. It’s enough to sit in a sauna, cut down on salt in your diet, and fit into your favorite jeans.
The principle of losing weight due to the evaporation of water is used in all kinds of weight loss shorts and creams that remove water from the body.
If you overdo it, you may lose too much water. The result is dehydration and poor health.
Body type
When taking all kinds of measurements, it is also useful to focus on your body type.
There are three types of physique:
- – thin. Different narrow bones with outstretched arms and legs. This type of person does not have much fat and muscle in their body. They have an intense metabolism, so ectomorphs simply cannot imagine what “” is. Even the most harmful products like mayonnaise and buns will not make them fat.
- – have broad bone, muscle predominates over adipose tissue. Their body responds to physical activity as quickly as possible. It is mesomorphs who quickly earn beautiful relief.
- – the bone has average parameters, but the metabolism is slow. Adipose tissue predominates over muscle. It is endomorphs who have problems with overweight. Even foods such as lean steamed fish can cause obesity.
Having determined your body type, you can calmly determine where exactly to start and transform your body shape.
For those who strive to be slim and toned body There is no absolutely ideal percentage of body fat. Normal body fat percentage varies markedly between people and depends on a variety of factors, including body type, age, genetics, activity level and diet.
Normal weight and fat ratios vary widely, but are considered safe to maintain good health, is 5 - 9% for men and 13 - 15% for women, although there is no hard and fast "rule" about what may be too low for an individual.
The table below shows the minimum body fat percentage for both sexes by age. Thus, the normal percentage of fat should not be below these values. As you can see the table shows that body fat in the body increase with age, and although this usually occurs, it is mainly due to a decrease in the level of activity.
Fat content depending on age and gender
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Age |
30 – 50 |
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Women |
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Normal body fat percentage
What is a normal body fat percentage?
There are many ideas about normal body fat percentage for non-athletic individuals, including ranges of 16-20% and 20-21% for women, and 8-14% and 10-14% for men. These indicators provide a thin appearance.
For general health and fitness, for men, 10-15% - good choice, to which you can strive. However, men who want six-pack abs usually have 10-11%, since the abs are where fat tends to accumulate. Women who want a six-pack may have to drop theirs to 14-16%, which may be too low for some and will disrupt their menstrual cycle. Usually they begin to decrease noticeably at about 18% body fat. The first place you'll notice changes is in areas where fat deposits are already relatively small. For most, this is around the shoulders and collarbones.
Low fat and weight loss
It's important to note: Research shows that low fat levels do not cause amenorrhea (absence of menstruation for several menstrual cycles) per se. It is the energy balance (the ratio of calories received and calories burned) that is in this case the main determining factor of health. Thus, it can be said that for athletic woman, it is quite possible to maintain fat levels as low as teenagers without any negative consequences.
Often among those who strive to become super lean is achieved through long-term negative energy balance (i.e., taking in fewer calories than the body requires), and it is this negative energy balance that causes loss of menstruation.
Thus, a lean, non-overtrained woman who pays close attention to her nutrition and caloric needs will likely not experience the negative effects of having lower than average body fat.
So, fat. It plays a lot of important roles in our body. From how healthy our skin looks and how firm, elastic and pleasant it is to the touch, to whether everything is in order with our hormones - many of them are not produced when the percentage of body fat is too low.
In short, recently I have again changed my approach to food, to training, and in general to the psychological side of my fitness and my ideals of the female body. I am working on the mistakes I made and making peace with my body. I’m thinking of making an article about these mistakes, but the main one lies in the terrible word “fat.”
How much fat should a healthy body have?
Namely: I didn’t add enough fat to my diet for a long time (on average it was 30-40 g per day) and was too zealously chasing a low percentage of body fat. Why this is very bad will be discussed in today’s article. But if we talk about nutrition, today I try to eat at least 80-100 g of fat per day. And I deliberately increased the percentage of body fat from 18-19 to 21-23. Yes, at first it was unusual to perceive myself after 18%, but my priority is still health.
The idea for this article comes from a health guru and healthy eating– Dr. Andrey Beloveshkin. In fact, the article was created in collaboration with him. More precisely, it was created by him in collaboration with me.
So, fat. It plays a lot of important roles in our body. From how healthy our skin looks and how firm, elastic and pleasant it is to the touch, to whether everything is in order with our hormones - many of them are not produced when the percentage of body fat is too low.
I have already touched on this topic: if there is a lack of fat in the body and fat in food, the first thing to do is suffers in the female body - this is the reproductive system and reproductive function. The body begins to save resources and gradually turns off functions that it can do without and... survive. Why should he think about procreation if he himself is now in danger?..
Let's figure out why fats (both those that we eat and those that we carry on ourselves) need to be understood, forgiven and pardoned.
It is important to ensure that external fat does not fall below the acceptable minimum.
As long as subcutaneous fat does not exceed the norm, it is good. Because fat produces special hormones that protect our heart and blood vessels. And, as I already wrote above, there is a minimum of subcutaneous fat, without which the normal functioning of the hormonal and reproductive systems is impossible.
Subcutaneous fat is aesthetics, all the smooth curves and outlines of the female body. Without subcutaneous fat, the body becomes senile and masculine: rough, dry, angular, with bones and muscle bundles showing through. A certain supply of subcutaneous fat is also needed to “calm” the body. When the body is stressed, it is concerned with only one thing: to survive. Therefore, it begins to push fat into the liver, into the heart, into the walls of blood vessels.
You can measure subcutaneous fat according to science - by measuring the thickness of the folds in different places. You can try to control it through the numbers on the scales (but there is a nuance here: it is impossible to determine the percentage of fat and dry mass).
I have long come to the conclusion that the simplest and most reliable way is a mirror. You undress, stand in front of the mirror in full height and... you look. No, not in the “Ugh, I’m fat!” way, but you adequately examine everything that hangs or doesn’t hang.
If there is too much fatty tissue in the body, it will be revealed by folds, tuberosity, cellulite, belly, axillary and knee ridges. And in general so-so general view. If it doesn't hang anywhere, then everything is fine. Veins, protruding tendons, cubes and individual bundles of muscles are a sure sign that there is not enough fat. And you are at risk. Yes, yes, that's what I say. It didn't seem to you. No wreaths on bellies. No lean muscles. I really want children in the future, to be honest. And I really don’t want problems with hormonal levels.
Therefore, let the dry bodies remain for the gymnasts who are trying to make money from this. People who want to stay healthy need to understand that artificially created excessive dryness of the body is not healthy. I emphasize: unnecessary. Lest you read this as an excuse for gluttony and obesity.
Speaking in numbers, 20-25% fat is the norm for a woman. The maximum excess fat is up to 15% excess body weight if it is subcutaneous fat (not internal fat). When it falls below 9-10%, the body goes into a serious deficit, which causes the entire system to fail. For men, the critical threshold is lower - 4-6% body fat.
If you don't eat enough fat every day, your body will lose weight for a while, yes. It will make you happy. Only on the sly will our cunning and very smart body slowly turn off the extra light so as not to waste energy, as it seems to it. And so that you don’t have to spend your whole life replacing all your electrical wiring, it’s important not to get to that point.
Experts recommend eating at least 1 gram per kilogram of body weight, but my feeling is that the body still needs more. Especially to a body that, like mine, is constantly in motion and in mental work. Therefore, today I try to eat 1.5-2 grams, depending on the intensity of the day. By the way, a diet rich in fats also saturates better. Therefore, after 1.5-2 hours you don’t feel like eating. And I want it in 4 hours.
It is important to control subcutaneous fat so that it does not fall below normal! When the level of subcutaneous fat is below 7%, women go into deficiency mode, hormonal disruption and menstruation stops. With a long absence of menstruation, the ability to give birth to a child is sharply reduced and leads to infertility. Things are not so happy for men either. With a low content of adipose tissue (4-6% of the total mass), testosterone production stops and libido decreases. Super relief is destiny professional bodybuilders and it's harmful. If you are going to carry a couple of extra pounds, then it is better to do it on the buttocks than in the liver.
Control the energy balance: income and consumption
Energy balance is the ratio of the number of calories we take in from food to the number of calories we expend during physical activity. The difference between the total calorie intake and the calories burned during physical activity, is the available energy on which the body can run wild. More precisely, use it to maintain life and your loved one.
Lately I've been eating about 1700 kcal per day(and it’s still not enough! but I’m working on increasing it). Luckily, I stopped eating at 1200 kcal. Because objectively, at my level of brain and physical activity that's not enough. According to the most conservative estimates, one workout costs me 400 kcal. But this is very modest - I can burn 800! But let’s start from the average value of 400 kcal.
This means that my body has 1300 kcal per day left for everything. He can allocate it to his internal affairs and other goodies. There is such a concept - a basic need, or basic metabolism. This is the minimum energy we need just to live and function normally.. And do nothing about it. Just lie down. As you can see, even now, having increased my daily calorie intake, I am underfeeding myself. But thanks to Dr. Beloveshkin, I already eat a lot more. Details below.
If you don't give your body energy for basic needs, it will slowly but surely lead to problems.
How to find out your balance?
First we need to know your body fat percentage. My average body fat percentage now is - 23% (9 months ago it barely exceeded 18%, and now I look at those photos and understand: she’s skinny, she’s a tomboy, she has no ass, just bones – so what?).
Fat can be calculated using special impedance scales, or a bioimpedance device. Fat percentage can also be calculated using a special calculator. in different ways and select medium.
We calculate the dry mass using the formula: Lean body mass (fat-free mass) = current weight - (current weight x current % body fat).
My weight today is 56 kg, and my fat percentage is 0.23 (23%). I think for myself:
Dry weight = 56 – (56 x 0.23) = 43 kg.
The minimum available energy requirement is 30 kcal per kilogram of dry body mass. At a level below 30 kcal, your sex hormones will “sprinkle”, and if you drop to 25 kcal (the notorious almost 1200 kcal per day), the thyroid gland will most likely begin to act up. After reducing to 20 kcal per kilogram, real problems with the head.
Optimal for a normal life, well-being, without a threat to health and almost without a threat to your figure - this is 40-45 kcal per kilogram of dry body mass (body weight without fat - we have already found out how to calculate it above).
This means that for my 43 kilos of lean mass, my caloric intake should not be lower than 43 x 30 kcal/kg = 1290 kcal. And this is only the minimum basic need! And for almost a year I gave so many calories to my poor body for life, and for work, and for training... Don’t repeat it! Although it is very easy to get hooked on a low-calorie needle because it gives quick results. At what cost is another question.
My basic optimal calories: 43 * 45 = 1935 kcal. Since I don’t lie on the couch all day, this figure needs to be multiplied by a correction factor depending on physical activity.
Many of you have seen this list, I'm sure:
1.2 = sedentary image life, sedentary work, very little or no sports activities
1.3-1.4 = light activity (some daily activity + light exercise 1-3 times a week)
1.5-1.6 = average activity (exercise 3-5 times a week)
1.7-1.8 = high activity (active lifestyle and heavy training 6-7 times a week)
1.9-2.0 = extremely high activity (sports lifestyle, physical labor, daily workouts etc.).
I now have average activity and a correction factor of 1.5. This means my minimum is 1.5*1290= 1935, and my optimum is 1935*1.5= 2900 kcal. If we consider that now it's mine daily calorie content is 1700 kcal, then my energy balance is negative (even taking into account the minimum requirement, I am missing more than 200 kcal).
This can be corrected by reducing the intensity (or frequency) of training or increasing the number of calories. Let's say, in my case, adding two eggs (180 kcal) or one avocado (205 kcal) will help me. Or skipping half the workout (200 kcal) - and this will be enough to balance your energy balance. But I would prefer to leave my physical training as it is, and at the same time eat more.
I’ll be honest: I’m already increasing my caloric intake, I don’t weigh my food and don’t bother with accurate calorie counting – I just eat. And it’s so good for the whole body, so calm. I'll watch it a little more and then tell you. But even visually there is a difference. By the way the skin looks all over the body, for example...
Why is it important not to go into the red for a long time? If the energy balance is negative, then the body goes into energy conservation (deficit) mode.
And this is where the action-packed movie begins: metabolism slows down, the functioning of the thyroid gland and sex hormones deteriorates, mood and energy drop, depression and irritability appear. In addition, the body will still accumulate internal (bad) fat, sacrificing muscle.
Therefore, Andrei Beloveshkin strongly recommends: even when losing weight or maintaining your normal weight, we should not go beyond the limit of 30 kcal per kilogram of dry body weight for more than 2-3 days. Under no circumstances should you do as they advise: “eat less, exercise more.” This will cause you to lose weight but increase the amount of bad fat (visceral fat).
I’ll add on my own behalf: be reasonable, don’t listen to those who advise living on one lettuce leaf and killing yourself while training. Treat your body with care and respect, and it will thank you. Do not gesture, otherwise the body will respond with even greater gesture. Restoring metabolism and hormonal levels, treating the reproductive system is long, difficult and, in every sense, expensive.
Watch the amount of internal fat!
"The most dangerous thing is internal fat, which hides in the stomach. It disrupts hormones, worsens mood, causes illness, weakness and chronic fatigue. Its excess provokes a craving for various kinds of addictions: from sweets to drugs and dependent relationships,” says Andrey.
But the most unpleasant deceit lies elsewhere, friends. Bad fat, which grows against the background of hunger strikes, drying, chronic overload and stress, can “melt” our body. Change its composition and kill the quality.
This means that disrupted sex hormones and stress hormones “reprogram” our fat cells.“Reprogrammed” fat begins to behave indecently, which leads to the appearance and intensification of problem areas: we seem to be thin, but cellulite on our thighs, butt and even calves blooms in full bloom! Moreover, even more noticeable than before.
What does a normal, average girl do in such a situation? Right! He gets nervous, hungry, trains until he faints and... the circle repeats. And with each such circle, alas, our problem areas become more and more problematic, and cellulite appears even on the cheeks.
Studies of twins have shown that only 20% of the accumulation of internal fat can be at least somehow explained by genes. Everything else is nutrition, lifestyle, bad habits. Bad fat is not so easy to see in the mirror, but even people of normal weight can have it: in athletes, models, small girls.
Now we'll look at how to track your internal fat and health using... a measuring tape. This block will be useful for those who are interested in doing a little self-test, like, how am I doing now?
The key thing in our study is waist size. Almost all other indicators dance from him. After all, it is in the abdominal area that internal fat is hidden.
Let's take the tape. We give it to the experienced doctor Andrey Beloveshkin. We take one fitness blogger as a model and test subject. Who is not afraid to show you the truth of his body.
« Waist circumference should be measured midway between the bottom edge of the lower rib and the top of the pelvic bones(as an option - in the narrowest place, usually at the level of the navel or slightly above). When tightening, you should pull the tape slightly, with an effort similar to lifting an empty mug. When measuring, the tape should be placed parallel to the floor. Stand calmly, arms at your sides, breathe calmly, measure as you exhale. Measure several times until there is a difference of no more than one centimeter,” recommends Andrey.
Hip circumference can be measured at the widest part of the buttocks“We determine it visually,” advises the doctor.
Neck circumference is measured at its narrowest point:
Thigh circumference – in the upper third:
My results: weight 56 kg, height 170 cm, waist 67 cm, hips 96 cm, neck 30 cm, abdominal height - 17.5 cm, hip 55 cm. Fat percentage 23%.
1. Waist circumference.
My waist is normal (67 centimeters). When I lose weight to 60, my hips deflate to 89, and this is a boy’s story - I’m still for femininity. The normal waist circumference for women is up to 75 (80) centimeters, from 80 to 88 centimeters is weight gain, and over 88 is obesity. For men, normal parameters are up to 94 centimeters. Wide waist reduces your attractiveness and doubles your risk of premature death from any cause. This also applies to people with normal and low weight!
2. Hip-waist ratio.
My ratio: 67 to 96 = 0.70 (ideal).
“The ideal numbers are 0.7 (0.65-0.78) for women and no more than 0.9 for men. Normally, this index should be less than 0.85 for women and less than 1.0 for men. A good hip-waist ratio increases attractiveness, mental abilities and libido, and reduces the risk of many diseases (cancer, infertility, diabetes). The hip-waist ratio is one of the best indicators of health,” comments Andrey.
I would immodestly add: mmmmm, bend!!!
3. Height-to-waist ratio
My ratio: 67 to 170 = 0.4 (excellent). The norm for this index is less than 0.5 for men and women.
4. Body shape index – an indicator of the risk of getting sick
The Body Shape Index shows the relationship between waist size, height and weight. The formula is complex, let's use a calculator. In addition to numbers, this index also provides a picture that shows where we are on the risk scale.
My body shape index is 0.0723 - this is normal. At the same time, the calculator also calculates the relative risk. For me it is 0.76. This figure means that I have a lower risk of disease than average (average risk = 1). The higher the number, the higher the risk of disease.
The circle on the graph is me / The further to the left and lower the circle is, the better. The higher and to the right, the more dangerous.
5. Conic index (K-index).
“The formula is complicated and I haven’t found a calculator. Therefore, we divide the weight in kilograms by the height in meters, take the square root of this (in a standard calculator, the sqrt button) and multiply it by 0.109.”
0.109 x (square root of 56/1.7) = 0.63.
Then we divide the waist in meters by the resulting figure: 0.67/0.63 = 1.063.
So my conic index value is 1.063.
For men, the norm is a conical index of no more than 1.25, and for women – 1.18.
The higher the index, the more people looks like a cylinder rather than two cones meeting at the waist. And the higher the risk.
6. Neck
We measure at the narrowest point. My value = 30 cm (excellent). In women, the neck circumference is no more than 34.5 (a more strict norm is 32 cm), in men the neck circumference is no more than 38.8 cm (a more strict norm is 35.5 cm).
7. Waist-hip ratio.
My ratio: 67/55 = 1.22 (excellent). Normally, this index is less than 1.5 for women and less than 1.7 for men.
8. Abdominal height.
My value: 17.5 cm (excellent). The norm is up to 25 centimeters.
“The height of the abdomen is the smallest distance between two horizontal lines: lying on the surface of the abdomen and touching the vertebra of the back. Measure with your back pressed to the floor and your knees bent, at the level of the sacrum. By the way, an abdominal height above 25 cm is a risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease if you survive a heart attack at 50,” says Andrey.
The conclusion suggests itself: I recognized the body’s alarm signals in time, returned an adequate amount of fat to the diet and fat under the skin. All my health markers are in excellent condition.
I stopped gesturing and testing my body for strength. I am very sensitive and attentive to him. I'm listening. I make sure not to dry out, but not to float. And, as a small experiment showed, it’s not all in vain. Health markers are normal, which means I can move on with my life. I wish the same for you!
I would like to express my gratitude to Andrey for this article, for all the information he collected and published.
Tatiana Kurbat, Andrey Beloveshkin
If you have any questions, please ask
P.S. And remember, just by changing your consumption, we are changing the world together! © econet
For athletes, and ordinary people who think about their health and those who want to lose weight, it is very important to know the percentage of fat in the body. After all, trying to get rid of extra pounds, people mean fat deposits, not muscle or bone tissue. Many people simply ignore this indicator, focusing only on the arrow on the scales, but in vain.
Knowing the percentage of fat accumulation in the body is much more useful in order to correctly carry out procedures to eliminate it. Further in the material we will present methods how to determine body fat percentage, which is a constant process when losing weight, cutting and building muscle tissue. The methods presented below can be used independently or by contacting a specialist - a nutritionist or fitness trainer. These specialists will be able to determine exactly what the person seeking help needs to do. By studying individual characteristics, you can achieve the desired results.
When you step on the scale, you can see every time that your weight changes in one direction or another, even if it’s a small amount. But this does not mean that the content of fat accumulation has decreased - it could be simple dehydration or a decrease in muscle mass. If you really want to lose weight, then you need to get rid of the subcutaneous fat layer.
This is important: As a rule, people who want to lose weight tend to go on a fast-acting diet. This leads to positive results, but in fact a person loses water and muscle mass - fat remains unchanged, or slightly leaves the abdomen.
The subsequent transition to a normal diet leads to a sharp replenishment of water and muscle mass - this occurs even large quantities(that’s why a person gains even more after a diet). To formula good weight was more correct, it is necessary to know exactly the percentage of fat contained in the body. That is why it is necessary to find out this indicator, for which several determination methods have been developed.
Normal for humans
For normal functioning of the body, it must contain an optimal percentage of fat. A minimum percentage of body fat is required for survival: men should have 3-5% body fat, and women should have 8-13%. You cannot get rid of it completely, since fat cells are necessary for the functioning of the body, otherwise you can simply die. Fat that is part of the nervous system and the one that surrounds internal organs.
The bulk of body fat is found in the adipose tissue located under the layer of skin and around the organs - this is visceral fat. A small part is found in tissue cells throughout the body. All fats play important role in the functioning of the body, but an excess can lead to the development of heart and vascular diseases, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, cardiac ischemia, and some types of oncology. Fat deposits in the body should be optimal because they maintain body temperature, protect internal organs from damage, promote the synthesis of hormones and other chemical compounds, and also perform other functions.
The table clearly shows that normal fats are not so little required if a person is not an athlete. If you try to reduce the amount of fat below the lowest level, then the body in general, and especially the internal organs, will suffer from this. You won’t be able to recover quickly - it’s quite difficult to return the optimal percentage of fat.
This is important: Too low a percentage contributes to the cross-section of the muscles, which makes them appear dissected and “striped,” dividing the muscle into small ridges. Everyone can achieve perfect body through exercise and diet, but maintain yourself in perfect shape It's quite difficult for a long time. To do this, it is necessary to constantly monitor calorie intake, and this is too difficult, especially if the body constitution is not conducive to being slim.
You need to stay within the healthy fat range and try not to go out of there. For normal well-being and reducing the risk of chronic pathologies, it is necessary to monitor the accumulation of fat cells and try to avoid overdoing it.
Expert opinion
Egorova Natalya Sergeevna
Dietitian, Nizhny Novgorod
The normal ratio of visceral and subcutaneous fat is 1:9. That is, in the body of a healthy person, 10% of fat should be localized around internal organs, and 90% in subcutaneous fat. Violation of this ratio can have adverse consequences for the body.
Visceral fat is located around the internal organs and supports them. When its quantity is insufficient, these same organs begin to react painfully to increases in intra-abdominal pressure (for example, when coughing). And this can cause prolapse of the kidneys, spleen, liver, gallbladder, and intestines.
An excess of visceral fat is even more dangerous than a lack of it, because visceral obesity is the main risk factor for a number of dangerous diseases: atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, arterial hypertension, etc.
Thus, it is important to determine not only the total amount of fat in the body, but also its location, that is, how many percent of it is localized around the internal organs.
How to find out your fat percentage
There are many ways to determine the percentage of fat in the human body.
The simplest of them are presented in the following form:
- Scales with determination of body fat mass. It is important to know that such measuring instruments always have an error factor.
- Take a good look at yourself in the mirror and visually determine excess fat deposits.
- Use a centimeter ruler to measure the size of your waist and forearm. If your waist size has decreased and your forearms have increased, then fat has begun to be burned, and muscle tissue grow.
All methods are easy to perform and accessible to everyone, but they do not give a specific result. Using these methods you can find out general condition layer of fat.
Ideal weight formula
Having learned this, you can look at the result in the table:
This method is usually used by girls to determine the size of the fat layer.
Online calculator
The calculator, which is easy to find on the Internet, will quickly and correctly determine your indicator using five formulas. The results of the checks will be reflected on the graph of the fat categories in the table, where the percentage of fat and age will be expressed. In the gallery you can find photos of bodies with different levels of fatty tissue in the body. You just need to go to the online calculator page and fill out all the fields and click on the “calculate” button.
Result: Your body contains approximately fat (or ).
The result will be calculated using all formulas if all fields are filled in correctly. If you ignore something, the calculation will be made using an incomplete number of formulas. When completely filled out, the result will be immediately displayed on graphs, photos, and tables.
Please note: The online calculator determines the percentage in five ways and then gives the average value. Any of the methods produces an error in the range of +- 3%. The more methods are used, the more accurate the result will be.
Each method gives an indicator in percentage and its weight in kg. The methods have their own graphs, where the result of the test is highlighted with a yellow line. The second level of the graph, which is visible on the outer circle, highlights the scale, according to which the results are assessed as percentages. Next are two summary graphs, the first one shows the results of all formulas and the average value. The second graph shows a more accurate estimate of the percentage of fat, which was carried out taking into account age. In addition to calculating the percentage of body fat, the graph gives recommendations on further actions.
Other calculation methods
What other ways can you calculate your fat percentage?
- US Navy method. When recruited into the US military, everyone's body fat percentage is checked; weight doesn't matter. For this purpose, height, hip, waist and neck circumference are taken.
- Covert Bailey method. The results are based on age. For the calculation, the size of the hips, thighs, legs, wrists and age are taken.
- Using BMI. The calculation is based on height, weight and age. It is important to know that after 30 years the accuracy of the indicator decreases.
- Additional method. Its calculations are based on a larger number of parameters. Weight, wrist, hip, forearm and waist circumference are taken.
The resulting numbers are summed up and the average is calculated, which will be closer to reality.
Caliper Application
Women who diet to perfect their body are required to frequently calculate their body fat percentage. After all, health can suffer significantly from fluctuations in the fat layer. A special device called a caliper will help you quickly and accurately calculate the percentage of body fat for women. It is designed to measure the thickness of the fat layer anywhere on the body.
How can you determine the indicator using this device:
- Measure the thickness of the fold of fat at the back of the shoulder.
- Do the same between the ribs and the thigh bone.
- Measure the thickness on the stomach, slightly away from the navel.
- Calculate the indicator using the following formula: (Sum of all folds in cm + the same amount, but squared + 0.03661 x number of years lived) + 4.03653.
This is a difficult calculation, but with practice it can be done easily. This device can also calculate indicators in men.
Correction of the amount of fat in the body
According to the law of energy balance, the more energy is spent, the more fat is burned. But this is up to a certain point, after the main burning of the fat layer it becomes quite difficult to achieve its destruction. If you are planning to lose 10 kg, then burning the first half will be much easier and faster than the last 5 kg. To bring your body to the desired slimness, you will have to use additional methods - playing sports. As the amount of fat decreases, each kilogram lost will become increasingly difficult.
Please note: Visceral or internal fat accumulates in adults as the total number of fat cells in the body increases, and not due to a genetic predisposition. In men, it begins to accumulate when the body fat percentage reaches 20.6, and in women – from 39.4.
To move from one fat indicator to another, you need to follow some rules.
Gain fat
- What to do: eat processed foods and other fast food, eat more food at a fast pace.
- Restrictions: move little, do not exercise, exclude vegetables and fruits, healthy foods, sleep less.
Reduce fat
- What to do: eat 2 servings of protein foods per day, 1-2 vegetable dishes, exercise sports exercises 3-5 times a week.
- Restrictions: Eat fewer processed carbohydrates and drink less high-calorie drinks.
It is not recommended to burn fat to a critical point, because the whole body will begin to suffer from this, and most of all the internal organs. It is recommended to lose weight in small steps, gradually approaching the cherished number on the scales. The body should not experience stress during the weight loss process, otherwise it may malfunction and it will be difficult to recover.
