Body Fat and Weight Loss - Are they Accurate?

     How many times a week do you listen to the nightly news update with information of how fat America has turned out to be ? Nearly 30% of Americans are fat, i.e., more than 30 pounds over their best body weight, and projections are that obesity could top 40% of the population in 10 years if the current trend continues. Unfortunately a great number of individuals don’t worry about their weight or how much fat they have put on their bodies. On the flip side, there are a great deal of us who do care and this commentary is for you - how do you calculate and contain your weight and body fat?

The first measurement is simple - step on a scale and viol?you have your overall weight. It doesn’t get any simpler than that. Taking a measurement of your whole body fat, clearly that’s a little trickier. To begin with you have calipers (consider a pair of pliers) , which requires measuring skin folds from various parts of the body. You principally measure the thickness of the skin to establish how much fat is present in a bit of skin. This method is accurate, but clumsy, requiring somebody else to assist with the actual measurements. Let’s face it, it’s not something you just get out of bed and do each morning. Another process is hydrostatic testing requiring specialized high-priced apparatus to evaluate a person dry then another time while underwater - extraordinarily precise. Once more, it is not something a regular human being has at their fingertips. The gold standard for taking a measurement of body fat is a DEXA scan (low radiation full body scan) which is exceptionally precise but yet again the specialized apparatus and related expenses are incredibly high for the average individual who just wants to get a control on his day by day life. Don't forlorn for there is an instrument on the market today that, basically for the price of a bathroom scale, will give you an outcome that permits you to follow not just your weight, but also your body fat percentage.

They are called Body Fat Monitors, also known as bioelectrical impedance analysis meters -BIA for short. The meters come in two styles; one looks like a normal bathroom scale, the other a hand held device about the size of a small plate with two handles. Both devices have two metal terminals. When a someone makes connection with both terminals, either by holding the handles with their hands or stepping barefooted onto a scale, a minuscule electrical pulse ( which certainly cannot be felt), runs from one side of the device through the body to the opposite terminal. The monitors need a very uncomplicated one time setup - an individual must record his gender, age, and height . With this information, the device calculates your weight (if you are using a bathroom scale apparatus) and body fat percentage. There are some complicated apparatus that will also evaluate proportion of water in the body, proportion of muscle mass, and percentage of visceral fat (fat around your internal organs). Some machines even have an athletic mode for those who have extremely low body fat. As technical as these machines are they can be purchased for as modest as $30.00 for a hand held (some say not as accurate) to about $60.00 for a bathroom scale type apparatus.

Sounds great so far but now is the caveat. The accuracy of these BIA devices is absolutely reliant on the consumer. Some people who use them say, “I get a different estimate each time I step on the scale.” All right, that may be correct but that doesn't make them imprecise any more than saying my gas gage reads a different way each occasion I get into my vehicle. If you would like to get consistent results you have to be constant in using the device. Now here are a few ideas that will help out:

* Each time take your measurement at the same instance every day -if at all possible 2-3 hours after
eating.
* Stay hydrated.
* Do not get a measurement firstly in the morning when your body is short on water.
* Make certain to clean your feet or hands. Bear in mind the machine is taking a measurement by an
electrical signal and unclean feet or hands will produce added resistance consequently causing
inaccuracies in the outcome.
* Keep away from coffee or coke, anything with caffeine and alcohol prior to measurements.
* Vacate your bladder.
* In no way acquire a measurement following exercising (you will be too warm and your skin too
moist).

These steps will guarantee that you at all times get the most precise and exact measurement from your monitor - your correctness is absolutely dependent on your capacity to be constant.
Now at this juncture I will give my advice as regards to these testers - take each individual measurement with a “ grain of salt. “Say what did you say? ?” “I believe a moment ago you said that BIA’s were technologically correct?” Well, they are to the point that the machine is taking a measurement of your body conditions at that moment in time - a picture in your existence. Consider this - your body is not an inactive organism. The amount of water you hold in your system, the quantity of food and other things that affect precision is in no way ever precisely the same . The measurement will be truly accurate to what your body has for fat at that specific moment, especially if you adhere to the procedure above, but scarcely will it ever be identical from one analysis to another - even 3 or 4 hours away from each other. Here’s your game plan. Build a record document of your readings and than average each week’s results. Mathematically, an average of anything is always more exact than a one time reading. Now review those weekly averages and evaluate the results from week to week. You will now have an precise representation of your body fat percentage and where you’re headed over time.

I would greatly endorse a body fat monitor for anyone who wishes to lose weight (fat weight), who desires to become on top form, or merely desires to sustain an already healthy lifestyle. They are low-priced, they provide a starting point for your goals, and they furnish good encouragement to keep you on mark. But do not, I reiterate do not be preoccupied by the readings. Just keep in mind that what you see after taking a measurement is a instant in time. The accurateness comes from you and what you realize on top of several weeks and months. The body fat monitor is a clever computer, but like any computer, it can merely return to you what you place into it. Work out and dine nourishingly - the monitor is only a device to achieve your goals in life.

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