How to take your present body fat percentage

Body fat percentage can be measured in several ways.

What is body fat percentage?

Everyone has fat in their body, some people are in the healthy range and some people have excess fat.  Fat helps in the absorption of vitamins that your body needs daily.  These vitamins include A, D, E, and K.  Let me show you how you can measure your body fat.  Read my blog on determining what the healthy ranges are for women.

How to take your present body fat percentage

There are many ways to check your body fat percentage. One way is to use a fat caliper, another is hydrostatic fat testing, CT scans, MRI scans, Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA), and more. You can also use a tape measurement to do a hip-to-weight ratio equation to find your body fat percentage.

The most popular and accurate for you will be the body fat caliper measurement tool. This will give you a more consistent number because when you are doing skinfold measurement you will pinch the same spot each time you measure.

There are different points where you will take your body fat measurements. The most popular skinfold measurement is the “four points” which measures the bicep, tricep, sub capillaries, and the iliac crest. This measurement has to be done by someone else for you.

The other form of skinfold measurement that people are doing now is a self caliper where you only measure the iliac crest. Based on the millimeter number, it will tell you how much fat you have in your body.

Side Note

The skinfold caliper or self-body caliper will give you different measurements but will give you a range for you to follow. To get a true body fat percentage you will have to go through a CT scan or MRI. As long as you use the same method each time, you can go by that body fat percentage to track your progress.

Thanks for reading!