If you are using calipers to measure body fat percentage you should be aware of 4 factors that may affect the accuracy of the results. If you measure your fat mass after sweating profusely you will inevitably have a lower percentage of body fat.
The Importance Of Tracking Body Composition In Athletes
Factors affecting body fat measurement. Your level of body fat is mostly tied to your level of activity and nutrition habits. However if we persist. Factors that affect body fat. That means that your changing level of hydration can have a significant effect on the body fat reading that you get. However their convenience comes at a cost. This is especially significant after completing a vigorous workout routine.
Some racial and ethnic minority groups are more likely to have obesity. Eating high fat foods or consuming too many calories of any food will lead to additional storage of fat in your body. The results are heavily influenced by how accurately skinfold sites are located. Your genes may affect the amount of fat you store in your body and where on your body you carry the extra fat. Dehydration is a recognized factor affecting bia measurements as it causes an increase in the bodys electrical resistance so has been measured to cause a 5 kg underestimation of fat free mass ie. Body fat measurements are lower when measurements are taken shortly after consumption of a meal causing a variation.
Ill mention these but i wont go in depth on them for this article. Combined with your entered height weight age and gender the scale then uses an equation to provide your body fat percentage. Ive already discussed the two biggest factors determining body fat distribution patterns. We are more likely to lose lean body mass and increase fat once we pass the age of 30. Your chances of being overweight are greater if one or both of your parents are overweight or have obesity. Exercising within a few hours of measuring.
Sweating taking baths and the amount of water you drink within a few hours of measuring your body fat are factors that affect your reading for the day. An overestimation of body fat. However there are other notable factors that affect fat patterning. You cant change the genes you are born with some folks are simply built to accumulate more or less fat. Skinfold measurements have been used to estimate body fat for over 50 years skinfold calipers measure the thickness of your subcutaneous fat the fat underneath the skin at certain body. If you have a larger trunk.
The bestselling body fat scales on amazon range in price from. Other factors affecting body fat distribution pattern.