A secret technology that in a matter of minutes allows you to determine how much fat is in your body and find a starting point for an effective solution to the problem. In this article, we will not talk about ways to lose weight, but pay attention to how to find out the percentage of fat. Few people who decide to lose weight think about why they are losing weight. If your waist size has decreased, this does not mean that you have gotten rid of fat. It is possible that fluids were simply removed from the body or, even worse, you lost muscle mass.
For this reason, you should know how to find out your body fat percentage. This parameter must be controlled and, based on the results obtained, appropriate measures must be taken.
Body composition
You know that the human body is made up of a large number of tissues. Scientists use various models to describe body composition, which we will now discuss in more detail.
Two-piece model
It is the sum of the fat and muscle mass of our body. In this case, the fat mass consists of the sum of all lipids contained in the body, and it can vary over a wide range of values. It is also customary to distinguish between essential and non-essential fats. The first group includes lipids that are part of the cellular structures of all tissues of the body. In turn, the second group consists of lipids contained only in adipose tissues.
Essential fats are of great importance for the normal functioning of the body and on average their content is equal to 2-5 percent of the total non-fat mass of the body. Note that the female body contains more essential fats than the male. Non-essential fat acts as a heat insulator for internal organs and its amount can increase with improper nutrition. It should also be said that the average person's body can contain from 10 to 30 percent of the fatty tissue of the total body weight.
Non-essential fat includes subcutaneous fat and visceral fat. If subcutaneous adipose tissue is more or less evenly distributed throughout the body, then visceral fat is concentrated mainly in the abdominal cavity. Scientists have shown that the increase in the risk of developing heart disease due to obesity is mainly associated not with subcutaneous fat, but with visceral fat.
Three-piece model
As you can see from the name of this model, it involves determining the body composition by three components: the amount of fat, the amount of water and dry weight. Other components can also be used, but this is not the main thing for us.
We will not now dwell in detail on the four- and five-component models. You just need to know that there are such.
Methods for determining the percentage of body fat
There are much more methods for determining the amount of fat mass in comparison with models for determining body composition. In addition, there is a huge number of formulas that are used in professional sports and they are absolutely not important to us.
If you want to know how to find out the percentage of fat, then you need to deal with only one method for determining this indicator - caliperometry. This is the simplest and most affordable method, although not the most accurate. However, we do not need high measurement accuracy. To use this method, there are special devices - calipers. They differ in their device and materials from which they are made. The most accurate are metal calipers.
To determine the percentage of fat using caliperometry, you need to measure the thickness of the folds of fat in different parts of the body. It should also be remembered that all measurements should be taken only on the right side of the body. To do this, you should take the caliper in your right hand and grab the fat fold with your left thumb and forefinger. After that, it is necessary to raise the fold to a height of one centimeter and take a measurement.
In this case, the caliper should be located perpendicular to the measured fold so that the instrument scale is at the top. Also, try to take the fold as quickly as possible, since holding it for a long time significantly affects the measurement accuracy. Several measurement schemes are used:
- By 2 folds - folds are measured on the back of the shoulder and the middle of the lower leg, also behind.
- On 3 folds - the back of the shoulder, the middle of the thigh in the back and the upper iliac surface.
- Along the 4 folds - the back and front surface of the shoulder, in the navel, the upper iliac and the middle of the thigh.
In addition, measurements can also be taken along seven or eight folds. After making measurements of the thickness of the fat folds, you will need to make some calculations. There are many formulas, but the most popular is the Matejka formula. It can be used to measure the percentage of body fat in people over the age of 16.
MZhT = D + S + K
MZhT is determined in kilograms, and the rest of the indicators mean the following:
- D - the average thickness of subcutaneous fat deposits, taking into account the thickness of the skin, is determined in millimeters.
- S - body surface area, measured in square meters.
- К - correction factor equal to 1.3.
To determine the value of parameter D in women, it is necessary to measure the thickness of fat folds in the abdomen, back, triceps, biceps, lower leg, thigh and forearm. Then add up all the values obtained and divide their sum by 14.
To determine the surface area of your body, use the following formula:
S = 71.84 x (body weight in kilograms) 0.425 + (body length in centimeters) 0.725
This method is the most accessible for people who want to know how to find out the percentage of fat.
How to know the progress in losing weight by determining the percentage of fat in your body? The answer to this question is in the following video:
