body fat

Body fat percentage is basically an approximation of the faction of the entire body mass that contains adipose tissue or body fat mass instead of lean body mass such as blood, organ tissue, bone, muscle and many more. Lean body mass is also known as fat free mass. Its tracking represents the measure of individual’s physical fitness in sports especially body building.

The total body fat composition provides more reliable information in measuring the excess body weight of an individual as compared to Body Mass Index (known as BMI). This is due to the fact that body fat percentage creates the distinction between the body fat mass and the weight mass. On the other hand, BMI basically integrates all masses and produces a single figure. Despite the accuracy of measurement of fat content, it’s not widely applied as BMI. Measurement of body fat content requires complex equipment which may not be readily available. In addition there is a wide margin of error even if a qualified person undertakes the process.

The total body composition contains both stored fat and fat that is essential to the metabolism. Essential fat is indispensable in maintaining reproductive functions of the body as well as maintaining life. It is much greater in women than men due extra demands met by their bodies such as childbearing and other similar hormonal functions. Most medical experts recommend that it’s safe to have essential fat of between 10-13 percent in women and 2-5 percent in men. However, the least recommended total body fat composition is more than the essential fat composition. Storage fat is the accumulation of fat in adipose tissue. Adipose tissue plays a significant role in protecting the internal organ in the abdomen and chest and it’s slightly higher in women than men.

The two common methods used in measuring body fat are height circumference method and skin fold method. In the skin fold method, the tester is used to measure a pinch of body skin with calipers at many standardized sections of the body. This enables determination of the subcutaneous fat thickness. The tester converts the measurements to a given percentage using an equation. With regards to the formula used, the tester may take as many as seven measurements or as less as three.

The accuracy of the estimates is based more upon the unique body fat distribution of the tested person rather than the number of sites measured by the tester. The person carrying the measurement process must ensure that he maintains a constant pressure in certain specific parts of the body. Although skin fold method might not produce accurate reading, it’s quite reliable since measure of body-composition varies with time.

Height and circumference method employs a formula that takes into account the girth and weight measurements of an individual. It employs different variations of measurements. It’s the preferred method since it’s both convenient and cheap. However, it may sometime generate inaccurate results when the subject holds in the stomach or flares out the neck to enlarge the areas.