Accu-Measure calipers - test

Cord the Seeker

New member
I just got some of these in the mail today and couldn't wait to try them out.

I think it will take me a while to figure out how to get the spot just right, but I ran a few tests already to see what it says.

If I am doing it right, it says I have 33.1% body fat. It sounds low, but I have no idea whether it is or not. I just assume that since I look like a beached whale my body fat must be at like 75% or something. :)

So then I tried out their little calculation table to see what the device thinks my ideal body weight should be. I picked a body fat percentage of 15% to be my ideal goal. Never been there so I don't know what that would look like.

Anyway, I used their tables and got an ideal body weight of 225lbs to reach my goal of 15% body fat.

Hmmm, sounds high to me.

So I plugged in my avowed goal weight of 200, to see what that would give me. It said that at that weight I would have 4% body fat.

Hmm.

Conclusion - I'm not working the calipers right yet, and I'm getting a low body fat result at this time. Will run some more tests.

Yesterday I tried the body fat measuring thingy at the pharmacy, the one where you punch in your numbers and then grab the handgrips. It gave me 35% body fat.
Running with that number, my randomly-picked goal of 15% body fat would put me at a goal weight of 219, and says that at 200 I would have 7% body fat.

Does this all sound wacky to you? Or does this mean that my weight goal of 200 lbs is unrealistic, and I should shoot for a higher goal weight?
Is it possible that I have so much lean body mass under this fat that I would look good at 225? Sounds odd to me.

I will try the calipers many more times until I get a consistent result, and even then take it with a grain of salt and use the numbers mainly as a way to track progress, rather than as a definitive calculation. So as long as my measurement continues to go down, I'll be happy.
 
Hello Cord the Seeker,

Yes, the accu-measure caliper is an excellent tool for consistency. If you want a tip for improving your skills, mark two small points with a pen. It might look ridiculous, but it helps you get used to grab the same amount of skinfold during the first weeks.

Keep the momentum!
Rick
 
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Hey, Rick.

I'm actually finding the calipers difficult to get what I think is a good reading with. Hard to tell if I am measuring the right spot or not. How am I supposed to know what my suprailiac is anyway? :)

I did run a few more measurements today, and got 35% body fat, which is close to the reading I am getting form the impedance machine at the pharmacy (which is giving me 35-36%). So maybe I am finally on the right track. I don't know.

I'm thinking it might just be easier to use the impedance machine and run with it. Saves all the "am I doing this right?" guesswork.
 
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