body fat %

P

Persophone

0
Can anyone tell me what my bf% "should" be? I am frustrated because if I do a Yahoo search for that info every chart I look at is different... I had mine tested today at a gym (with calipers) and even though he told me that it was "normal" and "good" I'm not happy with the number but I suppose I should base my feelings on something other than what I had hoped it would be... I'm a 32 year old female

Thanks,

Rachel
 
Well... there isn't really a "should" be answer.

Professional body builders run in the 3 to 5% range on competition day. Most professional runners and bikers are 5% or a bit more.

Being female, you will naturally have a bit higher than a man in the same shape, but I am not about to tell you what you should be at. Let me instead tell you what my goals are. I started at 270 and 39% BF in February of this year. I am now at 213 and 22% BF. My goal is 180 to 200 and 10 to 15% BF. I am right on track for that by the end of the year and I think that would be a normal and healty weight/body compesition for me to be at 6'3".

What is your bf% and what were you hoping it would be? Do you not like the way you look or is it just some artificial number that is making you upset? If you don't like the way you look, then bf% can be a tool to help you get where you want to go. If just the number is ticking you off and you look great (this is probably the case), then forget the number and have fun!
 
thanks Kalrog,

Congratulations on your awesome progress :)

I'm 5'3" and 114# and my bf was 23%.

I'm not a body-builder and actually do very little lifting (does yardwork count? lol) I do alot of cardio (4-5 days a week) and watch what I eat... I am thinking about having it done again this Sunday (a local health fair is offering it) that way I can get an idea how accurate the reading was (if they are close or not...)

I have been told that I focus way too much on my weight (the number) and this was a more accurate measure..but now it seems as if I have a whole new number to obsess about :(

Anyhow, thanks for your reply

Rachel
 
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Thanks!

23% isn't really that bad, but using 20% as a magic number isn't a bad thing either. Have a second reading taken and if you want to lose some fat then I would suggest that you try some resistance training. Another idea would be to change up your cardio a little and try some HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). That has a reputation for really burning fat.

So try this. Insead of jogging for 30 minutes, go jog 5 or 10 minutes as a warm up. Then sprint for 15 seconds as hard as you can so that at the end of 15 seconds you just can't sprint anymore. Then walk/jog for 45 seconds. Repeat as many times as you can (ideally 10 or more). Then do a 5 minute jog as a cool down. Make sure you pay extra attention to your stretching and warm up/cool down when doing HIIT as you will feel it much more if you don't.

Good luck, but you didn't answer my question about the number being the important thing or the way you look...
 
I just noticed your post over on the "women's health" section...

This answers that question from your first post that I had. I wouldn't worry about your bf% at all with what it is and based on your past. What you are at now is soo much better than before. Stop the obsession with a number - I am sure you look great!
 
I agree with Kalrog. Too often as women we are fixated on the number instead of our health and well-being. Why do we fixate a number to our self-worth??? How do you feel? Do you have more energy? Are you able to get through your day without becoming tired? Women generally want to be between 18-25%. So, you are well within the acceptable range! That's pretty darn good for a 32 year old female if you ask me!!! You definitely need to do some strength training. I guanantee you will see a big difference, as far as toning and tightening you body up. Good luck to you and try not to associate that number with your self-worth and well-being. :)
 
Thanks "guys" :)

Part of me knows that that number is "ok" and that I should go by how I look and feel and also consider my age, etc.. and yes, I do have more energy now... but..

there is a part of me who is a perfectionist and doesn't like being "average" at anything really...including my bf%...yet, I know that in order to lower it it would probably require eating more (I still don't really eat as much as I should...) and working out differently neither of which I am really willing to do so I think I am going to have to find a way to accept it.

thanks again

Rachel
 
me again

Kalrog, (and anyone else)

I started doing HIIT (I did Thursday and Friday) It was a much harder workout than I am used to but I think that's what I needed (I think I needed to change things up a bit and my body was very used to my old routine) Anyhow, I did the walk/sprint thing at a (paved) trail near my home...It's the same trail I usually walk on but now that I have added the running my left hip and right shin (I think? the front of my calve..) are really sore..so I'm not sure if it is a matter of not warming up well enough or maybe improper sneaks? hmm... :(
I am also concentrating on upping my protein intake and cutting my carbs (not eliminating them) I already don't eat any "junk" food and I eat lots of veggies. One thing I don't do is drink nearly enough water (I am very addicted to coffee and diet coke...) I am going to work on that though... Here is my new eating plan:

Bkfst - 7AM
300 cals

Lunch - 11AM (ish)
300 cals

Snack - 3PM
200 cals

Dinner - 7PM
400 cals

Snack
200 cals

I feel like I should eliminate that after dinner snack and just add a few more cals to other meals during the day but it's really hard for me not to eat anything after dinner..I think it's an emotional thing :confused:

So I think I am going to have my bf% checked again this Sunday at a different place... part of me thinks I should jsut let it be and move on but I also feel a strong need to know how accurate the first test was.. why? good question :rolleyes:

Thanks for any advice/input,

Rachel
Ps.. Oh and Prometheus I know what you are going to say! ;)
 
Well, you know about the water so I won't harp on that. I will say that I like my coffee and cokes as well - but I got myself a "Britta" Pitcher and it just sits next to me all day long. Without even trying I go through about a gallon a day and I still get my caffine fix just fine.

About the HIIT workout. Glad it was tough. Your body does need to be shaken up a bit from time to time (about time for my next workout change - weights). I hope the muscle soreness was just a new thing, but your diagnosis sure could be spot on. Check out the shoes, those can make a HUGE difference. I even spent the extra $$ one time to go to a specialty shoe store (Run Tex in Austin) and it was SOOO worth it. Now that I know what to look for, I can go back to shopping at the cheaper stores, but if I can't find it there I won't hesitate to spend the money at a specialty store because of the huge difference it can make. The soreness could also be lack of water...

Diet wise. I wouldn't cut out any of that. Maybe add to it a bit in fact (but slowly). And keep that snace after dinner. When do you work out? Because if it is something a bit away from a mean, you might want to think about adding a snack 30 minutes before your workout (like a PowerBar or something similar). Not only will this give you more calories during the day, but it will make sure you have the energy to REALLY get a good workout.
 
Kalrog,
thanks for your reply/advice. I workout first thing in the AM usually between 6-7AM I do usually eat a lowfat yogurt with some dry cereal mixed in about 30 mins prior then I eat "lunch" early..around 11 or 11:30

My shin is still hurting me but I haven't been resting it either..I haven't been able to :(

Thanks,
Rachel
 
I agree with Kalrog about the snack. Personally, however, I would avoid any carbs for your late-night-snack cause they are useless at that time of the night and will just turn into fat - think protein.

Oh, and sorry to hear about your shin ...
 
thanks for your input :) I'm not sure what you mean about "agreeing" about the snack though.. do you mean not dropping the late night one? or eating before I workout? (because I do eat before I workout...)

Anyhow..I know you are right about the carbs at night that is part of what is making me fat :(

thanks,
Rachel
 
"that is part of what is making me fat"

OK. You gotta stop that! We have already established that you are in pretty good shape and are NOT fat. With that out of the way... you can always get into better shape.
 
I agree with many of the others in this post.........BF% along with alot of the other measurements are really only good for 1 thing.......a starting point, and after that of course a goal point....but even at that, the numbers can often be deceiving, its all about how you look to yourself.

When i do an initial meeting for my clients, I try not to use numbers or fat %.....instead for example i use a piece string and wrap it around their waist, marking off a starting point, then every month we compare where they are at vs. that point.......I found this less demeaning than a # or a %.
 
That's a very good point, but a little flaw in that is your health. Someone can lose 3 inches on their waist just by not eating ... BF%, I think, is a really good measurement for the over-all health of your body. You can have a 24" waist, but still have 30% BF ... not healthy, in my opinion.
 
I think a good mix of both are correct! I think if people are serious about losing weight, more importantly living a healthy lifestyle, we need to use a wide range of measurements (i.e. girth, b.f., VO2, waist/hip ratio, BMI). By looking at all the measurements, I think you can get a much better guage of progress across a broad spectrum.
 
i agree with you as well, i meant using a string or something like that when the person is obviously in need of weight loss, once the initial weight is lost, BF% would become an issue, but alot of my clients are really just looking to get to respectable levels, and rarely get down to that "red zone"......but if they did, I totally agree with you, I have a few females competing, and they do need the BF% taken regularly.
 
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