Body fat questions...

[CatBerge]

Runnergirl...I've been off the radar for a while... But I think that there are exceptions to the rule about being light and a climber. I am pretty heavy for being 5ft5 inc. I weigh between 126-132 depending on the year. I am one of the fastest women climbers in ultradistance events. I have the Course record for the Everest Challenge, 29,000 ft of climbing in 220 miles and usually ride with the fastest men in ultra-events with a lot of climbing.
I would guess my body fat is around 14%. I don't really keep track of any of that.... but those are the estimates a personal trainer gave to me, and was measured by my sports doctor at one time.
According to charts in some bicycling magazines... they say that I should be a sprinter.... well those charts obviously are just generalizations and do not apply to us all.
Cheers,
Cat.

[KSH]

re: body fat scales - most are not that accurate. Their value lies in their being consistently inaccurate. So, they are good as a tracking tool, but you shouldn't necessarily take them too seriously.

That's the truth. I spent extra money buying one that measured body fat... and it said I was at 23%, which might be correct? Not sure. At my leanest, I was at 18%... and I have gained some fat... so I am sure it has gone up.

Then, I stepped on the scale another day... I had gained 1 pound... and it said I was at 25% body fat. Yea. Right.

I returned that scale and spent less money on one that just tells me how much I weigh.

[madisongrrl]

Are these body fat scales usually higher or lower than your actual body fat reading? I've heard mixed information...

[natheless]

KSH - You get the best result with the BF scales by averaging readings taken over several days - you can fluctuate quite a bit based on time of day, hydration level, etc. I like my BF scale, despite its flaws, because I have been trying to get away from putting too much stock in just the number on the scale, which tells you so little about your body composition.

It depends on your needs - sometimes, it seems far easier to just go by the way your pants fit!


Madisongrrl - From what I saw when I was researching them, they usually overestimate BF, at least for women (this is because they really only test the lower half of the body, and that's where most women tend to store the most fat.) So, your BF would generally be 5-7% lower than your scale reading.

[btchance]

I have a question in the opposite direction, how do you know you are too low on body fat, and what is an approximate number?

I ask this because 6mo ago I was measured by the nutrition doctors at the university at 17%, while their recommended bottom number was 21, although they didn't think 17 would be a problem. I have since started exercising a lot more, and have dropped down a couple of sizes without losing any weight or eating differently. Now I have started to have irregular periods, which the doctors attribute to stress, but I don't know about that as I have been similar stress levels for years, and this actually started during a break from most of the stress. This is worrisome to me because I already have pretty small bones. When I broke my arm in multiple places when I was 20, they actually did a bone density scan because the density looked pretty light on x-ray, and when they operated, the surgeon said my bones were the size of an 11yo, so this is definately something I'm worried about.

[Grog]

I heard about 12% being a serious health treshold, but I haven't researched this. I'm kind of worried too. Let me know what information you find... and what we should do about it.

[btchance]

I heard about 12% being a serious health treshold, but I haven't researched this. I'm kind of worried too. Let me know what information you find... and what we should do about it.

Okay, as far as what I have found out is that it varies for everyone. Women have 10-12% essential body fat (breasts, hips, reproductive) and you should definately not go below that. Women who aren't athletes are recommended to be in the 21-33% range. Trained athletes often fall in between the two.

When problems arise as far as losing bone mass, period irregularities, etc, is different for each person (different set points). Losing body fat at a fast rate usually causes problems at a higher body fat percentage, but if you lose at a slower weight you can usually go down to a lower set point. Basically, puting your body under too much stress (emotional of physical) can create problems. There's no clear cut answer.

Some doctors recommend putting women who start having menstrual irregularities on the pill as it has been suggested to counteract some of the problems. However, you don't know if they get really low and would stop having them all toghether, so this is a little contorversial. They also recommend exercising less, eating healthy (ie not restricting your diet at all) for 6 months to correct the problem.

If anybody has any other info, let me know as there are still alot of holes in this.

[btchance]

Really ? Why is that ? Women who aren't athletes can still have a lower body fat percentage just by following a good diet program.

I'm not really sure, that's just what I found from numerous sources, and it seems to be the universal values. I don't think that it's a problem to be a little lower than that, it's just not required to be healthy, especially if you're trying to get pregnant. Not completely sure though.

[Adventure Girl]

The only method to get an absolutely accurate measurement of body fat percentage is...
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an autopsy.

[CorsairMac]

ooooo - do I need to schedule that with my doctor?

(ok - I'm sick and my world is happy)

[Helen]

ooooo - do I need to schedule that with my doctor?

(ok - I'm sick and my world is happy)

You better nooooot
Anyway ... what do you think of those body fat measuring scales ?

[Yasmin]

I have a question in the opposite direction, how do you know you are too low on body fat, and what is an approximate number?

I ask this because 6mo ago I was measured by the nutrition doctors at the university at 17%, while their recommended bottom number was 21, although they didn't think 17 would be a problem. I have since started exercising a lot more, and have dropped down a couple of sizes without losing any weight or eating differently. Now I have started to have irregular periods, which the doctors attribute to stress, but I don't know about that as I have been similar stress levels for years, and this actually started during a break from most of the stress. This is worrisome to me because I already have pretty small bones. When I broke my arm in multiple places when I was 20, they actually did a bone density scan because the density looked pretty light on x-ray, and when they operated, the surgeon said my bones were the size of an 11yo, so this is definately something I'm worried about.

When you start missing periods & are nowhere near menopause you can assume your body fat is getting too low. I know because I struggle with this problem myself. Eat, my dear, eat. Your body is putting on muscle & replacing the fat. Even though the scales read the same it sounds like this is what's going on. Muscle will have you burn up more energy...good if you want to lose weight, bad if you're trying to maintain. Don't be afraid of the food, your body is telling you it needs it.An example for you: last week I cycled 525km because I'm in training for a major 200km hill ride event in Jan 06. I wear a heart-rate monitor which tells me how much energy I burn up. For me to maintain at 50kg (112lbs) I require about 4,000kcals/day. This is double the average. If I fall below 50kg I lose energy & my periods mess up.
If you're at risk of osteoporosis (thin bones) the last thing you want your body thinking is that you're starving it because it will take calcium & minerals from your bones. Vicious circle.
Good luck!
Yasmin.

[Helen]

A few years ago .. I tried to lose some weight by not eating enough and starving myself every day.

I am sure you didn't quite starve yourself every day.
But if you really did that, then its quite amazing you only escaped with a low level of calcium and not other dangerous results.

[btchance]

A few years ago .. I tried to lose some weight by not eating enough and starving myself every day. The result was in a rapid drop of calcium which I am still trying to get it up to the normal levels. Eat as much as you need or you'll end up in a vicious circle (as Yasmin said) that will take you nowhere.

That's what's confusing to me right now. Whenever I'm hungry, I eat, so I'm not depriving myself, and I'm taking calcium and iron supplements (low iron levels can also cause irregular periods.) I think I need to write down what I eat everyday for a week to get an idea of how much I'm actually eating and go from there.