Explanation As To What Body Fat Percentage Is

In simple terms body fat percentage is the percentage of fat contained within your body. So if you are 150lbs and you have 10% of fat this means that your body consists of 15lbs of fat. The other 135lbs is your lean body mass which is made from bone, muscle, organ tissue, blood and everything else in the human body. What is important to remember is that a certain amount of fat is essential for the body to function correctly. It helps to regulate the bodies temperature, cushions and insulates our organs and tissues as well as being the main form of the body's energy storage.

The body fat percentage is an estimate of a fraction of the total body mass that is adipose (insulating) tissue as opposed to lean body mass (or may be referred to as fat free mass). This index helps to monitor a person's progress during a diet or as a measurement of physical fitness in relation to certain sports (i.e., body building). This is also a more accurate way to measure a person's excess body weight rather than body mass index (BMI) as it differentiates between the weight of muscle mass and that of fat mass. Whilst using the BMI method lumps all of these masses into one figure. But there are specific skills which are required in order to perform the measurement correctly. But even those who are skillful enough will find factors which will contribute to a significant margin of error where there measurements are concerned.

But what does total body fat percentage consist of?

It consists of essential fat and storage fat. Essential fat is the amount that is necessary for the body for the maintenance of life and reproductive functions. This percentage of fat is greater in women than it is in men because of the demands putting on their bodies due to child bearing and other hormonal functions. The essential fat in a man should be between 2-5% whilst in a woman it should be between 10-13%. Where as storage fat is an accumulation of fat in the adipose tissue which helps to protect the internal organs in a person's chest and abdomen. Again women will have slightly more of this then men.

In order to calculate a person's body fat percentage the following measurements should be taken. It is important that you try to be as accurate as possible usually allow a margin of error of between 0.25(0.5cm).
1. Abdomen - This is for men only - Measure around the abdomen horizontally that is level with the navel (belly button).
2. Waist - This measurement only for the women - Again horizontally at the level of minimal abdominal width.
3. Hips - Again this measurement only to be used on women - Measure around the largest horizontal circumference of the hips.
4. Neck - Both men and women - Inferior to the larynx with the tape measure sloping slightly downwards towards the front.
5. Height - Again both men and women to be measured. Do not forget to take your shoes off before doing this measurement.


So before deciding that you need to lose weight it is vital that you consider your body fat percentage. You may find that in fact you do not need to lose any weight all you need to do is tone up your muscles instead.

Besides being a naturopathic physican, Dr. Kang-pang Chan is a personal trainer certified by the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA).

To learn more about Body fat, please visit:

http://www.home-cure.com/healthandfitness/

Exercise Away Body Fat

Everyone wants to get in shape and have an attractive figure – men and women. But not everyone knows just how to accomplish this. We know that we need to move more and eat less, but is there a simple program that can show us how to do just that? Is there a way to exercise away fat?

What you put in your mouth

Before you even start an exercise plan, you need to evaluate what you are eating that might be adding to unwanted fat and pounds. All of the exercise in the world is not going to help you become slimmer unless you start reducing the amount of fat that you are consuming. Try to incorporate more fruits and vegetables in your diet to start lessening fat. Remove butter and oils from your cooking and start finding alternative ways of cooking – baking, broiling, steaming. Try to look at each meal as an opportunity to have one food from each food group – lean choices only – and you will be well on your way.

How regular exercise can help burn away fat

You don’t need to be a long distance runner or an Olympic swimmer to exercise away your fat. Fat is stored energy in your body that you consumed, but did not use. In order to use it up, you need to burn calories. Part of this equation is reducing your dietary consumption, but the other part is to exercise on a regular basis. This will help you to burn calories as well as create a fast burning metabolism that will be burning calories even when you’re sitting on the couch.

What you need to do is commit to at least five days of aerobic exercise each week. This is exercise that gets both your heart and your lungs pumping. You want to be breaking a sweat when you’re doing your favorite exercise and have a slight difficulty finishing sentences. This form of exercise burns the most fat and will aid in your overall weight loss goals. Examples of aerobic fat burning exercise are running, walking, dancing, aerobic classes, swimming, hiking, biking, etc.

Intervals

You will also want to try to increase the intensity of some of your workouts each week. By doing intervals of harder exercise then rest times, you will cause your body to burn even more calories in the same amount of time. If you’re walking, you would warm up at a normal pace for five minutes, and then walk as fast as you can for thirty seconds to a minute, then you would slow down for a few minutes until your breath and heart are slowed down. Repeat these intervals throughout a long workout and you’ll be fat burning the whole time.

Add some weight

Next, you will want to include some sort of strength training program. This allows your body to build muscle which burns more calories than your fat does, which then starts to burn away the fat as well. Try to strength train two to three times a week with rest days in between increasing your weights as you become stronger.

By Gareth Barrow

What Is A Body Fat Calculator?

People don’t usually know that there is actually more to how much you weigh on a scale.

Many consider the scale as the best tool to measure the amount of weight gained or lost. But being overweight and “over fat” is definitely not the same. Being “overweight” usually refers to the excess of total body weight as compared to your height and body frame. Being “over fat” however, is completely different and is defined as the excess of body fat, regardless of the person’s weight.

Did you know that “skinny” people can still have a high percentage of body fat?

So, what is a body fat calculator, and just how do you use it?

Your body fat percentage is an average of the total percentage of fat your body carries.

For instance, if your total body weight is 200 pounds, and you have 20 pounds of fat, your body fat percentage would be about 10 percent.

There are plenty of methods you can use to measure your body fat. Some of them would include the use of skin fold calipers, and home body fat scales. Skin fold calipers are devices that look like giant tweezers and are used to hold on to your skin at different specific points on your body. They are designed to measure the thickness of your skin folds at these strategic points. After you write down the measurements you can use a standard chart that is usually provided when you buy the skin fold calipers to find out what percentage of body fat you have.

Home body fat scales are able to measure your body fat percentage quickly. These scales operate by passing a low level current through the body and the impedance is measured. These are not always very accurate, so always use them with caution.
And of course, there is also the body fat calculator. Definitely handy for those math whizzes out there!

You can use this “sleek” method:

For Women:

%BF = 495/(1.29579-0.35004(log(waist+hip-neck))+0.22100(log(height)))-450

For Men:

%BF = 495/(1.0324-0.19077(log(waist-neck))+0.15456(log(height)))-450

Otherwise, you can use the Body Mass Index (BMI) to estimate whether you fall into a healthy range.

Here is a mathematical way to calculate your BMI:

Write down how much you weigh (in pounds). Then, simply multiply your weight by 703.

Then, write down your height (in inches) and multiply by 703. Next, divide your weight number by your height number. That will be your BMI.

Based on your final product you measured, you now have your BMI.

It is estimated that for both men and women, a healthy BMI range should be from 18.6-24.8.

This is just one method that will give you a rough idea of where you are.

BMI is not the best indicator of overall health, and it does not give you your body fat percentage. In fact a lot of professional bodybuilders with very low percentages of fat still rank high on the BMI just because their muscle weighs so much.

Also keep in mind, there is no such thing as a perfect body fact percentage. Your gender and age affect the body fat percentage greatly.

Some people might do well with a lower body fat percentage, while others may do better at slightly higher percentages.

It is highly advised to give your doctor a visit to best find what the ideal body fat percentage is best for you.

By Sean Bissell

What Is Body Fat?

Body fat is the percentage of your body that is not bone, water, muscles or organs. Therefore, your body fat is simply the percentage of fat your body contains. There are two types of body fat, essential body fat and storage fat.

Storage fat collects primarily under the skin and is called subcutaneous fat. Most storage fat finds it way around the waist, hips, thighs and buttocks.

The location of fat storage is also dependent on gender. The hormones testosterone and estrogen also determine where fat is deposited in the body.

Why do we need body fat?

Body fat in itself is not dangerous, and we all need some amount of fat to be healthy. Fat is needed for the following functions:

· Cushions and protects our internal organs

· Helps in the absorption of some vitamins, such as Vitamin A, Vitamin D and Vitamin E

· Helps promote normal growth and development

· Necessary for the proper functioning of the female reproductive system

· Provides energy for us to function

· Provides some amount of body heat

The American Council on Exercise outlines the percentage of body fat needed for health and at what level body fat becomes an obesity issue. The list shows how much fat males need as against females. For instance, a female essential body fat ratio is between ten to twelve percent, males are a low two to four percent. Acceptable levels of body fat for males and females are eighteen to twenty-five percent and twenty-five to thirty-one, respectively. This however, also depends on age as older females may need a little more body fat than younger ones.

An essential fat refers to the fat found in our bone marrow, organs and muscles. As the name indicates this type of fat is necessary to ensure the proper functioning of the body. Females need more because some body parts are made up of fat, like the breasts, hips and thighs.

Storage fat provides energy and is kept by the body as a reserve. This type of body fat is the fat that can and does lead to obesity.

Why do some people have more than others?

Some people are genetically predisposed to having a higher percentage of body fat than others. No amount of dieting and exercise will change that; however, eating properly and exercising will improve your health even if you never become as lean as you wish.

For most of us however, the percentage body fat we have is directly related to how much fat, sugars and carbohydrates we eat and our activity level. Sedentary people who consume a lot of fats and sweets will generally have a higher percentage of body fat than someone of the same age and gender that eats right and exercises.

To help keep your body fat in the percentage range for your height, age and gender you need to have a sensible diet and be active. The secret is to keep a balance between the amount of calories you consume and the amount you burn from daily activities and exercise.

By Gareth Barrow