Body Fat Percentage
How Important Is It To Weigh Yourself?
Using a scale is a good tool. But “I personally put more faith in body fat measurement”, says Jeanie Fabre, Weight Loss Director at Suddenly Slimmer Med Spa – a series of skin fold measurements to calculate body fat percentage – and circumference measurements, which can measure a change in size or inches.
When you step on the scale you are getting an accurate weigh in of your total person. Unfortunately this basic number doesn’t give you much insight into your actual measurement of health. Getting accurate body fat readings can reveal to you the percentage of fat that your body is comprised of, letting you know if your weight is indeed a healthy weight for you. Understanding how to interpret how water affects you body fat reading is an important step in getting a full picture of your well-being.
You body composition represents your physiological make-up in a ratio of your lean body mass to your fat body mass. Regardless of what the scale says if your fat body mass is too far in disproportion to you lean body mass you are in line for some serious health issues. Having too much fat can that heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes and other serious illness may be looming on the horizon.
Often by simply analyzing your weight you are subject to missing some of the implications that might be present in the larger view. Many people who believe themselves to be in good health are in fact not. Even if your weight is low or your dress size small you could potentially have an unknown, high fat body mass which makes you subject to having larger health issues. On the other side of this, there is the potential for some people to consider themselves overweight, when they may in fact see a large number on the scale while still remaining very lean and quite healthy. In short, the measurement of your weight isn’t everything.
Your body fat is pretty water dense. It is comprised of about 10% water. This means that your changing level of hydration can have a significant effect on the body fat reading that you get.
This is especially significant after completing a vigorous workout routine. If you measure your fat body mass after sweating profusely you will inevitably have a lower percentage of body fat. Your fat is typically going to be the same as it was before your workout, your body is just less some valuable water.
Having body fat reading performed will give you the best insight into your present state of health. Being in the know about how water can affect the results of these reading can give you a clear understanding of why this method of assessment works, and when to have it performed so that it can be most accurate. Knowing the composition of your body can help you structure your workout and diets according to your actual health needs.
