How Do You Rate?

There are various methods that health and fitness professionals can use to track your weight loss (or gain) progress and determine whether or not you are at a healthy weight. These methods can be confusing and sometimes inaccurate. Here's some information on a few of them.

Body Mass Index (BMI): BMI is a measure of a person's weight scaled

according to height. It is calculated by weight divided by height
squared. BMI results will categorize a person as being underweight,
ideal, overweight, obese or extremely obese. This method may be
inaccurate because simply dividing weight by height does not take in
to account frame size or the amount of muscle mass a person may have.
It does not distinguish how much of the body is water, cartilage,
bone, fat and muscle.

Body fat: This test determines what percentage of a person's body is
comprised of fat. This can be a more accurate test that BMI in
determining whether or not a person has a healthy amount of fat on
their body. However, testing methods can sometimes be very
inaccurate. Some of the ways to test body fat include:

-Hydrostatic weighing. This test is said to be 100% accurate. During
this test a person is dunked underwater in a tank. Unfortunately,
this test is not available in many areas and is expensive to have
done.

-Caliper testing. Most personal trainers will do caliper tests on
their clients to track their progress. This is done by pinching the
fat away from the muscle with a small device called a caliper. This
test is quite accurate, especially when several areas of the body are
tested. However, there can be some variance in caliper tests
depending on how hard a trainer is pinching the skin and how much
water a person may be retaining.

-Bioelectrical impedance. This test is done by using a handheld
device and takes only seconds. It is simple enough to be done by
anyone. A safe electric signal is sent through the body and cannot be felt. Results are calculated by how the electrical signal travels through the body. Fat mass resists the flow of the electrical signal. Results of this test are often 1-3% higher than a person's
actually body fat, and can be even more inaccurate depending on food intake, recent exercise, time of day, the way the person is standing, hydration level, and so on. Results may fluctuate from day to day and can lead to frustration.

-Body fat scales. Some scales include a mechanism that tests body
fat and are very popular due to convenience. Scales also use a bioelectrical impedance method, therefore can also be inaccurate.

Body weight: Most people who are trying to lose weigh themselves frequently. Over time tracking body weight is a reliable method. There are a few things to keep in mind about scales. If a person strength trains (lifting weights, performing body weight exercises, using resistance bands) lean muscle mass can be built, which can cause in increase in overall body weight, even if the person is simultaneously losing fat. Also, everyone's weight fluctuates on a daily basis. It's normal for a person's weight to fluctuate by a couple pounds from day to day. For this reason weighing yourself too often can lead to frustration. It may be best for a person who is trying to lose weight to weigh themselves only every 2 weeks, so noticeable progress can be seen.

If you're trying to lose weight pay attention to how your clothes fit. When you're clothes don't feel so snug anymore you know you've made progress. Look for subtle changes in the mirror. And believe those compliments you get. Those around you may see changes that your eyes don't see.

Learn more about this author, Sarah Brown.
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