Body Mass Index-How Fat Are You?

Body Mass Index for measuring body fat and bioelectrical impedance are terms which are starting to come into the weight loss vocabulary. Using new technology is a significant improvement from the old diet charts in determining if you are overweight.

 Now there are products that measure your body’s actual fat composition. One, which is shown above, is called the Bioelectrical Impedance Method (BI).  In reality it is fat especially belly fat and excess fluids you want to lose;, not muscle or other tissues. Fat and muscle tissue have different levels of electrical conductivity. There are scales, such as the one shown above, that measure the amount of fat in your body by sending a tiny, perfectly safe electrical current through your body. You don’t feel a thing. Your percentage of body fat and fluid is calculated. Another product is FatTrack GOLD Digital Body Fat Caliper with FREE MyoTape(See all Body Fat Monitors). A caliper works a little differently but is apparently also quite accurate. We all need a certain amount of fat to be healthy. We also need lots of fluid in our bodies. These scales and hand held devises can determine how much extra fat your body is carrying.

For years, there have been charts that state, based upon height, gender and age, what a person should weigh. An adult woman with a small frame should, according to most charts, weigh between 95 and 100 pounds – depending upon the chart. Most of these figures were based upon national averages. Of course this did not take into account the weight of muscle, bone, or water. Suppose one of these women got really active in a sport or some other highly physical activity. Her muscle mass would increase which means her weight would increase. According to the charts, she could be considered overweight, when, in fact, she would be as healthy, and probably less fat, than some of the people whose weight was within the acceptable range.

Charts can still be used to give an approximation of a person’s amount of body fat by dividing his or her weight by the square of his or her height. No matter what the measuring tool, if your body mass is under 19, you are under weight, 19 to 25 is optimal, 25 to 30 overweight, 30 to 40 obese and over 40 morbidly obese.

Using your gender, age, weight and height, these products can give you more accurate and reliable information to help you set and reach your goals. This can be of immense help when your weight hits a plateau. In many cases you may be gaining muscle and losing fat. Extra muscle mass makes you more, not less, healthy.