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The Best Way to Measure Body Fat Percentage

Body fat percentage is an important calculation in measuring your overall fitness. Recommended body fat percentage can vary by gender, age and fitness level (professional athletes have extremely low body fat percentages). Body fat percentage measures body fat vs. overall weight to determine the percentage. There are many ways to measure body fat.

  1. Best and Most Accurate

    • While it is not a conveniently accessible method, hydrostatic weighing is the most accurate and best way to measure body fat percentage. Hydrostatic weighing involves the use of expensive equipment, and is mostly only available in research facilities, though some health and fitness clubs, and even some dieting organizations, offer it as well.

    What is Hydrostatic Weighing?

    • Hydrostatic weighing requires the subject be weighed while completely submerged under water. The process takes about 20 to 30 minutes overall. During the process, the subject sits in a chair in water that is about at chin level while wearing a weight of some kind--often a heavy jacket--to keep from floating. Then the subject submerges his head and expels all the air from his body. The procedure is repeated several times to get an accurate measurement.

    Calculations

    • The final calculation is based on Archimedes' Principle, which measures buoyancy as a force equal to the weight of fluid displaced by a body. The person doing the procedure calculates the body density using Archimedes' Principle, then calculates body fat based on body density using the Siri Equation, which explains that body weight is a factor of fat mass and fat-free mass.

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