Calculating Your Bodyfat Percentage

To find your bodyfat percentage, you will first need to take skinfold measurements using a skinfold caliper (body fat caliper or bodyfat tester).

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To track your diet progress, it will be necessary for you to take your body fat percentage and body tape measurements every two weeks. Always take your tape measurements relaxed NOT flexed. MyoTape is the best measuring tape available. The MyoTape from Accu-Fitness is a vast improvement over the simple tape and it works wonderfully. You can buy one for less than $10 and also as part of a package when you get your body fat caliper (See the skinfold measurements page for how to use the bodyfat caliper to get your skinfold measurements and calculate your bodyfat percentage).

When taking your bodyfat measurements, firmly pinch the skinfold between your thumb and forefinger. Pull the skin and fat away from the underlying muscle, then take the measurement while still holding the skin. Sites marked with an (*)will require another person:

The Skinfold Sites

If you don't have a partner and are not freakishly flexible, you will not be able to get to all the 7 skinfold sites listed below and shown to the right. That's okay, men can just do 3 sites – chest, abdominal, and thigh. Women can also get a good body fat estimation with three sites – tricep, suprailiac, and thigh – but the tricep will be tough without a partner.

Chest - For men, get a diagonal pinch half way between the armpit and the nipple. Women need a diagonal pinch 1/3 of the way from the arm pit to the nipple.

Midaxillary – A vertical pinch on the midaxillary line which runs directly down from the center of the armpit. Raise your arm above your head and have your partner get these skinfold measurements just below the level of your nipple.

Subprailiac - A diagonal pinch just above the front forward protrusion of the hip bone.

Abdominal - A vertical pinch about one inch from your belly button.

Thigh - A vertical pinch halfway between the knee and top of the thigh.

Tricep - A vertical pinch halfway between the shoulder and the elbow.

Subscapular - A diagonal pinch directly below the shoulder blade.

 

 

 

Skinfold Measurement Taking Tips

• Take your skinfold measurements while standing.
• Take all skinfold measurements on the same side of the body. Preferably the right side.

• Pinch between your forefinger and thumb. Pinch deep enough to get the fat (you are looking for a double-thick pinch of skin) but not so deep that you start pulling muscle up. Pulling muscle up is pretty much impossible so don't let it concern you all that much. With the skinfold in hand, you need to pinch hard to get the water out, hard enough that you cause minor discomfort.

Place the body fat calipers less than 1/2 inch from your pinch, midway between the crest and the base.

• For each of the skinfold sites, take three measurements and use the average of those three. But don't take the three measurements consecutively, instead run through all the sites three times. This will allow the skin to regroup between skinfold measurements. It will also help you develop some consistency.

Consistency is the key. If you are having a friend take your measurements, which is the ideal thing to do, have that same friend take your skinfold measurements every time. If you have different people take your measurements, expect the results to be all over the place and basically useless.

Calculating Your Body Fat Percentage

To get an overall number to use as your body fat percentage, you will need to plug your numbers into a formula. The most commonly used equations for body fat calculations based on skinfold measurements are based on Jackson-Pollock's equation for bone density and Siri's formula to get body fat percentage from that:

Body Fat Percentage Man:

Seven Skinfold Sites (all 7 sites from above, SUM7 is the sum of all the measurements in mm)

Bone Density =	1.112 – (0.00043499 * SUM7) + (0.00000055 * SUM7²) – (0.00028826 * Age)
Body Fat Percentage =	[(4.95/Bone Density) - 4.5] 100

Three Skinfold Sites (Chest, Abdominal, and Thigh sites from above, SUM3 is the sum of these sites in mm)

Bone Density =	1.1093800 – (0.0008267 * SUM3) + (0.0000016 * SUM3²) - (0.0002574 * Age)
Body Fat Percentage =	[(4.95/Bone Density) - 4.5] 100