Body Fat %?

http://www.runnersworld.com/bodyfatcalc/ using this website it says I have 26.71% which seems very high to me here are my stats:
5'3"
130 lbs
29"waist
39" hips
36" bust

Do you think this is correct? Here I am thinking I am in shape!!!

Wed. Oct 24, 8:23am

Women should have between 20-25% body fat. Any less, and it can cause problems.
Men should have anywhere between 8-18% body fat.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007, 10:10 AM

Sorry to say, but that's probably close to true. Maybe it's off by a percentage or two. I'm about 5'1.5", and when I get down to my lowest weight, which is around 113lbs, I think I'm about 23% bf, and that's right around the middle of the healthy BMI range for me too, so that sounds correct.

Your BMI is 23.0. The healthy range is 18.5 to 24.9, so you are towards the upper end of healthy. 140lbs is the last weight for someone who's 5'3", before the BMI is unhealthy. 105lbs is the lowest weight you could weigh before you are underweight. All according to BMI.

Additionally, based on your measurements, I'd say (and this is JUST an opinion) that you probably do not have a ton of muscle, b/c if you did, and those were your measurements, I think you'd weigh more than 130lbs. As such, you probably have more fat, and thus a higher body fat percentage.

So yes, 26% is probably relatively accurate. It could be 24-25%, but probably no lower.

In most cases, though, a fitness website is not going to give you really accurate body fat percentage info. The only really accurate way is to do a hydrostatic dunk test; these aren't readily available everywhere, so a second option would be a caliper test. Any personal trainer can do it.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007, 10:44 AM

I looked at that calculator and it gives a very, very rough estimate. It might be on target for you, or it might not. Or putting it another way, the answer it's giving you is believable but not necessarily accurate. Accurate body fat numbers are hard to get (the body fat scales aren't great either).
I think the calculator is penalizing you for waist size.
"In shape" is a pretty vague term. You could be more "in shape" in some ways than others. Certainly that's my situation - on different particular "tests" I can be anywhere from above average to really awful.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007, 10:46 AM

I just did mine too and was surprised (not in a good way) to see 26.7%!!!!
I am 5'5
119.0 pounds
26 waist
35 hips
34 bust
I guess I might not have as much muscle as I thought. But I'm working on it!! =)

Wednesday, October 24, 2007, 12:00 PM

where do you measure on your forearm?

Wednesday, October 24, 2007, 12:11 PM

Yeah, I think it sounds about right. I'm only 100 pounds at 5'3, 32-24-34 and the body fat scale tells me I have 22.7% body fat. >.<

Wednesday, October 24, 2007, 12:35 PM

12:35 pm again

Wow that calculator is depressing...it's telling me I'm a little bit over 25% body fat.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007, 12:38 PM

I'm 5'5", 120 lbs and my body fat is around 22 or 23%, so Op, your stats sound realistic to me. It's a bugger, this bf% isn't it? I had a friend who lost 15 lbs but whose bf% did not appreciably change!

I work out with weights regularly and have actually been considering using Creatine to try to change my bf%. Anyone out there tried it?

Monday, October 29, 2007, 9:29 AM

I don't know how creatine affects women (just assuming you're a woman, not sure), but I had a couple boyfriends in college who used it, and it tended to make them very angry! They became different people when taking it!

If you decide to try creatine, first talk to your doctor to be sure that it isn't physically bad for you, and then talk to someone you trust that you spend a lot of time with, and promise (write it down and sign it if necessary) that if they tell you to stop taking it, that you will.

Monday, October 29, 2007, 10:37 AM

this calculator is the one i use

i guess generally, until you get to your healthier weight, just look for a general decreasing trend....then buy a caliper and really see.

Link

Monday, October 29, 2007, 3:40 PM

a comparison

I did the calculation on runners world and got 27.7% . Did it today at my gym (using the Omron hand held device) and was 32.8%
Pretty big difference, I would say.

Saturday, November 03, 2007, 8:38 AM

I think there are several things wrong with this, first there is no where to input your height or your age and both these things play a factor in the %. It also doesn't take into account your body muscle mass, no calculator or hand held machine can take into account whether or not your very muscular. I am 39 weigh 162, 38 hip, 31, waist, forearm 13, and wrist 7.5 it says my bf is 25.04%, but in reality I am 25 pounds overweight and I know this, since I am 5'2. On the other hand my sister is 5'7 weighs 180, hips 40, waist 33, forearm 14, wrist 7 and it says she is 25.6% bf. She is very muscular and doesn't even look slightly chubby and I definitely look heavy. So I doubt we can have such different bodys and be almost the same bf %.

Saturday, November 03, 2007, 12:34 PM

Hydrostatic Testing

Hydrostatic body fat testing is absolutely the most accurate test out there and the only test I trust. After recently being tested hydrostatically @ 3% (shockingly low, I had her retest me 6 times) I thought it would be interesting to use this as a benchmark against caliper testing. I Work out at an upscale Los Angeles Gym where I am friendly w/ many of the trainers and had three of them test me w/ calipers. The three tests came back w/ results varying from 4 - 9 %. Pretty drastic differences. Unless your a professional, don't be so consumed w/ your BF% and go w/ how you look and feel. If anyone has any questions regarding body fat testing in the LA area, feel free to contact me.

cole

Link

Saturday, November 03, 2007, 1:25 PM

Yeah that does sound about right and there is nothing actually wrong with that percentage healthwise so don't worry. Just work out with weights and eat lots of protein if you want it lower, that's what I did and went from 28% body fat to 24% body fat.

Thursday, November 15, 2007, 10:32 PM

In reply to the girl with 25% body fat at 5ft2 and 162lb I noticed you have 7.5 inch wrists. This means you are very large boned and this is probably why your body fat is so lower despite your weight. You even said your sister has 7 inch wrists yet she is much taller than you. This is probably why the body fat percentages are so similar. Also from your measurements you don't sound heavy looking at all.

Thursday, November 15, 2007, 10:34 PM

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