Watching your weight? Your bathroom scale won’t tell the whole story. After all, muscle weighs more than body fat. Although body composition helps define fitness, a typical bathroom scale can’t differentiate body fat from muscle weight.
Tip: If you’re trying to lose weight, be physically active to build muscle as you eat fewer calories. Then you won’t lose muscle. If you’re trying to gain weight, work out so you gain muscle, not just body fat.
Body fat is measured in several ways, among them with skin calipers to measure the fat layer in several places under the skin and with bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) that uses a low-level electrical signal, passing through muscle and fat (slower through muscle).
To have your body fat measured accurately:
- Ask at your next medical checkup.
- Check with a certified trainer, if you belong to a fitness club with well-trained staff.
- Get a well-rated body fat scale, one that not only weighs you but also gives a BIA. Learn to use it with accuracy: same time of day (midday best), same settings, after urinating.
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