Body Fat Percentage

[RetireAge50]

I've been holding steady at 185 lbs (down from 240 pre-FIRE) for months now...and BF% has been dropping steadily...14, 13, 12, and now sitting at 11%. Which means I'm LOSING fat and GAINING muscle. Now, I do try and eat around 150 grams of protein daily combined with a dedicated weight training program. DW is truly flabbergasted at what I've accomplished...she as always managed to maintain a good baseline fitness level God bless her.

I have before and after pictures which show the transformation...it does boggle the mind.

Excellent. This proves it can be done.

I am trying to do something similar this year but will need to increase muscles quite a bit (otherwise I will be too skinny at a low body fat).

 

[Big_Hitter]

I wish this thread would go away. It makes me feel bad about myself, every time I see it.

Don't feel bad. Some of these posters obviously aren't drinking enough beer.

 

[Highbeam]

All about numbers, one Bud Light is only 110 calories. Doesn't sound like much? Only 110 extra calories per day is good for 11.5 pounds in a year!

Yes but also consider that every regular 3.25" apple you eat is 116 calories. So that beer is a better choice, from a calories point of view. Don't even want to talk about that latte/mocha/fancy coffee drink that I see so many people drinking every day.

 

[HFWR]

I do not eat much bread, cake, pasta, or starchy vegetables.


The only oil we use is olive oil.

When I diet I essentially cut out ALL fats and oils, all carbs, and most vegetables. I eat fresh fruit, salad (with balsamic vinegar only), lean meat, fish. No breads, no dairy. The LBS melt away. We never use any of those fatty, chemical laden commercial salad dressings..yuk.


After switching over to a much healthier diet we can now really taste if chemicals have been added to food....one of the many reasons why we do not bother with processed food.


When we travel in the US we are often amazed at how large the portions are. Any many times the plate is filled to overflowing with fries. Often we simply split a meal. It seems the focus in many US restaurants is on quantity rather than quality.

Careful with eliminating all fats. You could become deficient in fat-soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids... See "rabbit starvation".

 

[ls99]

While doc's office does the BMI thing, I note that the BMI inludes the weight of shoes and clothing at the time. Roughly 3lb extra in the winter thus not matching the 172 to 175 range butt naked on the Y's balance scale.

For measurement I prefer my 34" waist collection of trousers. For the last 20 years it has been steady for the most part. When it takes a bit of effort to button, note is taken and I cut back on the consumption of various cookies DW bakes and uses to tempt me.

 

[eytonxav]

While doc's office does the BMI thing, I note that the BMI inludes the weight of shoes and clothing at the time.

BMI= basically misleading indicator Aside from the clothing contribution that you noted, muscle weighs more than fat, and if you have a fair amount of muscle you can look unhealthy based on BMI.

 

[GravitySucks]

Where are all those selfies of midsections? You first.

My phone doesn't have a wide angle lens.

 

[RetireAge50]

Currently at 21% going to try to get to 10% by 6/20/2016.

Update: Did not get to 10%. My original plan was bad and a member here changed my focus to building strength and eating properly.

In the 5 months I went from 21.3% body fat to 15.9% today. Overall weight is down 2.7 pounds to 171.3 from 174.

Lost 9.8 pounds of fat while gaining 7.1 pounds of muscle. More work to do.

 

[eytonxav]

Update: Did not get to 10%. My original plan was bad and a member here changed my focus to building strength and eating properly.

In the 5 months I went from 21.3% body fat to 15.9% today. Overall weight is down 2.7 pounds to 171.3 from 174.

Lost 9.8 pounds of fat while gaining 7.1 pounds of muscle. More work to do.

Thats a great job!

 

[Options]

See this:

https://consumer.healthday.com/fitness-information-14/misc-health-news-265/15-minutes-of-daily-exercise-reduced-the-risk-of-early-death-711867.html

Just 15 minutes of exercise a day may lower older adults' risk of early death by one-fifth, a new study suggests.

The research included more than 123,000 people, aged 60 and older. The study's mean follow-up time was 10 years. Compared to those who were inactive, those with low levels of activity were 22 percent less likely to die during the study period, the investigators found.

In addition, for people with medium and high levels of physical activity, the risk of dying during the study was reduced by 28 percent and 35 percent, respectively, compared to people who weren't active at all.

Emphasis added

 

[SpinDr]

A few years ago I started changing my diet and increased my exercise quite a bit. I see you revised your target up from 10% which definitely is more realistic. At my peak in managing my diet and exercise I reached 11.5% body fat at 6.0' and 167 lbs. Could not stay there : ) While eating healthy and exercising 4-5 times per week settled in at around 13.5%.

 

[AllDone]

BMI= basically misleading indicator Aside from the clothing contribution that you noted, muscle weighs more than fat, and if you have a fair amount of muscle you can look unhealthy based on BMI.

Yes, BMI overestimates obesity in young African-American and white men. Sadly, it underestimates obesity in the rest of us! It's pretty accurate for following body fat changes in a population, but in the doctor's office, it's a good screening tool -- but that's just a first step.

 

[eytonxav]

Yes, BMI overestimates obesity in young African-American and white men. Sadly, it underestimates obesity in the rest of us! It's pretty accurate for following body fat changes in a population, but in the doctor's office, it's a good screening tool -- but that's just a first step.

While the country as a whole does seem to be packing on more body fat, its inaccurate to assume only young men get overestimated. There are plenty of older men and women who are physically fit and well muscled and will have BMIs above recommended range. Further, in the Drs office, the doc should be able to discern whether an individual is carrying a fair amount of muscle or not, at least I hope so.