Body Fat percentages
jimycooper
Posts: 740
My freind whos on an ameature UK team got his body fat percentage tested by his team and he's 16%.
after he told me this i realised i had no idea of what an 'good' or 'bad' % for a cyclist is.
He's more of a track rider and does well in crits and said 16% was a bit much but gave room for improvement.
anyone give more insight?
after he told me this i realised i had no idea of what an 'good' or 'bad' % for a cyclist is.
He's more of a track rider and does well in crits and said 16% was a bit much but gave room for improvement.
anyone give more insight?
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Bradley Wiggins has said he gets down to 4% for the start of the Tour de France0
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* And 4% is a dangerously low level to stay at - he goes back up to more like 7-8% for "normal" - though this is still very low for mere mortals.
As a guide - look here.
Normal People
Body Fat Percentage for The Average Population
Age Up to 30 30-50 50+
Females 14-21% 15-23% 16-25%
Males 9-15% 11-17% 12-19%
Average Body Fat Percentage of Athletes
Sport Male Female
Baseball 12-15% 12-18%
Basketball 6-12% 20-27%
Body building 5-8% 10-15%
Cycling 5-15% 15-20%
Gymnastics 5-12% 10-16%
High/long Jumpers 7-12% 10-18%
Ice/field Hockey 8-15% 12-18%
Racquetball 8-13% 15-22%
Rowing 6-14% 12-18%
Shot Putters 16-20% 20-28%
Skiing (X country) 7-12% 16-22%
Sprinters 8-10% 12-20%
Swimming 9-12% 14-24%
Tennis 12-16% 16-24%
Triathlon 5-12% 10-15%
Volleyball 11-14% 16-25%
Weightlifters 9-16% No data
Wrestlers 5-16% No dataCannondale Synapse 105, Giant Defy 3, Giant Omnium, Giant Trance X2, EMC R1.0, Ridgeback Platinum, On One Il Pompino...0 -
Seems I read somewhere that the brain will not let you deplete fat stores much below 4%,
as it needs that much to survive. Something along those lines. Anyone??? :? :?0 -
dennisn wrote:Seems I read somewhere that the brain will not let you deplete fat stores much below 4%,
as it needs that much to survive. Something along those lines. Anyone??? :? :?
Yes, there is a limit at which the body switches to 'other' sources of energy, such as muscle, and slows the metabolism right down to minimise the amount of energy it needs. At that point, you wouldn't have the energy to do any exercise either, so it would be almost impossible to lower your body fat percentage. Even if you ate nothing, you'd probably burn lean body mass at a faster rate than fat to drop your BMR even lower.
Muscle mass also has a lot to do with it. Someone who weighs 180lbs at 6% body fat would find it easier to drop to 4% body fat and stay there than someone who starts at 140lbs at 6% BF.
I've once been single-digit, and unless you're training a lot its hard to maintain. I've become a lot more unfit in the past couple of months, and its incredible how fast I rise to about 14% body fat (which tends to be 'stable' for me when I don't do much). And even though that's less than your friend, I doubt I could match him for speed or endurance with my current level of fitness - so body fat percentage isn't everything.Racing Bike: Cervélo S2
Training/ Criterium Bike: Cervélo S1
Mountain Bike: Santa Cruz Blur XC0 -
well ugh.. im at 6% ish lol. i just can't put on weight 8) :shock: :?
mixed feelings tbh since i feel if i gained more weight i could shift it down to my legs!Coveryourcar.co.uk RT Tester
north west of england.0 -
i was 9%
now 13%
constantly reavalueating the situation and altering the perceived parameters accordingly0 -
What's the best way to measure body fat at home, do any of those scales work well?0
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RichardSwt wrote:What's the best way to measure body fat at home, do any of those scales work well?
IMHO the scales suck except for weighing yourself. They seem wildly inaccurate
at body comp measurements, i.e. different all the time.
I think a good look in a mirror is all you really need. The mirror won't lie.0 -
Mirror, mirror on the wall does my fat percentage say I'm the fatest of them all?0
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Easiest way to get a fairly good idea is to use tape measure and data tables. A good exercise physiology textbook will have a set of tables. You need to take three or four girth measurements (waist, arm and leg or something), pop them into the formula, and PRESTO.
It's years since I've done it, but when I did, it gave a pretty close figure to what I'd got from the machine at the gym.
I should imagine there's probably a web widget that will do the same thing by now0 -
Chicken Leg wrote:Easiest way to get a fairly good idea is to use tape measure and data tables. A good exercise physiology textbook will have a set of tables. You need to take three or four girth measurements (waist, arm and leg or something), pop them into the formula, and PRESTO.
It's years since I've done it, but when I did, it gave a pretty close figure to what I'd got from the machine at the gym.
I should imagine there's probably a web widget that will do the same thing by now
*Snigger*Cannondale Synapse 105, Giant Defy 3, Giant Omnium, Giant Trance X2, EMC R1.0, Ridgeback Platinum, On One Il Pompino...0 -
Apparently I'm 14.5%0
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dennisn wrote:RichardSwt wrote:What's the best way to measure body fat at home, do any of those scales work well?
IMHO the scales suck except for weighing yourself. They seem wildly inaccurate
at body comp measurements, i.e. different all the time.
I think a good look in a mirror is all you really need. The mirror won't lie.
Correct, the only true way to measure body fat accurately is with a dual energy x-ray absorptiometry scanner (commonly abbreviated DXA or DEXA).
Virtually everyone (including pro athletes) will wildly underestimate their body fat and if anyone really thinks that they are close to 6% BF then get checked and you will probably find that you are double that! It always amazed me where the fat can be hiding in a lean looking individual with 12% BF.
6% is seriously lean (but achievable for some) and to give you an idea Bruce Lee was probably above this figure in his movies, I am pretty sure of that as I have seen guys between 7- 9% after getting it checked with a DEXA scanner and that is certainly very lean. If you see somebody at a genuine 5% you will freak! Few get close to this figure.
See Manny pacquiao at perhaps 5-6% here http://pacejmiller.files.wordpress.com/ ... quiao1.jpg Not very muscular but very lean.
Calipers are a garbage way of estimating body fat but can be used for progress if you so feel the need, I certainly never did.
Murr X0 -
Murr X wrote:dennisn wrote:RichardSwt wrote:What's the best way to measure body fat at home, do any of those scales work well?
IMHO the scales suck except for weighing yourself. They seem wildly inaccurate
at body comp measurements, i.e. different all the time.
I think a good look in a mirror is all you really need. The mirror won't lie.
Correct, the only true way to measure body fat accurately is with a dual energy x-ray absorptiometry scanner (commonly abbreviated DXA or DEXA).
Virtually everyone (including pro athletes) will wildly underestimate their body fat and if anyone really thinks that they are close to 6% BF then get checked and you will probably find that you are double that! It always amazed me where the fat can be hiding in a lean looking individual with 12% BF.
6% is seriously lean (but achievable for some) and to give you an idea Bruce Lee was probably above this figure in his movies, I am pretty sure of that as I have seen guys between 7- 9% after getting it checked with a DEXA scanner and that is certainly very lean. If you see somebody at a genuine 5% you will freak! Few get close to this figure.
See Manny pacquiao at perhaps 5-6% here http://pacejmiller.files.wordpress.com/ ... quiao1.jpg Not very muscular but very lean.
Calipers are a garbage way of estimating body fat but can be used for progress if you so feel the need, I certainly never did.
Murr X
What's your take on the body fat percentage of world class bodybuilders?0 -
They are not healthy and yoyo severely that its dangerous. Punishing the body and constantly going from starving to gorging in those cycles isnt advisable at all. They may look 'buff' 'tick' or 'lean' but certainly arent what I would call normal.
They probably drop to around 12% for competition and tend to look bloated if they dont time it well.0 -
Hi Dennis,dennisn wrote:
What's your take on the body fat percentage of world class bodybuilders?
World class bodybuilders on stage can possibly be approaching 3-4% for a short while. It is generally not a good idea to do this nor is it wise to dehydrate for competitions either.
I must stress that I have never seen nor heard of a pro bodybuilder in competition taken away straight off the stage to get a DEXA scan so really that figure is an estimation rather than something I have solid evidence of. I'm just not entirely sure and don't really know if anyone could actually give you a definitive figure on that so that's the best answer I have.
I can say that I have known of one lean amateur who came in (going by memory) at about 6% shortly before a competition and yes he was very lean - quite impressively so in fact and I remember at the time thinking to myself where is the 6% hiding away? I have been guilty in the past of underestimating BF percentages.
Bodybuilding is great IMHO up to a point but at any decent level preparing for competitions is inherently unhealthy, especially when practiced many times over many years. There are worse things you could do to yourself yes, but things like this just aren't for me.
Murr X0 -
You got there before me! Not advisable is smart advice.Garz wrote:They are not healthy and yoyo severely that its dangerous. Punishing the body and constantly going from starving to gorging in those cycles isnt advisable at all. They may look 'buff' 'tick' or 'lean' but certainly arent what I would call normal.
They probably drop to around 12% for competition and tend to look bloated if they dont time it well.
Murr X0 -
I remember a guy at the gym I used to lift at looking at himself in the mirror and doing a skin pinch on one of his ass cheeks between his thumb and 1st. finger. He made the comment that he still had a ways to go and a bit to lose before a contest, that was coming up. That skin pinch was like me taking a pinch at the inside of my forearm , near the wrist. Very thin skin and very little fat. Said he was eating 3 chickens a day and nothing else. Ripped as hell.0
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I'm 22 %.....and 14.5 stone....still have a long way to go.Have lost 1% in that last couple of months and the measurements appear to be consistent with what the mirror says!17 Stone down to 12.5 now raring to get back on the bike!0
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I am not what you would call fat by a long stretch but the scales I have tend to give some very odd readings, I don't trust them myself, either that or I have a shed load of fat somewhere hiding.0
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Hi,
To give you something to laugh at in January i was 48% BF
Today 28.5% (hey not that i'm counting though)
Goal 10-15%0 -
I have a set of scales that supposedly measure body fat. I was 15 stone in January and they gave a reading of 26.4%, today I am 13st 4lbs and they are saying 24.4%. Make of that what you will!!!!!!Still breathing.....0
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underwater weighing is a very good predictor of body fat too although you have to be super still with no air in your lungs so very difficult, Dexa i agree with, we had one in uni but never got to use it, but a one off measurement will never be accurate but is a good indicator of progress one way or another regardless of which you use, hydration state will be the main thing that affects it.
with the scales approach dont forget that a current will take the shortest route so one you stand on will do legs, one you hold arms and chest - ideally electrode on one hand and opposite foot, but still can be wildely innacuratei need more bikes0
