{"id":6710,"date":"2017-09-05T19:55:04","date_gmt":"2017-09-05T19:55:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fitnfemale.de\/was-du-uber-die-messung-des-koerperfettanteils-wissen-solltest-2\/"},"modified":"2018-02-18T09:54:06","modified_gmt":"2018-02-18T08:54:06","slug":"what-you-over-the-measurement-of-koerperfettanteils-know-should-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fitnfemale.com\/en\/what-you-over-the-measurement-of-koerperfettanteils-know-should-2\/","title":{"rendered":"What you should know about body fat percentage measurement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Your pants are no longer as tight as they used to be. You get compliments on your athletic arms. You suddenly see muscles that you didn't know existed, but when you step on the scales you realize that your weight hasn't changed at all. Why is that? Quite simply, the reason is the change in your body composition due to the reduction of fat and the build-up of muscle. However, this also means that neither the BMI nor the scales are the ideal tools for female athletes to track their physical development. Not least due to the fact that muscles are heavier than fat, the Body Mass Index, for example, often results in misjudgments that classify athletic women as overweight per se. It is therefore obvious that you need another effective tool to track your progress that also takes into account the physiological differences between muscle and fat tissue. In our Body fat guide<\/strong> to find out how best to approach the matter.<\/p>\n

The problem with the body mass index<\/h2>\n

The simple formula used to calculate the Body Mass Index<\/strong> was developed in the middle of the 19th century and established itself relatively quickly in medicine at the time. Based on body weight and height, doctors at the time also determined the definitions for underweight (BMI < 18.5), normal weight (BMI 18.5-24.9), overweight (BMI 25-30) and the three known obesity categories above a BMI of 30, which are still valid today. For most people of average build, the BMI was then, as it is today, a very useful method for recording physical development and assessing possible health risks. However, particularly active people today benefit just as little from the Body Mass Index as they did back then, because, as already mentioned, it makes no distinction between muscle and fat tissue. According to the BMI definition, an obviously muscular and athletic person like Arnold Schwarzenegger would have a BMI of over 30 and would therefore already be considered obese, which is of course nonsense. Even if the example of Mr. Schwarzenegger is of course very striking, it applies in principle not only to male bodybuilders, but to all people who are active in sport. This was recently confirmed in a study by the American College of Cardiology, in which the scientists found that a large proportion of people with a "normal" BMI have a high body fat percentage. The myth of the BMI as an unmistakable measure was shattered, not least because of this.<\/p>\n

Why you should measure your body fat percentage<\/h2>\n

So to get a realistic assessment of your physical development, it is much better to explicitly measure your body fat percentage rather than subjecting yourself to imprecise calculation methods. It is obvious why you should do this as part of any training program, because this is the only way to determine whether you are building muscle or losing fat. Measuring body fat also has numerous other health benefits. For example, it is very often the case that women who actually have an optimal body weight according to BMI have a significantly increased risk of developing cardiovascular problems. One of the reasons for this is the hormonal environment of the female body, which causes the so-called skinny fat phenomenon. However, this is not a disease, but merely the measurable fact that the body fat percentage is well above average despite a comparatively low weight. In women, this accumulation of body fat is mainly found on the hips, bottom and thighs, which are exactly our problem areas. In medicine, hip circumference in particular is closely linked to health complaints. For example, scientists at a Danish university found that women with a waist circumference of more than 88 centimetres have a significantly higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease than women with a smaller waist. Of course, a look in the mirror will also help you to find out how your body fat percentage is developing. However, you will only be able to monitor this precisely with the help of the right measuring methods. However, before we start measuring your body fat percentage, we would first like to give you a little guide to body fat percentage.<\/p>\n

Exemplary body fat percentage:<\/strong><\/p>\n