Today I went to get my body fat checked -- there's a company out here that has a
setup in a truck that they park in front of various local gyms. They must get a
good business, because I made the appointment two weeks ago and this was the
soonest opening at a gym near work or home. It's not that I'm manic about this,
really. It's partly because I was curious how accurate our not-for-athletes Tanita
scale is (usually reads 26-27%), but mostly because the guys at the gym pissed me
off last time they checked my bodyfat via the caliper method.
The
number they gave me appalled me so much that I asked at the desk there if they
knew of a place that measured it by immersion. Another trainer overheard me ask
and offered to recheck me with the calipers, giving me a long speech about how
he'd been doing this for 10 years and knew exactly what he was doing, blah de blah
de blah. He returned me a number only about half a percent lower than the last
one. At least they're consistent in their wrongness.
The reading they
gave me was about 29% bodyfat. Remember that number. You may also want to review
the pics here to form
your own opinion. I have some fat on me, no question, but 29% is high enough to
start affecting health.
Also, the trainer started telling me people
can have high percentages of fat without being large, and that as we age, we store
more fat internally. All of which is true, but only to a point. And thin people
with lots of fat juggle, and their upper arms dangle. I mean, you can tell -- it's
not a hidden thing.(They tend to look much worse than curvy round goddess types
actually.)
So I went off to be dunked. The truck was out across the
parking lot from an LA Fitness (a local gym chain). Unfortunately, the truck had
changing cubicles but no waiting area, so I had to wait outside for 5-10 minutes.
That doesn't seem so bad until you realize it's well over 100 degrees and I'm
dressed for work in long pants and a sleeveless sweater. He did apologize when he
let me in, at least, and explained the previous client, a weighty gentleman, was
squeamish about being seen in a bathing suit. Actually, I had assumed it was a
standard courtesy.
I changed into my new bathing suit (realizing in
the process that it's a little loose -- oh, well, for $12 I can't complain),
and let him weigh me and explain the process. The tank was long enough for me to
stretch out and maybe 2.5 feet deep. There was a ladder-shaped frame made of
plastic tubing and he instructed me to hold one end with my hands and brace
against the other end with my toes (not sure how this would have worked for the
much taller previous client). Then I had to lower my face, expel as much air as
possible, and wait for about four seconds. He had me repeat that five times-- this
is not a good idea for anyone with a phobia about water.
And after
all that, I got dressed again and came out to get my results. Remember that 29%?
And the cocky trainer who told me his numbers must be right? Read it and weep,
baby.
20.7%
Next, I need to shoot for a number that's
in the Good range (18-21 for women in my age group) by something more than the
skin of its toenails. But mostly I'm just pleased to have once again been proved
Right.
Oh
yes, and the most amusing part was where the report told me that (in defiance of
the good/bad ranges on a previous page) that my ideal was 22% and that I should
therefore gain 2 lbs of fat (the guy who ran it recommended 4 lbs of muscle
instead, which might help more on the water). A fig for the trainers!