What's the best way to estimate body fat %?

[alien]

I have a ~$60 CAD digital scale from Vitagoods (model VGP-3054) that I bought in 2016. And the bf% muscle mass% water weight% readings fluctuate wildly from day to day, sometimes even moment to moment. I'm not sure if these measurements are legit or full of shit. I haven't seen my bf% measure any lower than 19.1% on that scale though. Muscle mass no higher than 39.7%. Water weight no higher than 56.1%.

When I use the US Navy method for measuring bf% (neck circumference, waist circumference, height), I got 16.7% though? So is my body fat really 16.7%?

Neck circumference: 39 cm (below adam's apple). 15.4"
Waist circumference: 84 cm (above belly button). 33.1"
6pm Height measured by doctor: 167cm (5'5.7")
Weight: 65.5 kg (144.4 lbs)
Age: 36 going on 37. I use the exact year pro-rated by day in the calculator but I'm not gonna doxx myself.
BMI: 23.5

I fit into size 30 skinny fuckboy jeans just fine though with my 33.1" waist. I'm not sure why.

The BMI method puts me at 20.5% bf. lol. But BMI is sketch af. Maybe my neck is big for a manlet? Because I notice that the wider your neck, the more it lowers your bf% in the US Navy Method. I have been told that I have broad shoulders for a manlet. So maybe my neck is kinda big for a manlet too.

I have been lifting my dumb bells for the past month 3-4 times a week. I have been running on alternating days the past 9 days because I am trying to leanmaxx and get rid of my visceral fat (belly). And have been doing crunches in recent weeks because I want to try to strengthen my core muscles. I am going to sign up for a gym membership because my 15 lb dumb bells are not giving me enough resistance I think to convert my visceral fat to more muscle mass and the price of dumb bells and other weights have went up a lot after COVID. I regained some of the muscle I lost from my 23.8 lb cut. But I think my progress might have been stalling lately. I should have measured my waist through the process to see how I am progressing. I only thought to measure it yesterday.

I could post a shirtless selfie on here to estimate my bf% but I am gonna get roasted hard because of my visceral fat. lol. I used to be 168.2 lbs (76.3 kg). I lost 23.8 lbs (10.8 kg). So I was even more of a fat ass than I am now. I'm also told that 37 year old oldcels like me put on visceral fat very easily compared to your 20s. And that its very hard to get rid of visceral fat at my age. I have lost a ton of submental/buccal fat (face fat). I also lost fat in my ass. I should probably work my glutes since my ex loved my plump ass when I used to be 160+ lbs.

 

[Prettyboy]

Everything other than mirror is cope
You are lean if your cheekbones and the lowest abs are visible

 

[alien]

Everything other than mirror is cope
You are lean if your cheekbones and the lowest abs are visible

My lowest abs are not visible yet. I have an actual jawline now. I used to have a double chin. But I don't think I have visible cheekbones yet.
Btw is it just me or do I look leaner in the mirror than in mirror selfies? Do smartphone cameras add weight?

It is disheartening that I fucking lost 14% of my body weight (23.8/168.2) and I still feel like I am a long ways to go. lol. I was fat as fuck I guess. My BMI was 27.4. Now it's 23.5 circa last night. And sometimes it fluctuates even lower than that.

 

[Gandy]

Everything other than mirror is cope
You are lean if your cheekbones and the lowest abs are visible

This. I stopped doing Dexa scans because honestly who cares about the number?

Visible abs and cheekbones is where it's at. Over that number (because it's individual for every man), and you have too much fat.

If you can pinch more than 0.5cm of fat you are also too overweight for higher tier girls (one night stands)

Took me a good half a year to go 18%->12% and visible abs.
After that I have not measured, I just make sure I have visible abs year round by controlling calorie intake while lean bulking for a bit more mass.

 

[alien]

This. I stopped doing Dexa scans because honestly who cares about the number?

Visible abs and cheekbones is where it's at. Over that number (because it's individual for every man), and you have too much fat.

If you can pinch more than 0.5cm of fat you are also too overweight for higher tier girls (one night stands)

Took me a good half a year to go 18%->12% and visible abs.
After that I have not measured, I just make sure I have visible abs year round by controlling calorie intake while lean bulking for a bit more mass.

The reason why I'm curious about my bf% is that I want to see how far I am away from my goal. And want a way to measure my progress.

I'm guessing the best thing to do is to measure my waist circumference weekly to track my progress. Daily measuring would probably be a waste of time since it's very unlikely to shrink 1 cm in a day. And anything less than 1 cm I'm probably not going to notice with my measuring tape.

 

[Gandy]

The reason why I'm curious about my bf% is that I want to see how far I am away from my goal. And want a way to measure my progress.

I'm guessing the best thing to do is to measure my waist circumference weekly to track my progress. Daily measuring would probably be a waste of time since it's very unlikely to shrink 1 cm in a day. And anything less than 1 cm I'm probably not going to notice with my measuring tape.

I stopped using scale and using waist measuring after around 15% body fat.

Generally after you are already fairly lean (like 75-78cm waist, or 30-31"), you can expect to lose that 1cm every 3-4 weeks.

Mirror image matters the most, ofc.

 

[Deleted member 19551]

A scale could never estimate your bodyfat, forget about that shit. It's very hard to get a good estimation even with the most expensive measures. I also think it's pointless. It's very hard to be "too lean" as a natural anyway. Lose fat until you have popping facial bones + abs

 

[Skywalker]

DEXA scan, anything else is bs srs

 

[kalefartbomb]

Diet until you have defined abs and an adonis belt, the number doesn't matter but it'll be at around 10-12% depending on how you store fat and your muscular development.

 

[Xangsane]

Everything other than mirror is cope
You are lean if your cheekbones and the lowest abs are visible

My cheekbones are somewhat visible and my lowest abs are not very visible (my stomach is flat without visible abs). Thoughts?

 

[reputation]

Everything other than mirror is cope
You are lean if your cheekbones and the lowest abs are visible

what reflects one's real looks more, mirror or camera?

 

[Prettyboy]

what reflects one's real looks more, mirror or camera?

Mirror, its just a reflection of light but your image is biased by mere-exposure effect for you

 

[Gluteus]

The reason why I'm curious about my bf% is that I want to see how far I am away from my goal. And want a way to measure my progress.

I'm guessing the best thing to do is to measure my waist circumference weekly to track my progress. Daily measuring would probably be a waste of time since it's very unlikely to shrink 1 cm in a day. And anything less than 1 cm I'm probably not going to notice with my measuring tape.

You can post your pictures on this forum or certain other fitness subreddits and people will provide you a general estimate.

Even measuring every week might be too often. Minor fluctuations in water weight can make it look like no progress is being made. I prefer to measure every 2 - 3 weeks.

I don't even weigh myself anymore, all I do is measure my waist, neck, and arms to make sure I am losing fat and not losing muscle.

 

[alien]

You can post your pictures on this forum or certain other fitness subreddits and people will provide you a general estimate.

Even measuring every week might be too often. Minor fluctuations in water weight can make it look like no progress is being made. I prefer to measure every 2 - 3 weeks.

I don't even weigh myself anymore, all I do is measure my waist, neck, and arms to make sure I am losing fat and not losing muscle.

Does water retention really impact waist circumference? I measured my waist at 81.5cm yesterday. I think I was in a dehydrated state. I'm not sure. But tonight after drinking a couple cups of water, I measured my waist at 82.1cm. Unless I'm not measuring my waist consistently. My waist was 84.3cm 10 days ago (possibly in a hydrated state). So I might be on the right track.

 

[Lawton88]

I have a ~$60 CAD digital scale from Vitagoods (model VGP-3054) that I bought in 2016. And the bf% muscle mass% water weight% readings fluctuate wildly from day to day, sometimes even moment to moment. I'm not sure if these measurements are legit or full of shit. I haven't seen my bf% measure any lower than 19.1% on that scale though. Muscle mass no higher than 39.7%. Water weight no higher than 56.1%.

When I use the US Navy method for measuring bf% (neck circumference, waist circumference, height), I got 16.7% though? So is my body fat really 16.7%?

Neck circumference: 39 cm (below adam's apple). 15.4"
Waist circumference: 84 cm (above belly button). 33.1"
6pm Height measured by doctor: 167cm (5'5.7")
Weight: 65.5 kg (144.4 lbs)
Age: 36 going on 37. I use the exact year pro-rated by day in the calculator but I'm not gonna doxx myself.
BMI: 23.5

I fit into size 30 skinny fuckboy jeans just fine though with my 33.1" waist. I'm not sure why.

The BMI method puts me at 20.5% bf. lol. But BMI is sketch af. Maybe my neck is big for a manlet? Because I notice that the wider your neck, the more it lowers your bf% in the US Navy Method. I have been told that I have broad shoulders for a manlet. So maybe my neck is kinda big for a manlet too.

I have been lifting my dumb bells for the past month 3-4 times a week. I have been running on alternating days the past 9 days because I am trying to leanmaxx and get rid of my visceral fat (belly). And have been doing crunches in recent weeks because I want to try to strengthen my core muscles. I am going to sign up for a gym membership because my 15 lb dumb bells are not giving me enough resistance I think to convert my visceral fat to more muscle mass and the price of dumb bells and other weights have went up a lot after COVID. I regained some of the muscle I lost from my 23.8 lb cut. But I think my progress might have been stalling lately. I should have measured my waist through the process to see how I am progressing. I only thought to measure it yesterday.

I could post a shirtless selfie on here to estimate my bf% but I am gonna get roasted hard because of my visceral fat. lol. I used to be 168.2 lbs (76.3 kg). I lost 23.8 lbs (10.8 kg). So I was even more of a fat ass than I am now. I'm also told that 37 year old oldcels like me put on visceral fat very easily compared to your 20s. And that its very hard to get rid of visceral fat at my age. I have lost a ton of submental/buccal fat (face fat). I also lost fat in my ass. I should probably work my glutes since my ex loved my plump ass when I used to be 160+ lbs.

Visceral fat isn't as sloppy looking as the surface fat. My guess is the Navy tape measure fat test is close to reality. Sounds Like you only need to lose a little more fat. BMI is not a good measure for people that have a decent amount of muscle.

 

[Deleted member 2106]

I just use https://bodywhat.com/ and it seems pretty accurate to me

 

[SubSigma]

If your cheekbones or jawline can not be seen, then you are either too fat or subhuman.