Body fat percentage: What you need to know about body fat

Certainly not without so-called essential body fat. The higher its proportion, the less quickly we get cold, the better protected our joints, muscles and organs are, the more efficiently our central nervous system functions, the more vitamins we can store and the more we can prevent diseases.

Unfortunately, there's also the counterpart, whose name already gives it away: Our non-essential body fat is exactly that: superfluous . We don't need it, but we don't eliminate it either. Instead, we build up fat deposits that can have a negative impact on our health.

The general guideline for the currently recommended body fat percentage was established specifically for gender. According to this guideline, the optimal body fat percentage relative to total body mass should be as follows:

• Body fat percentage in men: Between 6 and 24 percent
• Body fat percentage in women: Between 14 and 31 percent

The rather large ranges can be further narrowed down:

• If you want to compete with the bodybuilders in Muscle Beach without any body fat, you should aim for less than ten percent as a man and less than 18 percent as a woman.
• If you don't quite achieve this, you are still considered athletic until the slim normal weight starts at 15 or 23 percent.
• If you approach 25 or 34 percent, you are already considered slightly overweight. After that, you should be careful.

You've probably noticed the significant gender difference . It might not seem fair, but women need about ten percent more fat than men to maintain all vital bodily functions. Another violation of the principle of equality: at rest , women primarily metabolize carbohydrates rather than fat.

We've already looked at the officially recommended body fat percentages for men and women. However, these are not exact average values ​​calculated from different age groups. Here's a more detailed overview in a table:

However, it's not just the amount of body fat that matters, but also its location . Body fat is found in various parts of the body. Love handles are probably the only type of this precious metal we'd gladly do without.

Belly fat is considered particularly harmful to health. Once the fat has accumulated there, it's very difficult to get rid of. According to scientifically proven studies, even with the greatest willpower, you cannot lose fat in specific areas of the body.

Generally, women tend to store fat more in their buttocks, waist, and legs, while men tend to store it in their abdomen. This isn't (just) due to beer, but primarily to sex-specific hormones . However, women also struggle with unhealthy abdominal fat. These unwanted love handles can have various causes :

• Does your upper abdomen bulge under your flat stomach? Then you're eating convenience foods and sugary dishes too often.

• If you've just had a baby, fat can quickly accumulate in your weakened abdominal muscles. A light exercise program can help.

• Avoid stress! The stress hormone cortisol has a negative effect on your fat burning.

• Your metabolism slows down from around the age of 30. Limit your carbohydrate intake and do endurance sports.

• Carbonated drinks and legumes can cause bloating. Opt for still water and avoid eating too many peas, lentils, and similar legumes.

• The proverbial beer belly is indeed caused by beer – just like all other alcoholic beverages. It's not just their alcohol and sugar content that increase your body fat percentage, but also the craving for fatty foods that automatically arises after a few drinks.

You now know which body fat percentage puts you in which category and what your ideal body fat percentage is. What you don't yet know is your exact percentage . If you want to calculate your body fat, there are several options available. Simply using a scale won't work for calculating your body fat percentage, and we also have a little math involved for you…

To calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI), divide the square of your height in meters by your weight in kilograms. So, if you weigh 75 kilograms and are 1.80 meters tall, you divide 75 by 3.60. Your BMI would be 20.8 – normal weight. A BMI of 18.5 or higher would be considered underweight, and 25 or higher would be considered overweight. Obesity starts at a BMI of 30. The criticism: BMI does n't tell you anything about fat distribution . So, even if you're mostly muscle, you could be classified as overweight simply because of your muscle mass.

The waist-to-height ratio is calculated by dividing your waist circumference by your height in centimeters. If you have a waist circumference of 75 centimeters and are 180 centimeters tall, you get a value of 0.41. Lucky you! Overweight starts at 0.5.

To measure body fat percentage, these special scales utilize bioimpedance analysis. This involves passing an electrical current through the body to measure body fat. Together with previously entered data such as height, weight, gender, and age, this provides a complete picture for calculating body fat. Unfortunately, this method often exhibits significant measurement errors, which is why we cannot recommend it.

Hydrostatic weighing involves jumping into a water tank without clothes. The amount of water displaced indicates your body fat percentage. While the method is considered particularly accurate, it is only performed in select facilities and costs around 150 euros.

People pay just under half of the cost for dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. The X-rays measure not only body fat percentage, but also whether bone, muscle, or fat tissue predominates.

Here's the result you'll tremble at: Bioelectrical impedance analysis uses mild electrical shocks to measure the electrical resistance in your body, which increases with body fat percentage. This measurement can be performed on conventional bathroom scales. However, it is considered inaccurate.

A caliper is more practical. You simply pinch a fold of skin, apply the caliper to measure the skin thickness, and take the measurement. The more body parts you measure, the more precise the result will be. An online calculator will quickly and affordably tell you where you stand.

Even simpler: the measuring tape. Place it around your body at navel level, neither too tightly nor too loosely. Up to about 88 centimeters, a woman is considered to have a normal weight, and up to 102 cm for a man. Beyond that, there's a risk of an unhealthily high amount of abdominal fat. However, these guidelines are very rough and don't take your height into account.

If you've measured your body fat percentage and want to lower it, exercise and nutrition are key factors, along with other aspects. Ideally, you should focus on a combination! Here are our tips :

Sport is a broad term. Basically, if you don't choose chess or billiards, you will burn calories with regular exercise. burn calories. Classic methods include endurance training, strength training, and high-intensity interval training (HIIT). While jogging or cycling involves sustained moderate exercise, HIIT boosts your metabolism with highly strenuous workouts performed in quick succession. Muscles are considered the natural antagonist of fat . However, without the right training, you won't necessarily lose weight.

Eating healthily isn't difficult in principle and can be a faithful companion on your journey. Create a balanced and nutrient-rich diet – with plenty of fresh produce and limited sugar and fat. Focus on a protein-rich diet and start your day with delicious Overnight Oats .

Your metabolism works at full speed at night. But only if you sleep soundly; otherwise, your fat metabolism slows down. Stress also inhibits fat burning, so avoid it as much as possible.

Psst, here's our secret recipe for weight loss. All you need is semi-skimmed milk, your favorite SHEKO powder, and a shaker ! Want to learn more about how the SHEKO shake works? You can find all the information in our article: Successfully lose weight with SHEKO .