Body Fat Percentage Categories
Classification
Women (% fat)
Men (% fat)
Essential Fat
10-12%
2-4%
Athletes
14-20%
6-13%
Fitness
21-24%
14-17%
Acceptable
25-31%
18-25%
Obese
32%+
25%+
Knowing your body fat percentage can also help you determine if your weight loss goals are
realistic. Remember, weight loss doesn't always mean fat loss.
For example, let's say you are a 130 pound woman with 23% body fat, and your goal is to lose 20
pounds.
Initial body fat
130 pounds x 0.23 body fat = 30 pounds body fat
Lean body
130 pounds total - 30 pounds fat = 100 pounds lean body mass (bones,
mass
organs,...)
Goal
130 pounds - 20 pounds = 110 pounds
As you can see, the goal of losing 20 pounds is not realistic or healthy. At 110 pounds, this
woman still requires 100 pounds of lean body mass, but would only be carrying 10 pounds, or
only 9% body fat. From the body fat chart above, you can see that this is a dangerously low
percentage.
A better goal might be for the woman to reduce her body fat from 23% to 18%. In this case:
130 pounds x 0.18 = 23 pounds body fat
100 pounds lean body mass + 23 pounds body fat = 123 pounds goal weight.
So, for this individual to achieve a lean, but healthy 18% fat, she would need to lose only 7
pounds of fat, reducing her weight from her current 130 pounds to 123 pounds. Losing more than
7 pounds means losing lean body mass (usually metabolically-active muscle tissue), which is
clearly not desirable.
So before you decide that you need to "lose weight", remember to consider that "weight" consists
of both lean body mass and body fat. Try to keep your weight loss goals realistic, and remember,
keep the calorie-burning muscle, and lose only the fat.
These healthy weight loss strategies that work are based on studies of people who lost weight
and kept it off to maintained healthy permanent weight loss for at least seven years.
1. Start keeping good records. To face the challenge, you need to know what's going on.
Mindlessness will get you nowhere. Write down everything you eat and drink and exercise times.
At first you won't like what you see, but clarity and awareness can gradually move you forward.
2. Make a long-term commitment. "Permanent" means you won’t be done in twelve weeks or
even twelve years. Healthy permanent weight loss is about making a commitment to lifestyle
changes for the long haul.
3. Plan your strategy and do it. What are you going to eat tomorrow? How can you handle
family meals, work lunches and travel? What about emotional cravings? List your challenges and
create solutions.
4. Pay attention to your calories. To lose a pound a week requires cutting about 500 calories a
day. Almost everyone who achieves permanent weight loss counts calories – usually by writing
them down.
5. Increase your physical activity. Exercise burns calories. Most people who lose weight and
keep it off exercise between 30 minutes and an hour a day. If you're squirming over those figures,
realize you can start out slowly. Any amount of exercise is better than none at all.
6. Keep yourself motivated. Maintaining motivation is the biggest challenge. You can't be at the
affect of your moods, failures or the numbers on the scale. Take time to nurture yourself, get
enough rest and find healthy entertainment that doesn't involve food indulgence.
7. Eat a healthy high fiber diet. People who lose weight and keep it off tend to eat a healthy,
moderately low-fat (25-30% of calories) high fiber diet. Here are more eating guidelines for
healthy weight loss.
•
Eat early and often. A healthy breakfast and 5 or 6 small meals throughout the day will
jumpstart your metabolism, stabilize your blood sugar and ward off hunger pangs.
•
Focus on vegetables. The low calories and high fiber, water and nutritional content of
most vegetables make them more fulfilling and nutritious at a lower calorie cost.
•
Upgrade your carbs. Switch from refined carbohydrates to whole grains, fresh fruits and
vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds. They provide sustained natural energy and have
much more fiber, so you feel fuller longer.
•
Pad with protein. Protein helps keep you feeling full, so include some with every meal.
Choose omega 3 fish, lean poultry, beans, whole grains and nuts.
•
Drink more water. By replacing soda, coffee and alcohol with water, you can easily
reduce your calorie intake.