A lot of people don’t know their body fat .
This is as bad as not being aware of how much money you spend. It’s a travesty, particularly in the realm of health and fitness. Why is body fat percentage so important? It’s the best indicator of body composition. Anyone who cares at all about their health and fitness should know approximately what their body fat percentage is. On the other hand, almost everyone knows precisely how much they weigh. Weight isn’t a quality gauge of body composition. Neither is Body Mass Index (BMI). You can acquire what’s widely regarded as an average BMI and still have all sorts of hidden health issues. That isn’t likely to be the case with body fat percentage. What is a healthy body fat percentage for men and women?
Quick answer: the Athletes ranges in the American Council on Exercise figures below.
• Essential Fat: 2% – 5% (men), 10% – 13% (women)
• Athletes: 6% – 13% (men), 14% – 20% (women)
• Fitness: 14% – 17% (men), 21% – 24% (women)
• Acceptable: 18% – 24% (men), 25% – 31% (women)
• Obesity: >25% (men), >32% (women)
Longer answer (my personal opinion):
A healthy body fat for men is between 6% and 10%. A healthy body fat for women is between 14% and 17%. I target the lower end of the Athletes range for a couple of reasons. First, I believe that being an athlete is the bare minimum requirement for physical fitness. Next, you can possibly make do with being reasonably healthy within the upper ranges of Athlete, but that’s not what I want for you. I would like you to be supremely fit and healthy and for that, you need to acquire an unquestionably athletic build. The Acceptable ranges within this chart are unacceptable. I was in the top end of the Fitness range for quite some time and I felt lethargic and overweight. Be a bit ambitious. With some hard work, anyone can look like many of the superstars we idolize in sports.
Will how old you are impact your body fat percentage?
In theory, it does. Your metabolic rate slows as you get older therefore rendering it more difficult to keep lower body fat levels. In reality, the lowering of your metabolism caused by aging has a negligible impact when compared to the effect of your all round lifestyle. In other words, age isn’t really a good excuse for having a higher body fat percentage. I believe all men and women should target the lower ends of the Athlete ranges no matter what age. Due to a combination of factors, the typical body fat percentage for both males and females increases as they age. As a result, elderly folks who arrive at an ambitious goal and maintain an athletic body fat percentage look way more impressive amongst fellow people in their age group than younger people will. Case in point: Mark Sisson.
How might a healthy body fat tie in with the other two aspects of The Magic Trio?
So far as personal finance , those who have a healthy body fat percentage will suffer from fewer health problems as well as obesity-related illnesses than the rest of the population. What about enjoying life? This is pretty much a no-brainer isn’t it? By retaining a healthy body fat percentage, you’ll naturally enjoy your life more since you will look and feel better. Carrying unwanted fat around is one of those things you get accustomed to when you’re heavy, but that doesn’t imply it’s not damaging. Getting rid of excess fat will provide you with much more vitality and confidence than you could ever envision. It’s night and day. My experience continues to be so encouraging that I can’t picture myself going back to the days of having unwanted fat. I’m sure that anyone else who has gone through significant fat loss feels the same way. It’s like owning a DVR or viewing sporting events in high-definition. Once you switch, you’ll never return back. Now that you know the healthy body fat percentage for men and women, it’s time for you to act!