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Scales which show your fat and water content.

yorkiegal

Baxter's mum
How do they do that? How can standing on a pair of scales give you an accurate reading of how much water you have in your body? I don't get it. :confused:
 
It's hard to fathom this one... since we are made up of so much fluid... I just can't see how it could be done in a domestic setting... but then I am not very technical at all.... xxx
 
I know that if you haven't drunk much, or have drunk alot it can affect the results on these scales. However the article reflects that and says it's good for monitoring...i'm not sure i want to know precisely how fat i am though!
 
You may be right there Chuffy... it really doesn't matter...

I have gone passed the stage of panicking if I gain a couple of pounds because we are mainly fluid and fluctuate all the time anyway....

But won't it be nice to get on the scales eventually and be able to move our tickers right down.... I can't wait! xxx
 
was talking about this subject with my other half just now, not somuch the scales but body fat analysis....i'm at the stage now, where i'm cracking on at the gym, i dont lose weight so much as i once did, but have read up a little on this, as we all know muscle weighs more than fat, so the fitter i become the bigger my muscles become, but i'm still losing fat altho my weight is static, here in Leeds, we have a place at Headingley that can measure body fat content, this will be my next step, if my body fat is say 20% at my 16st 9lbs, i want my body fat to come down, but my muscle mass to increase, so i could in theory stay at 16st 9lbs lose another 5% body fat but have increased my muscle mass....convoluted description, but i hope you get what i'm trying to say, i've come to the conclusion, we're all more or less obsessed with that weight number on the scales, not the actual composition of our bodys, which would be a truer reflection of where we are ;)
 
That is interesting Marky...

I am up and down with health issues, but committed to keep moving and trying to exercise as much as I'm able...

My weight isn't really going down despite being more active and sticking to a diet... but everyone says I'm losing weight...

I manage the Wii fit when able and the toning tables, I am not fit enough for a gym by a long chalk as yet...

I feel slimmer and look slimmer and I'm so happy with that feeling... but the scales are not budging... I've still not touched 18 stones... but can get in a smaller dress size...

Muscle and fat.. it's an interesting debate!

xxx
 
I have some of these body analysing scales and I really don't know how accurate they can be for just £10.

They do seem to work but is it really true what they tell you?

How can they possibly tell by just standing on them how much of you is fat and muscle and water?
 
Just found this information

Body fat scales use a technique called Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis... or BIA for short. Very simply...
A small and completely harmless electrical current is passed through your body. The electrical current passes more quickly through fat free tissue like muscle than it does through fat or bone tissue. So...

The amount of resistance to the electrical current relates to how much fat-free mass a person has and their body density. Here's the first challenge...

Like all body fat tests, body fat scales don't actually measure your body fat percentage. They determine your body density. The examiner (or the scales) then uses a formula to calculate body fat percentage based on body density.


Bioelectrical Impedance

Bioelectrical impedance methods are basically special body fat scales or hand-held devices that send a safe electrical signal measuring its return through the body. The signal will travel faster with water and since muscle is 70% water and fat contains little water, the body fat scale is able to make a distinction, plug the information into an algorithm and give you a reasonable body fat percentage estimate.

Bioelectrical impedance is simple and quick. The scales are not outrageously expensive, usually $60 to $200, which makes it a practical method. Tanita makes some good ones.

The consistency of these measurements is a bit questionable however. Changes in water retention, food intake, skin temperatures and minor posture changes among other things can affect the readings given by these devices. These variables can leave you with some perplexing numbers.

While the bioelectrical impedance methods won't be as reliable as skinfold measurements methods, they are better than not getting a number at all. So if you're not a very patient person (and learning to get consistent body fat percentages with skinfold measurements will require a little practice and patience), body fat scales can provide serviceable body fat calculations. They will give you something to go on.

For best results, try to keep all factors as close to identical each time you jump on your body fat scales (temp, posture, etc.).
 
i got weighed on some of these on Wednesday at my check up, it told you everthing! It said that my metabolic age was 60!
 
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