The dreaded scale

Hi SurferChick, In a past life I was a certified personal trainer, and I can still legally place those letters after my name so maybe I can shed some light: "Normal" and "Average" in today's world is different from "healthy". According to the American Council on Exercise womens essential body fat (below these numbers most women experience negative health effects that can be serious) is 10 - 12%. If you pinched a super-lean female athlete in this range you'd find little but skin available in most places on her body and you would probably be able to see the muscle lines under the skin. Athletes in general, depending on their sport, tend to be in the 13 - 20% range. ACE goes on to classify "Fitness" as 21 - 24%, Acceptable as 25 - 31% and Obese as greater than 32%. What does this mean in the real world. The scale you have is a step better than the pounds-only variety, but we still don't know how accurate it is and as you have discovered things like hydration do affect the reading. My favorite test is the pinch test. It's very low-tech and can be done by a professional or why not just pinch yourself! Pinch your flesh so that the pinch fold is parallel to the line of the muscle underneath it. (Not sure? Email me and I'll explain the how-to in more detail.) If you can pinch a big blob of flesh at several points of your body, then yes! you have a high percentage of body fat. The actual number is less important than recognizing that something needs to change. I don't think it requires any special equipment to know when we are just plain fat. If you can pinch about a half inch or so in most places then your body fat is likely in the "Acceptable" range by the ACE standard or what some people would call "Normal". This may or may not be "acceptable" to you. If would not be to me. If you are a lean machine and under 20%, then you will pinch no more than 1/4 inch or so in most places on your body. Bottom line is that the leaner you are, the healthier you are as long as you remain above the essential threshold. It is super tough to get down that low, so for the vast majority of people engaging in consistent exercise and a good diet there is little risk of getting too low. As body fat increases, metabolism slides away from health and towards syndrome X which is a precursor to Type II diabetes. Fat also pumps out its own hormones designed to protect its turf and these hormones also speed the aging process. Triglycerides and cholesterol will move up relative to body fat especially in those with a genetic predisposition for higher levels. Circulation is negatively affected as it takes more effort to pump blood through the inert blobs of fatty tissue. So too much body fat is just not a healthy thing!

Here's an update to my scale nightmare... I weighed myself the other night (fully dressed) and then weighed myself the next morning, (not dressed) there was a 5lb difference in weight, so I'm feeling a bit better about the scale thing. My goal is to lose about 10lbs total. Wish me luck!

I would ask the Wellness Expert Brian Johnston. He is a certified personal trainer and would be a great source for that info. He is listed in the expert blogs on the Wellness home page.

My scale is possessed. And it's a freaking liar. Yes it is I tell you.

I hate my scale. It is really sensitive. My floors are not level in some places. Sometimes I will take my weight in different parts of the house and average them. This became a daily ritual so decided to give it away to a friend. They gave it back.