Accurate Body Fat Testing?

[Brat]

I went and had my body fat tested this morning at 24 Hour...I asked for a seven-site caliper test...normally, they only do a four-site, but one of the girls knew how to do a seven-site...anyway...to compare, she did three different methods: seven-site, four-site, and the hand-held one...she claimed the four-site was more accurate than the seven-site, and the hand-held one should be close...my results were all over the place...

Which method would you say is the most accurate??

 

[StoneColdNTO]

Hydrostatic testing.

 

[Brat]

I figured someone would say that...

...of the three I had done, which is most accurate??

 

[running gun]

I've heard the only true way is the dunk test where your placed in water. I have calipers and found, with practice I can be fairly consistent. I also purchased a scale that measure body fat, it reads very high but I use it for a fast daily reading. The scale and calipers are good tools to monitor your BF when it's going up or down, the reading that is show however is an arbitrary number.

 

[Deep South Chris]

where is somewhere that does Hydrostatic testing?

 

[ManOfMuscle]

None of the pinch tests are really accurate just use the mirror.

 

[DocJ]

The only use I have for skin calipers is that if you have a baseline and then repeat everything exactly when you re-measure after a period of time, you have a general idea of which direction your bodyfat % is going and how fast.

 

[Brat]

where is somewhere that does Hydrostatic testing?

Check at your local university in the kinesiology dept...

 

[GymLift]

...just use the mirror.

Solid advice, here.

 

[Brat]

Yeah, I'm going to take before and after pictures...