You step on the scale and see the same weight as always staring back at you. It’s frustrating to see that your exercise and diet routine isn’t working. The truth is, it might be.
Unless you get an accurate measurement of your body fat, you’ll never know.
To do that, you’ll pinch your abdominal skinfold and get a reading using a pair of body fat calipers. What is your abdominal skinfold, though? How do you find it?
We’ve got all the answers you need right here. Keep reading to learn more about measuring your body fat percentage so you can find out where you are with your physical health.
What Is Your Abdominal Skinfold?
So, the first question you may have is what is your abdominal skinfold? It’s one of the most common places on your body where you can get a semi-accurate reading of your overall body fat.
You do this by pinching the skin that’s off to the right of your belly button. There should be something there even if you have tight abdominal muscles from a reverse tummy tuck.
There are some advantages and disadvantages of using it for your measurements. For one, not a lot of people like the feeling of having their skin pinched. For two, you’re going to need to have some knowledge of anatomy to do it the right way.
How Do You Measure It?
To begin the test, pinch the skin and pull it away from your body. Wiggle it a little to separate it from the muscle underneath. Stand in a relaxed position as you go about this.
Next, you’ll clamp the body fat calipers down on the area. You’ll go at it from two different sides, so you get two separate readings. Take the average and plug it into a body fat calculator online.
That will get you the number that you’re looking for. Again, it can be uncomfortable, but you can pick up a pair of calipers online for a decent price.
Is It Accurate?
There are a lot of factors that go into the accuracy of the test. You’ll need to have a quality pair of calipers and know how to use them. If you or the tester don’t know much about anatomy, the results might be a bit off.
Your hydration levels can skew the test. The calipers can also be difficult to use, making this method a bit outdated. There are better ways to go about it.
Using an electronic device or special scale is more expensive than picking up a pair of calipers, but they’ll give you a better reading of your subcutaneous body fat.
Understanding Your Body Composition
Are you trying to find out if your fitness routine is doing the trick for you? The best way to do that is to get a good reading of your body fat using your abdominal skinfold.
Getting the measurement isn’t difficult, and it’s accurate to a certain degree. Use the tips that you’ve read here today to get your body fat reading, and for more fitness advice, visit the Health section of our blog.