Hello
reading racing weight and it talks about body fat scales,
I am wondering what people use and if they would purchase that one again.
thanks in advance
chris
I dig the Withings unit.
The cool thing is - it links over WiFi to your network and will automatically update your training log on TP, etc.
It also has an iPhone ap to track your weight, lean & fat mass over time.
About $150 and looks sleek enough to put in any bathroom. Buy it through DCRainmakers site and he’ll make a nickel
off it. He is the guy who writes ‘Ray Electronic Mailbag’ on the ST site.
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2010/05/withings-wifi-scale-in-depth-review.html
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I love the withings unit also, it makes it really easy to track your weight over time. However, just know that the body fat % is really inaccurate. I did the underwater body fat test and my actual body fat % was twice as much as the withings scale showed. The scale does seem to internally consistent so I guess it would work to show any changes over time.
The Fitzgerald book is really good and definitely works. I lost 12 pounds over 3 months in the beginning of the season using it.
I dig the Withings unit.
The cool thing is - it links over WiFi to your network and will automatically update your training log on TP, etc.
It also has an iPhone ap to track your weight, lean & fat mass over time.
About $150 and looks sleek enough to put in any bathroom. Buy it through DCRainmakers site and he’ll make a nickel
off it. He is the guy who writes ‘Ray Electronic Mailbag’ on the ST site.
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/...in-depth-review.html
.
+1
Very easy to use and looks nice. The weight is right on. I can’t comment on the accuracy of the body fat measurement. Plus downloads right to the web and trainingpeaks.
If my body fat is twice what the Withings reports it as - I may be 110% blubber!!
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It’s strange, if I use the “athlete mode” then the body fat % is about 1/2 of what my true body fat is. If I use the regular mode, then it is about 2-5% higher than my true body fat %. I think a lot depends on when you weigh yourself and how hydrated you are. Either way, I really wouldn’t depend on it for an accurate %.
Hello
reading racing weight and it talks about body fat scales,
I am wondering what people use and if they would purchase that one again.
thanks in advance
chris
You will not get accurate bodyfat measurements from any of those units. Just buy a normal scale.
A mirror.
After Reading Racing Weight and having my Body fat measured before a VO2 Max test my % was all over the place depending on the day my water intake so I bought a new bodyfat scale it was about $90.00 has the handles so it was taking readings through the hands and feet at the same time I thought it might be better still really inaccurate.
I was speaking with a nutritionist with Max Muscle from Boulder CO. he hooked me up with the Jackson/Pollack Caliper test this has been the most consistent I take measurements once a week in the morning. check out both you will love it
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I bought the Omron handheld after starting to read Racing Weight. It’s actually been quite consistent and reported about what I thought was right. I already had a bathroom stand on scale with a body fat monitor, but it always reads very very high. I was wondering if it has to do with the thickness of skin on the feet from running or even a high arch that limits contact with the conductive plate.
only thing that is even close, and still subject to pretty big error. don’t waste your money.
x2 on the mirror. Normal scale for checking pre/post workout wt.
The error isn’t that big from what I’ve seen in the literature. Aligns well with hydrodensitometry.
That said, yeah…it goes for $30k or so and it takes a chunk of space in your bathroom 
The Omron sucks. I have one and if i just move it to another location in the bathroom my weight will suddenly change by more than a kg.
They can not measure fat and they can not even measure weight. These scales are garbage.
My comment was a reference to the bod pod (which are not easy to move around anyway 
)
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I think the error is pretty good for normal folks, rather than necessarily for athletes. The one we have here is finicky, but especially so with athletes- varies if you test over and over. Granted, its 1.1million times better than anything you can buy to put in your bathroom. however, if you don’t care about accuracy (aka you don’t care about the actual number being correct) and only care about precision (aka you care about % changes over time) than the silly $30-100 ones are ok.
I mean, even if they vary 5-8% (which they do or more) you can see general trends over time- so even if you’re 14% but the machine says you’re 20%, and in 2 months the machine says you’re you 29%, you have a general idea that you’re in trouble.
I also have found with previous research that the lower your % fat the worse those home ones are- it makes sense, right? if a machine has 5% error and you’re 8% body fat…well now you can be 3% or 13%…and those mean very different things. If you’re 37% now you can be 32% or 42%- again, a big range, means less b/c the percent error is less of a fraction of the real value…aka you’re still overweight.
Just find someplace that does the hydrostatic and pay 1x a month to get it done if you REALLY care.
My wife had an Omron at her old job and it worked well for me too. Very consistent over time. When she left that job I bought a Tanita which has been a complete piece of junk. The numbers are all over the place, even on back to back readings.
FWIW, UT El Paso has a bod pod. I tested at 4%, 3.9% and 2.9% in 2 months. I’m lean, but not that lean. No way. The literature I’ve seen talks about 3-4% difference.
Also suggests that clothing in the bod pod will affect accuracy significantly which is why it’s usually recommended to just way speedos and a ‘water polo cap’.
A couple of places do bod pod measurements for $45.
FWIW, UT El Paso has a bod pod. I tested at 4%, 3.9% and 2.9% in 2 months. I’m lean, but not that lean. No way. The literature I’ve seen talks about 3-4% difference.
Also suggests that clothing in the bod pod will affect accuracy significantly which is why it’s usually recommended to just way speedos and a ‘water polo cap’.
A couple of places do bod pod measurements for $45.
That’s my experience with bod pods as well. They are finicky, and need to be messed with all the time to be accurate- at a commercial place where you would pay to use one it probably NEVER get’s worked on. a 4% difference is huge.
which may also argue FOR the cheapo BF scales. I mean, if they’re $30 and have 5-8% error, and a $20k piece of hardware has 2-4%…do the math, right?