My new scale has "athletic mode".
I was wondering how the athletic mode changes the calculation? I am 5'7", 146LBS, 12.1%BF according to the athletic mode. If I switch over to normal mode, I am at 17%BF. I normally am very athletic, except for the last 3 weeks from injuries. I am starting to see a slight 4 pac. My goal is to have abs, but I don't want to look anorexic. 3 months ago, I weighed 160LBS and was my strongest ever, but I also had more BF and was taking creatine.
Does anyone know what athletic mode does to the calculation? I searched the forums already and did not find the answer.
Thanks
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03-12-2007, 10:08 AM #1
Athletic mode & Body Fat ...WTF???
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03-12-2007, 10:22 AM #2
I'm not sure exactly what the idea is behind the "Athletic Mode" on the body fat scales, but it's been my experience that the Athletic Mode is more accurate than the non-Athletic Mode...regardless of whether or not the person on the scale could even be considered "Athletic".
I think the non-Athletic Mode should (maybe) be used by a person that is significantly overweight and/or extremely sedentary. I've tested both settings on friends of mine that don't workout, and don't remotely qualify as "athletic". I've found that the Athletic Mode is more representative of their true body fat percentage vs the non-Athletic Mode.
It should probably be called "Reasonably Fit Mode" instead of "Athletic Mode".
Make sure you use your scale at the same time every day for consitent results. When using a body fat scale, the most important thing is consistency, rather than accuracy. You're looking for trends (gaining fat/losing fat/maintaining fat). Also, the more consitent you are with your diet, the more consitent the results will be (alcohol, a sudden increase or decrease in carbs and/or sodium, etc, will make the scale go haywire).
I use my body fat scale first thing in the morning, which makes the body fat readings about half a percent higher than they would be in the middle of the day. But that's ok, like I said, it's about consistency...not accuracy. If you chose to use your body fat scale first thing in the morning, you can warm up with your legs with some body weight squats to get more accurate results.
Hope this helps.
note: My signature has been seized by an anonymous bodybuilding.com moderator. The words in the signature aren't mine; they're the moderator's. It's a slap in the face to my hard work, dedication, and applied knowledge.No supplement has the power that is greater than the power of eatin' clean and liftin' hard.
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03-12-2007, 10:28 AM #3
Measuring BF using a scale is useless. It should not be used to make decisions.
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03-12-2007, 11:24 AM #4
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03-12-2007, 01:53 PM #5
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03-12-2007, 01:59 PM #6
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03-12-2007, 02:18 PM #7
The problem is they are not consistent in their inaccuracy. They are off by 10%-40% at any given time. I could do it 10 times a day and get 10 different readings. Unless I'm doing it 10 times a day and picking the number in the middle, it's a waste of time. Did calipers suddenly become expensive?
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03-12-2007, 02:30 PM #8
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03-12-2007, 02:48 PM #9
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03-12-2007, 02:49 PM #10
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03-12-2007, 02:53 PM #11
does anyone own both a scale and calipers? which one tends to read higher?
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03-12-2007, 03:00 PM #12
Zeus,
I can see how your user text ("M0DERAT0R") might rub some mods the wrong way, since we've all paid our dues here to get mod status. If you changed your user text to pretty much anything but what it is now, the powers that be might lighten up. Can't guarantee it, but just trying to help.
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03-12-2007, 03:02 PM #13
I think I must have miss type something. My calipers are always accurate, at least they seem to be to me. It is the scale that is always off. Lets say I am at 15.8, then the scale will show me at 18, 20, 15, 21.. See what I mean, it is hardly ever the same twice.
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03-12-2007, 03:28 PM #14
I have both and my scale is always off by about 4-7% My calipers say I am at 15.8 and the scale has me something different all the time. Like some one said above, I can get on it 10 times and get 10 different numbers. I still use it, because I spent the money for it, but it is pointless.
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03-12-2007, 03:39 PM #15
so your calipers aren't consistently lower or higher than your scale, your scale just fluctuates around your calipers reading?
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11-30-2012, 07:19 PM #16
I have similar questions
I have been looking for answers on the athletic vs. standard mode. I agree that the scales are not 100% accurate - but to say they are off by 10-40% is totally inaccurate. I weigh twice a day on a BF scale and record it all. Yes there is variation from Am to PM (as expected) but day to day the variation is within 1% and the trend is what I look at. My experience is also that the athletic mode gives me lower BF readings.
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12-13-2012, 02:40 PM #17
Getting a higher reading on Athletic mode...
I have the same question... I am using the Omron Body fat analyzer, the kind that you hold out from your body as opposed to a scale. It's model HBF-306 (from like 2000- it's old, I know I got it from my grandparents). Just now on 'Normal' mode it says I am 16.1%, and on 'Athlete' mode it says I'm 16.9%. So for some reason, I'm the only one that is getting a HIGHER reading from the "Athlete" mode? Does anyone actually have any knowledge of how it's calculated differently instead of just saying how inaccurate they are in general...? I know how to use these for pretty consistent and closely accurate readings. I'm female, maybe gender makes a difference in the readings in terms of 'Athlete' vs 'Normal' mode, I don't know... just throwing stuff out there.
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09-08-2013, 01:36 PM #18
I am so glad I found this. I have been using the normal mode when it should be athletic mode. It made a huge difference. I went from 28 percent down to 22.6 percent.
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09-08-2013, 01:54 PM #19
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10-07-2013, 09:23 AM #20
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10-07-2013, 09:54 AM #21
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10-07-2013, 10:11 AM #22
Brb putting mine on jacked mode so my BF instantly drops and I become shredded.
OP these are basically just goal physiques, and they set your goal to the average BF, muscle mass, and physique based upon average athletes of that category.My Log: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=169516313
MMDELAD
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03-27-2014, 04:59 PM #23
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12-20-2014, 06:09 AM #24
- Join Date: Dec 2014
- Location: Madison, Wisconsin, United States
- Age: 44
- Posts: 1
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Found this on Tanita FAQ: Probably this answers your question:
A: The Athlete mode was developed to provide a more accurate reading for athletic body types. Athletic body types are physiologically different than standard adult body types, due to muscle mass and hydration level differences. Athletes tend to have greater muscle mass and tend to be more dehydrated. These differences would skew the body fat reading high, when taken with the standard Adult mode.
Tanita defines "athlete" as a person involved in intense physical activity of approximately 10 hours per week and who has a resting heart rate of approximately 60 beats per minute or less.
Tanita's athlete definition includes "lifetime of fitness" individuals who have been fit for years but currently exercise less than 10 hours per week. Tanita's athlete definition does not include "enthusiastic beginners" who are making a real commitment to exercising at least 10 hours per week but whose bodies have not yet changed to require the Athlete mode.
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12-20-2014, 06:10 AM #25My Powerlifting "Road To Manlet" Log: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=172129323
Instagram: a.camstra
Gym PR(KG): 195/130/220 @61KG Raw
Meet PR(KG): 185/117.5/200 @58.6KG
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12-20-2014, 08:46 AM #26
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12-20-2014, 09:22 AM #27
Looking at the history of this thread I expect it will rise from the dead few more times. It's got some specific search terms that will come up high in Google.
Neither. Bioelectrical Impedance (BIA) is highly inaccurate. See: http://weightology.net/weightologyweekly/?page_id=218
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12-20-2014, 09:30 AM #28No brain, no gain.
"The fitness and nutrition world is a breeding ground for obsessive-compulsive behavior. The irony is that many of the things people worry about have no impact on results either way, and therefore aren't worth an ounce of concern."--Alan Aragon
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