It appears that I am obese and forty years older

[ananke]

I went to have a fitnes assesment where they calculate your age: turns out I'm secretly in my 60s and I'm also obese. What's up with this? I knew those hand held devices CAN be off, but that much? We have a BF% scale at home (I know they're imprecise) and it always veers between 19 and 23 so I thought well...but 35% bodyfat?! I thought I would have noticed... So yeah, kind of left me hum-hum-ing because the PT then took his reading and it was, according to him, right on target. Odd no? And strangely enough, my 'cardio' age is also elderly. He said it was because I don't do enough cardio (I like to lift), whereas I think it's because I'm either stressed (work deadlines) or something is up with the body lately because my resting rate was in the upper 80s.... Can not doing cardio much really impact your resting HR and cardiovasc fitness?

Thoughts?
:-/
I must have acute body (and age) dysmorphic disorder!

[susy99]

I went to have a fitnes assesment where they calculate your age: turns out I'm secretly in my 60s and I'm also obese. What's up with this? I knew those hand held devices CAN be off, but that much? We have a BF% scale at home (I know they're imprecise) and it always veers between 19 and 23 so I thought well...but 35% bodyfat?! I thought I would have noticed... So yeah, kind of left me hum-hum-ing because the PT then took his reading and it was, according to him, right on target. Odd no? And strangely enough, my 'cardio' age is also elderly. He said it was because I don't do enough cardio (I like to lift), whereas I think it's because I'm either stressed (work deadlines) or something is up with the body lately because my resting rate was in the upper 80s.... Can not doing cardio much really impact your resting HR and cardiovasc fitness?

Thoughts?
:-/
I must have acute body (and age) dysmorphic disorder!

that much difference is crazy. Have you tried another ways to check for body fat.

[KyleAaron]

Most measurements of bodyfat are very inaccurate. The least accurate are calipers in the hands of an untrained person.

You've not got pictures other than your avatar up, so all I can say is that if you are 35% bodyfat, you must have a bum the size of a barn. Which I doubt. What we've seen of you is consistent with bodyfat in the low 20s.

The number doesn't matter anyway. It measures nothing important by itself.

I don't know your general physical activity level, nor have I seen you work out, so I can't say what your fitness level is. However, I would be surprised if someone who does relatively heavy weight training genuinely had the cardiovascular fitness of a sedentary older person. How did the guy measure it?

[ananke]

That must be it! My barn-sized bum! I forgot to mention: my lower half is truly massive ;-)
Yeah I don't know. This is what he used:
http://www.dietandfitnessresources.c...ment/x0041.htm

Let's see, I'm gonna take a picture of the current state of affairs to show you what 35% bf looks like...I'll throw it on as my avatar pic. (Sorry turned out all dark, it's a naff day)

I know the number 'doesn't matter', I usually don't care about that BUT when you hear you "are" in the mid 30s when you thought you were in the mid 20s, well, merde! hehe, I mean, I just want to know where I'm at so I can see the numbers moving is all.

Fitness wise, I did some stepping for 4 minutes, measured HR before and after and BAM that's cardio fitness (as I mentioned though, lately my HR has been higher than usual, dunno why, i'm thinking stress). Stregth wise thought, the test said I was 21 years old so at least some good news out of the abomination that was the assessment...

[KyleAaron]

Yeah, that handheld monitor is useless. It won't even be scrap for parts after the apocalypse.

A four minute test has a lot of things that can mess it up. Maybe you had a cup of coffee first, maybe it was after a workout, maybe you didn't have breakfast that day, maybe he had you stepping too fast or on a step too high, and so on.

Remember that "fitness" simply means being able to perform your desired day-to-day tasks with some reserve for emergencies. So a big fat powerlifter is fit for powerlifting, a scrawny marathon runner is fit for running marathons, and so on. How do you measure your performance on tasks? Not by any test but your performance on tasks. Decide what you want to do day-to-day in life and sports and so on, measure that. So unless you are taking up step class...

[KaraPhoto]

Sweetie, there is NO FREAKING WAY that you are 35% BF.

I'm shorter than you by 2" and weigh 50lbs more than you and my BF is around 36% (measured *accurately* by someone who knows what she's doing ... and even then I assume that there's 2%-3% wiggle room on that just becuase it's always an estimate)

Looking at your avi and seeing your stats, I'm gonna say whoever measured you was smoking crack at the time.

[ananke]

Thanks Kara and KyleAaron :-) Should i also add that he took my body measurements over my sweatpants and tshirt and then "we'll just approximate"? Nice guy though, regardless of the "35% does seem kind of high but this is pretty accurate"-chat.

Are handheld monitors as hopeless as bf-reading weight scales? It's so striking that both are so ubiquitous yet so useless, no?

Maybe my resting HR was up because I'd eaten breakfast right before hehe or the fact that it was fuhreeeeeezing in there, or who knows? ill check it out upon waking to see what the numbers really are, out of curiosity, before throwing the lid on lifting to take up turbo-stepping so my 'age' comes down ;-)

[lsiberian]

Sounds like a bunch of nonsense to me. 5' 6" at 128 is the smack dab middle for normal weight. At your height. I use the tape measure method myself. Measure waist at belly button, measure neck and height. That Profile pic doesn't look obese to me. either. You are probably very fit.

[KaraPhoto]

Are handheld monitors as hopeless as bf-reading weight scales? It's so striking that both are so ubiquitous yet so useless, no?

I have an Omron BF measurement thingie (the technical term! ). The thing about using it is .. just like the scale ... there are a ton of things that can affect the reading; time of day, how much water you've had, if you've eaten, if you're sweating, etc. etc. etc. I use mine the same way I use my scale ... as a guideline only.

When I use it, I use it first thing in the morning, before I've done anything else (same way I weigh myself). It gives me a number that is close enough to accurate for my use. Then again, keep in mind that I'm not aiming for a particular body fat number or for a very low number as many women who are bodybuilding are. I'm just looking for a healthy range, which I think the Omron can help me to figure out.

But I certainly don't count it as accurate down to the percentage point. It's just another guideline tool to let me know that I'm staying on track.

Also please note that I am a complete geek and a gadget freak as well. I have a GoWear Fit, a HRM, the Omron, digital food scale, and I log my weight and measurements on an Excel spreadsheet. For me having the "toys" keeps it fun and interesting. For some people the "toys" just make it stressful. All depends on who you are and how you roll.

[kfisherx]

Took your measurements OVER your sweats? Not doing enough cardio? WTF trainer was this?

Sounds to me like the guy is "hedging" his bets. He gets a really super high bf% and crappy fitness readings than in 12 weeks (after working out with him) everything is hugely improved. MAGIC! Then you sign up with him again. Or if this is an "intro" meeting it makes you want to sign up now. You know, because you are sooo screwed and all....

Those bf% devices have a normal female mode and an athlete female mode. The readings are vastly different between the two and they are all crap anyway. If that trainer is trying to tell you this means ANYTHING, run away from him now.

[ananke]

Took your measurements OVER your sweats? Not doing enough cardio? WTF trainer was this?

Sounds to me like the guy is "hedging" his bets. He gets a really super high bf% and crappy fitness readings than in 12 weeks (after working out with him) everything is hugely improved. MAGIC! Then you sign up with him again. Or if this is an "intro" meeting it makes you want to sign up now. You know, because you are sooo screwed and all....

Those bf% devices have a normal female mode and an athlete female mode. The readings are vastly different between the two and they are all crap anyway. If that trainer is trying to tell you this means ANYTHING, run away from him now.

Haha funny no? I mean EVEN my calf measurements were taken OVER my sweats, haha i asked him if he wanted me to put on my sweatshirt for the bicep measurements. Anyways, I reckon the dude was totally clueless (he seemed to be "really hungry, haven't eaten in two hours"). I made it clear from day 1 that I was following my own workout program (thank god because i then saw another trainer there giving a woman her 'new workout schedule' that included: 10 minutes running, pushups - the kind where your neck hangs straight down, your tights are perpendicular to the floor so you're shaped like a table, and the head swings back and forth as the arms push up, cruches - the ones that mostly 'work out' your neck while the abdominals stay almost static and then some elliptical followed by crazy looking jumping jacks and some light weight lifting). Maybe I'll try the body fat machine there again on thurs and set it up myself just for fun, maybe it'll say I'm at 36% bf and the PT will again tell me "I've seen a lot worse.. it's not that bad" hehehe

[bethanyboo]

It sounds to me like he exaggerated everything to convince you that you needed his training. Based on your picture there's no way you're close to 35% bf.

[AuroraBorialis]

It sounds to me like he exaggerated everything to convince you that you needed his training. Based on your picture there's no way you're close to 35% bf.

ya i agree with this.

[LadyOrangeJuice]

You're def not 35% bf you lookgreat!

[VoxExMachina]

Should i also add that he took my body measurements over my sweatpants and tshirt and then "we'll just approximate"?

ROFL.

Even a certified expert with the body fat calipers wouldn't be able to get any sort of accurate reading through clothes (it's difficult enough to be accurate in the first place). So I wouldn't worry about that.

And the whole "your cardio age is..." is witch-doctor science to a certain degree. Sure, it has some merit if you're obese, smoke, and are out of shape, but that merit is primarily "shock value" to wake people up and get them to change their lifestyle. I highly doubt it's very accurate in terms of actual numbers. Besides, you can make huge changes in your cardio condition in a relatively short amount of time, so if you're worried about it then just throw some in.

[ABbb]

I'd leave estimation of your cardiovascular health to someone who actually knows something about it (i.e. cardiologist).

[ctgblue]

I've looked at your avatar and you definitely are morbidly obese, I mean I am surprised the camera could get all of you in the picture, you're Hyoooge...did they use a wide angle lense.
Wow, 5'6" and a whopping 128lbs, does the car sag on your side?....

seriously now, calipers, measurements, etc.. all suck, especially if someone does not know what they are doing.
Let's say you have a good waist and carry fat on your triceps, that can really throw off the reading.
You should get your own calipers, use a 3 or 5 pont reading, and keep track yourself.
The only way calipers are accurate is agains themselves. Maning that if you use the same method, and over time it shows you are losing fat, you are losing fat.

I have the opposite problem, I carry it all in the midsection, my arms and legs have extremely low fat, even at a reralist 15-18%, the calipers will show me 3% or more lower, my wife is opposite, she carries it in her arms and legs so it shows her higher.

[ananke]

I've looked at your avatar and you definitely are morbidly obese, I mean I am surprised the camera could get all of you in the picture, you're Hyoooge...did they use a wide angle lense. Wow, 5'6" and a whopping 128lbs, does the car sag on your side?.... seriously now, calipers, measurements, etc.. all suck, especially if someone does not know what they are doing.Let's say you have a good waist and carry fat on your triceps, that can really throw off the reading.You should get your own calipers, use a 3 or 5 pont reading, and keep track yourself.The only way calipers are accurate is agains themselves. Maning that if you use the same method, and over time it shows you are losing fat, you are losing fat. I have the opposite problem, I carry it all in the midsection, my arms and legs have extremely low fat, even at a reralist 15-18%, the calipers will show me 3% or more lower, my wife is opposite, she carries it in her arms and legs so it shows her higher.

Haha most of all, I love the humor this 'fitness test' came with. I honestly could not comprehend why the PT was measuring my calf over my sweats. Maybe he'd had a terrible hairy experience with someone else, who knows? Or maybe the sexual harrasment regulations have gotten terribly out of hand? At least the thing was free! Imagine paying for THAT. All too funny though. I said "look at me man, do I look obese to you?" and he said "well no but you know, I've seen worse and 35% isn't that bad; it's rare for women to be in the 20s anyways". So I was like damn... am I harboring secret fat? For a second I thought maybe my organs were super fatty and worthy of Believe it Or Not's consideration hehe. I said to the guy "if I am in my 60s fitness-wise and also overweight, my god! those people out there must be nearly fossilized and at the edge of the morbid obesity abyss". He shrugged and that was that hehehe.But yeah, you're right though and thank you for the advice re the home callipers; I will ask my husband to calliper me all over to see what that amounts to and then compare the numbers against themselves periodically to have a cause to celebrate every so often

[ctgblue]

Also, watch the pants waist, not the scale. The pants don't lie...

[JustLooking777]

I'm SO GLAD I saw this thread! The same thing happened to me when I went in for my assessment a few weeks ago. I am 5'7" and 128 lbs. Now, I will be the first to admit I am 'skinny fat.' But not obese. I'm a small person with flab and am trying to work it off.

But my assessment said I was 34% body fat and had the body of a 44-46 year old. She measured my stats using the scale that calculated body fat and water. To compliment that, she also did my measurements manually. I sat there thinking 'NO WAY' but didn't know any better so I took her word for it since I figured she was a professional, she knew what she was doing, and she took the stats 2 different ways.

So I was very disheartened. Upon telling my mother, husband, and a few friends, none of them believed that could be true. I even talked to one of the fitness instructors at the gym (but not a personal trainer) and she said that was impossible and that I would be out to *here* (while holding out her arms) if that were so.

Is this some sort of conspiracy? lol As in, for your beginners assessment, they give you dishonest results either to make you think at your next assessment that you have been busting sweat at the gym or worse... to make you think you should hire a personal trainer since apparently everything you have been doing is 'all wrong?'

No idea but you are the second person I talked to who said this has happened to them besides me. I thought it was just a fluke but between you, me, and my friend, I'm starting to think this is some sort of sales tactic.

?

[KyleAaron]

I honestly could not comprehend why the PT was measuring my calf over my sweats.

This morning at work I was talking to a fellow trainer, she was saying that at a previous job at a mainstream commercial gym they'd done a twelve week challenge, and she was rebuked by the boss for measuring girth and using the calipers properly - he wanted her to measure them loosely so they'd feel fat and in need of the gym's services now, and measure them tightly in twelve weeks so they'd have measured "progress".

Perhaps that's what was going on.

[ananke]

This morning at work I was talking to a fellow trainer, she was saying that at a previous job at a mainstream commercial gym they'd done a twelve week challenge, and she was rebuked by the boss for measuring girth and using the calipers properly - he wanted her to measure them loosely so they'd feel fat and in need of the gym's services now, and measure them tightly in twelve weeks so they'd have measured "progress".

Perhaps that's what was going on.

Just saw your reply (a bit late!). How outrageous!!! Surely this can't be allowed? I find it hard to believe....plus, most clients can tell, no? I mean, I laughed when I got his 'diagnosis' and if say, I book myself again with the same PT and this time he insisted on measurin me UNDER my sweats... it'd be VERY obvious. How can PTs go along with this absurdity?

[KyleAaron]

It's "allowed" because who's going to stop it? The person in charge. But it was them who ordered it.

Most people in gyms wouldn't have a clue how bodyfat gets measured. It's not something like a ruler or a scale that they're used to. So you could do it dodgy and they wouldn't know.

How do PTs go along with such absurdity? Same as any workplace - some agree with the absurdity, some just go along to not rock the boat, some pretend to go along with it but then are honest in practice, and so on.

I never offer to measure bodyfat, and almost no-one asks for it. Maybe one or two a month, I either discourage them from doing it or refer them to another trainer to do it. If one of the bosses insisted I would just say I'm too out of practice and couldn't do it properly, "But if you send me on a training course..." and then they'd leave me alone.

It's meaningless, even on the rare occasions when it's accurate.

[ananke]

It's "allowed" because who's going to stop it? The person in charge. But it was them who ordered it. Most people in gyms wouldn't have a clue how bodyfat gets measured. It's not something like a ruler or a scale that they're used to. So you could do it dodgy and they wouldn't know. How do PTs go along with such absurdity? Same as any workplace - some agree with the absurdity, some just go along to not rock the boat, some pretend to go along with it but then are honest in practice, and so on.

I never offer to measure bodyfat, and almost no-one asks for it. Maybe one or two a month, I either discourage them from doing it or refer them to another trainer to do it. If one of the bosses insisted I would just say I'm too out of practice and couldn't do it properly, "But if you send me on a training course..." and then they'd leave me alone. It's meaningless, even on the rare occasions when it's accurate.

I just checked in with another PT at my gym today:

"So let's go over your program" *picks up my logs* "good progress here... I've seen you working out, looks like you have a really good level of fitness"
"as a matter of fact you are wrong. You are looking at someone with a fitness age of 67 and, you may not be able to tell, but I am actually obese: 35% body fat"
*hyena laugher* "hahahaha i have my own opinion about those tests, they are total BS!!"

Odd no? That one trainer is totally indiferent and tries to sell the test if not as a 'good' indicator of fitness, as a 'possible' indicator of fitness, while another talks trash about its reliability and accuracy. Bah whatever. I just thought it was funny, the whole experience
(it did lead me to want to change trainers though hehe)

I agree with you Kyle Aaron, that to the average person, BF% # really doesn't matter and its accuracy is well, pretty often an approximation anyways and, at the end of the day, the best judge of your fitness (and bf%) is, well, your own observations of how your clothes fit and how you feel! I just feel sad for the people that are given innacurate readings and are left all downhearted, especially with this silly fitness age test, an abomination indeed aye?