Female Body Fat% and what the heck does it mean?

[joelsmanders]

So I've been told by my lady doctor that a healthy female, in order to have a child, should be between 18-22% for body fat.

I'm under the impression that as long as you have a period... it should be fine.

I'm going to be doing the shortcut to shred program and I'm a tad worried about if my overall body fat % will affect my ability to have a child. My personal trainer at the gym informed me that when a woman drops below 14%, you start to loose the visceral fat that insulates your organs.

I've read articles on both sides of the story that say you'll be fine and no don't drop below 16%. Clearly... I'm below 16% and I'm quite regular unless I'm super super stressed.

Will someone please tell me what the answer is? I want better abs than what I currently have and I'm hesitant to drop the body fat% to get them. I eat 3 meals a day and have 3 snacks a day and I make sure my caloric intake is correct depending on whether or not I'm working out that day.

[beyond09]

Looking at your pics, you are NOT below 16% bodyfat. Don't go by those handheld bodyfat testers or scales as they are grossly inaccurate, as are calipers. Unless you have a DEXA scan done, it's very hard to know exactly what your bodyfat % really is, and at the end of the day it's largely a meaningless number. I'd say you're not even below 20%, but by the look of your pics, you need to build muscle rather than cut anymore.

Anyway, in terms of being able to get pregnant, I'm not doctor here but I don't think you have anything to worry about. Your actual bodyfat is not approaching a level of effecting amenorrhea, but even so, if you're looking to get pregnant why are you even worried about cutting in the first place?

[joelsmanders]

Looking at your pics, you are NOT below 16% bodyfat. Don't go by those handheld bodyfat testers or scales as they are grossly inaccurate, as are calipers. Unless you have a DEXA scan done, it's very hard to know exactly what your bodyfat % really is, and at the end of the day it's largely a meaningless number. I'd say you're not even below 20%, but by the look of your pics, you need to build muscle rather than cut anymore.

Anyway, in terms of being able to get pregnant, I'm not doctor here but I don't think you have anything to worry about. Your actual bodyfat is not approaching a level of effecting amenorrhea, but even so, if you're looking to get pregnant why are you even worried about cutting in the first place?

I'm not looking to get pregnant right now. I was just worried about the long term effect of it. I suppose it was quite cocky to say clearly I was at a fat%, however, the thingy they use (not the calipers) at my gym by the person who runs it puts a lot of stock into it. That's another thing I've read is that some people think they're stupid and others stand by it 100%. The last time I had my actual body fat seriously tested by a doctor I was at 21% and I was also 20lbs heavier as well as 8 inches wider in the waistline... so I like to think that the measurement tool at the gym is pretty accurate or something if very wrong.

[oregonchick76]

18-22% is pretty lean for a woman. It would be unnecessary to go that low for a woman to have a baby - I'm assuming she was indicating that was the lowest one should be to have a baby.

You are probably closer to the 18-20% so you should be good to go as far as baby-making.

[trailmeeks]

Unfortunately those handheld scanners can be all over the place - I think the only good thing to use them for is to track a general trend (if you already know your bodyfat, or just to use to make sure it's going the right direction).

I go a few times a year to the local college, and they have a hydrostatic tank in their kinesiology department. It's about $60 or so. But now I know approximately my bf just based on visual tests - at about 15% I have a 4 pack and I probably get down to around 12 just before competition. But I can't maintain that for very long, nor would I want to.

But, at that point I've had people measure me at 7% with calipers (which was obviously wrong) and also about that with a handheld. There's so many factors (hydration level, grip on the device itself, angle that you hold it at). I think it can be a good tool as long as you take into account how inaccurate it can be and don't worry about any specific number.