Body weight is comprised mostly of muscle, fat and bones. Your body weight depends on many factors -- your height, the size of your frame, your gender and even your age. By contrast, your percentage of body fat evens out for all of these factors except your gender. Several methods are available to measure your body fat percentage, some of which are more accurate than others. These include body mass index (BMI), skinfold measurements and underwater weighing.
Significance
Your body weight alone may be insufficient to determine whether or not you are overweight -- an advanced bodybuilder may weigh more than an obese person of the same height, for example. In order to get a good idea of whether or not you are overweight -- or if you already know you are overweight, how much weight you need to lose -- you will need to determine your percentage of body fat.
Standards
Ideal body fat percentages are higher for women than for men, because women are designed with more body fat in order to bear children. In addition, a certain amount of body fat is necessary for your body to function properly. The optimal level of body fat is 10 to 25 percent for men, and 18 to 30 percent for women, according to the University of New Mexico. The body may not function properly if body fat falls below 5 percent in men and 15 percent in women.
BMI
The BMI is the most approximate indicator of body fat percentage because it takes into account only height and weight. If you know your height and weight, you can calculate your BMI online. The result will not be a direct measure of your body fat percentage, but it can be compared with ideal weight standards to determine whether or not you need to lose weight. An ideal BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9. A BMI of 30 or more indicates obesity, while a BMI of 40 or more indicates morbid obesity, according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Nevertheless, if you have an unusually small or large frame, or are unusually flabby or muscular, BMI might not be an accurate indicator.
Skinfold Method
The skinfold method for estimating body fat percentage can be performed at home with a pair of calipers. The cheaper the calipers, however, the less accurate they are. If you are not skilled at using calipers, avoid plastic calipers, advises the University of New Mexico. If you are a man, pinch your skin and measure the thickness at your chest, stomach and thigh. If you are a woman, measure your triceps, thigh and suprailiac just above your hip bone. Plug these values into an online skinfold body fat calculator.
Underwater Weighing
Underwater weighing is one of the best ways to measure your body fat percentage. Since fat is not as dense as muscle or bone, the fatter you are, the less you will weigh underwater. Although underwater weighing is not a perfect measure of body fat percentage, it is the most accurate readily available means. Some commercial fitness gyms offer underwater weighing tanks for the use of members. You might also try university physical education departments.
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