Healthy Male Body Percentage Of Fat

The Weight-control Information Network reports that as of 2008, 32.2 percent of men older than 20 are obese. Obesity is a risk factor for coronary heart disease, type II diabetes, stroke, high cholesterol and even some forms of cancer. Excess body weight makes it more challenging for your body to function properly internally and makes tasks of daily living more difficult as well. Understanding what is a healthy percentage of body fat and how to get there will improve your health and quality of life.

Healthy Body-Fat Levels

Everyone has a certain amount of body fat. In general, men tend to have less body fat than women. According to the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), a range of 10 to 22 percent fat is satisfactory for health in males. Of this total, 3 to 5 percent is considered essential fat and necessary for health.

Role of Fat

Fat stores do serve a purpose in the body. Fat acts as a cushion around the organs to protect against impact and aids in thermo-regulation, keeping the body warm. For athletes or regular exercisers, fat is essential to performance. Fat that is broken down by the body is used for energy, and supplies more energy than muscle glycogen or glucose. Eating about 20 to 35 percent of your daily calories from fat, with 10 percent or less being saturated fat, is recommended.

Determining Body-Fat Percentage

There are a few methods of determining or estimating body-fat percentage. Body mass index, or BMI, is a simple calculation, using height and weight, and the result correlates strongly with body fat. However, BMI calculation is not recommended if you have a lot of lean muscle tissue. Skinfold measurements can be accurate when administered by a trained professional and do not require a lot of equipment. The most accurate methods are underwater weighing and dual X-ray absorptiometry. But these require specialized equipment and training.

Exercise Recommendations

To lower body fat and lose weight, the ACSM recommends moderate to vigorous physical activity for a total of 225 to 420 minutes per week. The focus should be on aerobic exercise supplemented with resistance training two to three days per week. The activities you choose should be challenging and motivate you. Try not to do the same workout all the time as your body will become accustomed to it and not have to work as hard. This can cause a plateau and impede your progress.

Nutrition

Limit the amount of saturated fats--fats that are solid at room temperature--to less than 10 percent of your total fat intake. Eat a diet that includes omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids that can be found in many different types of fish and seafood. According to dietitian Nancy Clark, research indicates that the oils in fish can block many harmful reactions that cause blood to clot or your heart to beat irregularly. Olive oil, canola oil, nuts and avocados are good options to include in your diet.