How to Measure Body Fat Online

A person's body fat, the percentage of pure fat in the body (not including lean body mass, bone density and organ weight), can be a good indicator of a person's physical condition. Body fat of more than 30 percent in women and more than 24 percent in men is usually indicative of obesity. Acceptable body fat for men and women is between 18 to 24 percent and 25 to 30 percent, respectively. You can measure your body fat online simply by providing a few body measurements.

Instructions

1

Use a body measuring tape to measure your waist, height, neck and hips (only women need to provide a hip measurement) in inches. Make sure the measuring tape fits snugly but doesn't press into your skin. Jot down the numbers on a piece of paper. You also will need to provide your weight to receive a calculation of your body-fat percentage.

2

Use an online body fat calculator, such as the one at ScientificPsychic.com. (See Resources below for a direct link.)

3

Enter the measurements you took in Step 1 into the appropriate boxes.

4

Indicate whether you are male or female by clicking the appropriate circle below the boxes where you entered your measurements. Body-fat percentage varies greatly between males and females, so make sure to remember this step. Also, choose your average daily level of activity from the options provided.

5

Click "Calculate" at the bottom to see your results. The first number is your BMI, which is a measure of body fat based solely on a person's height and weight. Normal BMI falls between 18.5 and 24.9. The second number is your waist-to-height ratio, which is your waist measurement divided by your height measurement. The third number is your body-fat percentage, which indicates the amount of fat you have in your body. For example, if you weigh 100 pounds and your body-fat percentage is 15 percent, this means that 15 pounds of your entire body weight is pure fat. Finally, the fourth number is your lean body mass, which is your weight minus the pounds of pure fat. Your lean body mass includes your muscle weight, bone weight and organ and fluid weight.