Fat Calipers

[Rockaho]

I got my fat calipers in today. I ordered them from http://www.bodybuilding.com for 16.97 that included shipping.
I'm sure they aren't as accurate as going and having it checked professionally but I don't care that much about knowing my actual bf% is. What I'm interested in knowing is if I'm losing fat or muscle. By the way It showed 15%bf.

 

[Mr.X]

they worked

hey bro,
I've used the bodybuilding.com calipers (the cheap once) they worked great, all you need to know is when you grab the fat you need to pinch it w/ your fingers and roll it around so the sub-skin water is not in the measurement, then take the reading it should be pretty acurate<BR>
My 2cents<BR>
Mr.X

 

[SCHNiKEN]

how exactly to use

When i use the accu measure calipers i have.. i have a hard time getting the same measurement everytime.. where EXACTLY am i suppose to grab the skin fold and how wide of a spot should i pinch like should i pinch as much as i can or like an inch worth of skin or open up my hand as wide as it goes and grab as much skin as i possibly can?

 

[Rockaho]

You should be able to pinch 3 diffrent ways consistantly.
One of which is where you pinch as small an amount that you can. Doing this you haven't pulled the fat away from the muscle tissue and don't get an accurate measurement.
Two you can grab as much as you possibly can. Doing this you get some muscle and a couple of layers of fat and don't get an actuat measurement.
Three is in between. I pinch enough skin that I get a fold that extends out about 1.5 inches and is consistant in thickness through the 1.5 inches. According to the acumeasure instructions you should do this 1 inch above your hip bone.

What I would suggest would be to not worry about accuracy and concentrate on concistancy. Find a place where you can get the same reading over and over again. I have actually put two dots on my belly with a permanent marker so that I will place the calipers in the same place every time. I will probably need to darken the mark every 3-4 days so that it don't wash or fade off. (sounds kinda silly but it sure makes it hard to screw it up)