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Body Fat Calculator

US Units Metric Units Other Units Result
Gender male female Body Fat: 24.7%
24.7%
Age 20

Weight 78 kg Buy Best Plant Based

Protein
Height 175 cm
Body Fat (U.S. Navy Method) 24.7% Fast&Up
Neck 38 cm Body Fat Category Average

Waist 96 cm Body Fat Mass 19.3 kgs Search

Lean Body Mass 58.7 kgs
Ideal Body Fat for Given Age Fitness and Health Calculators
Calculate Clear 8.5%
(Jackson & Pollard)
BMI Calorie
Body Fat to Lose to Reach Ideal 12.7 kgs Body Fat BMR
Body Fat (BMI method) 19.0% Macro Ideal Weight
Pregnancy Pregnancy Weight Gain
Pregnancy Conception Due Date
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Reference

The American Council on Exercise Body Fat Categorization

Description Women Men

Essential fat 10-13% 2-5%
Athletes 14-20% 6-13%
Fitness 21-24% 14-17%
Average 25-31% 18-24%
Obese 32+% 25+%

Jackson & Pollard Ideal Body Fat Percentages

Age Women Men

20 17.7% 8.5%
25 18.4% 10.5%
30 19.3% 12.7%
35 21.5% 13.7%
40 22.2% 15.3%
45 22.9% 16.4%
50 25.2% 18.9%
55 26.3% 20.9%

Body Fat, Overweight, and Obesity

The scientific term for body fat is "adipose tissue." Adipose tissue serves a number of
important functions. Its primary purpose is to store lipids from which the body creates
energy. In addition, it secretes a number of important hormones, and provides the body
with some cushioning as well as insulation.
Body fat includes essential body fat and storage body fat. Essential body fat is a base
level of fat that is found in most parts of the body. It is necessary fat that maintains life and
reproductive functions. The amount of essential fat differs between men and women, and
is typically around 2-5% in men, and 10-13% in women. The healthy range of body fat for
men is typically defined as 8-19%, while the healthy range for women is 21-33%. While
having excess body fat can have many detrimental effects on a person's health,
insufficient body fat can have negative health effects of its own, and maintaining a body fat
percentage below, or even at the essential body fat percentage range is a topic that
should be discussed with a medical professional.
Storage fat is fat that accumulates in adipose tissue, be it subcutaneous fat (deep under
the dermis and wrapped around vital organs) or visceral fat (fat located inside the
abdominal cavity, between organs), and references to body fat typically refer to this type of
fat. While some storage fat is ideal, excess amounts of storage fat can have serious
negative health implications.
Excess body fat leads to the condition of being overweight and eventually to obesity given
that insufficient measures are taken to curb increasing body fat. Note that being
overweight does not necessarily indicate an excess of body fat. A person's body weight is
comprised of multiple factors including (but not limited to) body fat, muscle, bone density,
and water content. Thus, highly muscular people are often classified as overweight.
The rate at which body fat accumulates is different from person to person and is
dependent on many factors including genetic factors as well as behavioral factors such as
lack of exercise and excessive food intake. Due to varying factors, it can be more difficult
for certain people to reduce body fat stored in the abdominal region. However, managing
diet and exercise has been shown to reduce stored fat. Note that both women and men
store body fat differently and that this can change over time. After the age of 40 (or after
menopause in some cases for women), reduced sexual hormones can lead to excess
body fat around the stomach in men, or around the buttocks and thighs of women.

Potential Complications of Excess Body Fat

The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies obesity as one of the leading preventable
causes of death worldwide that is estimated to claim 111,909 to 365,000 deaths per year
in the U.S. This has been a growing cause for concern because 36.5% of U.S. adults are
defined as obese according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Obesity is associated with a reduction in quality of life, poorer mental health outcomes,
obstructive sleep apnea, as well as multiple leading causes of death worldwide such as
cardiovascular disease, stroke, certain cancers and diabetes. All of these potential
complications have the ability to reduce a person's life expectancy, and as such, obesity is
a medical condition that is studied by many researchers.
As previously mentioned, fat produces a number of essential hormones that affect a
person's body. An excess or a lack of critical hormones can have negative effects that
preclude proper body function. On a related note, studies have found that excess body fat,
particularly abdominal fat, disrupts the normal balance and function of some of these
hormones. Furthermore, body fat, specifically visceral fat, has a role in the release of
specific cytokines, which are a broad category of proteins involved in cell signaling, that
can potentially increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. Visceral fat is also directly
associated with higher levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, lower high-
density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and insulin resistance. LDL cholesterol is commonly
referred to as "bad cholesterol" while HDL is referred to as "good cholesterol." High levels
of LDL cholesterol can clog arteries and lead to complications including heart attacks.
Insulin resistance involves cells not properly responding to the hormone insulin, which can
lead to high blood sugar levels, and eventually to type 2 diabetes. As can be seen, excess
visceral fat can have measurable negative impacts to a person's health.

Measuring Body Fat Percentage

U.S. Navy Method:

There are many specific techniques used for measuring body fat. The calculator above
uses a method involving equations developed at the Naval Health Research Center by
Hodgdon and Beckett in 1984. The method for measuring the relevant body parts as well
as the specific equations used are provided below:

Measure the circumference of the subject's waist at a horizontal level around the
navel for men, and at the level with the smallest width for women. Ensure that the
subject does not pull their stomach inwards to obtain accurate measurements.
Measure the circumference of the subject's neck starting below the larynx, with the
tape sloping downward to the front. The subject should avoid flaring their neck
outwards.
For women only: Measure the circumference of the subject's hips at the largest
horizontal measure.

Once these measurements are obtained, use the following formulas to calculate an
estimate of body fat. Two equations are provided, one using the U.S. customary system
(USC), which uses inches, and the other using the International System of Units,
specifically the unit of centimeters:
Body fat percentage (BFP) formula for males:
USC Units:
BFP = 86.010×log10(abdomen-neck) - 70.041×log10(height) + 36.76
SI, Metric Units:
495
BFP = - 450
1.0324 - 0.19077×log10(waist-neck) ) + 0.15456×log10(height)

Body fat percentage (BFP) formula for females:

USC Units:
BFP = 163.205×log10(waist+hip-neck) - 97.684×(log10(height)) - 78.387
SI, Metric Units:
495
BFP = - 450
1.29579 - 0.35004×log10(waist+hip-neck) + 0.22100×log10(height)

Note that the results of these calculations are only an estimate since they are based on
many different assumptions to make them as applicable to as many people as possible.
For more accurate measurements of body fat, the use of instruments such as bioelectric
impedance analysis or hydrostatic density testing is necessary.
Fat mass (FM) formula:
FM = BF × Weight
Lean Mass (LM) formula:
LM = Weight - FM

BMI Method:
Another method for calculating an estimate of body fat percentage uses BMI. Refer to the
BMI Calculator to obtain an estimate of BMI for use with the BMI method, as well as
further detail on how BMI is calculated, its implications, and its limitations. Briefly, the
estimation of BMI involves the use of formulas that require the measurement of a person's
height and weight. Given BMI, the following formulas can be used to estimate a person's
body fat percentage.
Body fat percentage (BFP) formula for adult males:
BFP = 1.20 × BMI + 0.23 × Age - 16.2
Body fat percentage (BFP) formula for adult females:
BFP = 1.20 × BMI + 0.23 × Age - 5.4
Body fat percentage (BFP) formula for boys:
BFP = 1.51 × BMI - 0.70 × Age - 2.2
Body fat percentage (BFP) formula for girls:
BFP = 1.51 × BMI - 0.70 × Age + 1.4

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