Quote:
Originally Posted by Devils'Advocate
And if I could do that and maintain 175, I would be more than happy with that. I just need to get my doctor's sign off on it, or else I risk losing my crown (see link I posted earlier in this thread). If it was just me, I'd say screw my doctor - *I* am happier at 175. But since the newspaper articles and the speaking tours, others are looking at me as an example.
[snip]
Though my physiotherapist thought it humourous that I could lose the crown by adding muscle mass.
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My mistake, I just read since the bump. That is pretty silly, and I agree with you that getting a DEXA done for body fat % would be the most objective measure. Then, even if you gained 10 pounds of muscle, your % would stay the same (or decrease).
Quote:
Originally Posted by blankall
There are reports of 3% bf, but it depends on how the measurement is made. Also that bf is never maintained for more than a couple of days.
Hydrostatic weighing is most certainly not 100% accurate either. It depends on mathematical formula and density. Things like lung capacity, hydration, bone density, how much food is in your intestinal tract, etc... will all affect the measurements.
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Agreed, very low body fat is not something you should maintain (ie < 5% for men).
And no, hydrostatic weighing isn't fool-proof, which is why DEXA is the new gold standard, but it is pretty good (ie they standardize no eating / drinking for a few hours prior, take lung capacity and bone density into the equations, etc).
Calipers and bioelectrical impedance and some of the other measures aren't very accurate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by blankall
If you are maintainign 6% that is extremely impressive. I'd be interested to see your diet/routine.
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Not as impressive as you'd think. While yes, I eat healthy and exercise a lot (probably too much), I've had low body fat my whole life. I think that's where some discrepancy at the low end comes in - some people just have low values and that's normal for them.
If you were 6% but were at a huge caloric deficit to get there then you won't last very long. At some point it's going to destroy your energy levels too much to maintain it - hence why body builders "cut" before an event (which in my opinion is brutally unhealthy).