35.5% body fat?

[Anonymous]

At age 47, your body fat should be between 23-35%. You are barely over the "healthy" range. Barely.

Also keep in mind that we really don't have a great way to measure body fat. Take the test three different times and you'll probobly get three different numbers.

If you are a female with 12% body fat, I suggest you see your doctor. I am 5'5, 115 pounds and a marathon runner. I have low body fat (really, a little too low) and it's nowhere near 12%. That's not healthy for a women.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just found out my body fat. That seems pretty high. I'm a 47 year old woman. I work out regularly but my diet is not the best.

It does seem high for someone who works out regularly. What is your height & weight?

Agree with PP, 12% is not good for a woman's body.

I am 5'6" and 164 pounds.

I don't think that 35% seems to crazy. Your height and weight put your BMI in the "overweight" category. I also think that diet is much more important than exercise. Can you try to eat better?

Yes, absolutely. This is shocking to me, so I must do my best to eat more fruit and veggies and less processed crap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just found out my body fat. That seems pretty high. I'm a 47 year old woman. I work out regularly but my diet is not the best.

It does seem high for someone who works out regularly. What is your height & weight?

Agree with PP, 12% is not good for a woman's body.

I am 5'6" and 164 pounds.

I still don't think the 35 is correct. Here is the chart from NIH, which is based on averages for height & weight. Average BMI for your height and weight is 26.5%. So for you to have 35.5%, you'd have to seriously be lacking muscle/lean mass.

actually most women are lacking in muscle mass. Womentend to do lots of cardio and lift light weights. neither of which will have significant increases in muscle mass. Add that to age and it is very possible to be a healthy weight but have too much fat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is very high. I am 35 years old and a women. Mine is 12% which is low, but I am very athletic and lean. You should aim for 20%.

That's preposterous. You don't have 12 percent body fat unless you're a bodybuilder. A woman has approximately 10 to 12 percent essential fat.

To the OP, a normal woman should seek to have a body fat percentage under 30-31 percent.

You're also a WOMAN, not a WOMEN.

And you're jealous. And fat too.

[Anonymous]

I thought one had to have at least 17% body fat to menstruate

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I thought one had to have at least 17% body fat to menstruate

There is no exact number for menstruation, since the hormone levels vary woman to woman. Not PP, but I did menstruate around 11-13% when I was a ballerina and I was scary, unhealthy-looking skinny. When I was not dancing, I went the other way and ended up in the low-30s, so it is possible to be there and be in pretty good shape as well. Agree with PPs about bumping up non-cardio work and improving diet, OP.