Fat Caliper is a simple tool for accurately measuring your body fat percentage  

Fat Caliper is a practical tool for determining your body fat percentage. It is simple to use and allows you to perform the measurement all by yourself or ask a friend to help. To determine your body fat percentage with a fat caliper, you measure your suprailiac skinfold located on the abdomen. Finding the specific spot on your body for applying the measuring device is made easy with the assistance of the enclosed manual.

 

This practical tool will come in handy especially when you're trying to lose weight, and want to keep track of your progress. That's especially the case if you're preparing for a fitness or bodybuilding competition, and are therefore currently on a pre-contest shredding diet. However, the fat caliper may just as well be used in case you are actually trying to put some weight on. Increasing body fat percentage may be desired by people who suffer from unhealthily low fat rates and need to put on some weight for health reasons. 

 

If you enjoy changes and like to keep your body under control, the fat caliper can be a great tool for tracking body changes.

 

Fat Caliper & its advantages 

• practical plier-like tool for measuring your body fat percentage
• easy to operate
• measures the amount of fat in the body by observing abdominal area
• the measured values are simple to interpret thanks to the included measurement interpretation chart
• ideal for both men and women
• may be used for weight gain and loss

 

How to operate a fat caliper

• Take all measurements on the right side of your body.
• Measurements should not be taken on broken, damaged or unhealthy skin.
• Make sure your skin is dry and cream-free for a proper grip on the skinfold.
• If you are obese, it is not recommended to take skin fold measurement.
• Do not measure after physical activity or when overheated. Fluid fluctuation can distort measurement results.
• Always use the same fat caliper and measure at the same time of day so you can consistently track changes in body composition.
• If you are a woman, avoid taking measurements during your period, when there is a noticeable temporary weight gain. For objectivity, always measure yourself in the same phase of the cycle.
• It is crucial to consistently grasp the skinfold of the right size and in the right place. Repeat the measurement several times until you get consistent results.

 

How to properly measure your body fat percentage using the fat caliper 

Since most of the fat in the body is located directly under the skin, measuring skinfolds is a very effective and practical way to determine your body fat percentage. Using a caliper brings the scientific approach to the proven pinch-an-inch method and is the most proven and trusted method of measuring body fat. The fat caliper is designed to be very easy to work with and can be used by a single individual taking their own measurements (naturally, the measurement can be assisted if you prefer so). Although measuring skinfolds is technically very simple to learn and perform, it is recommended that you take some time to familiarize yourself with the correct procedure.

 

How to measure your body fat precisely and correctly using the fat caliper 

1. Use the suprailiac skinfold, located approximately 2.5 cm above the point of your right hip bone, to measure your body fat. To find the correct part, place your left index finger on the most prominent point of the right hip bone and move up by 2.5 cm (see Figure 1).

2. Make sure the slider on the curved part of the fat caliper is moved all the way to the right. Take the measuring device in your right hand.

3. While standing up and with your fingers about 5-7 cm apart, firmly grasp the suprailiac skinfold between the thumb and forefinger of your left hand. Gently pull the skin flap away from the body. Pull the skin and subcutaneous fat away from the muscle tissue (see figure 2 and 3).

Note: If the area contains a lot of fat, you will need to increase the distance between your thumb and forefinger to grasp and pull the fold out. Make sure to grab the skinfold directly against the skin, not through clothing.

4. Hold the fat caliper in your right hand and grasp the skin fold with it so that both sides of the caliper are perpendicular to it. Place the contact surfaces of the caliper about 1 cm from the fingers so that it is in the same plane with them (see figure 4).

5. While holding the skin fold with your left hand, press down with your thumb on the spot marked on the fat caliper indicator until you feel a slight click. The measuring slide automatically moves over the measuring arm and stops at the correct value. Once you feel and hear a click, stop pressing immediately.

6. Release the jaws of the fat caliper, take a reading and record your measurement to the nearest millimeter. Return the slider to the rightmost starting position so that it is in place for the next measurement.

7. Once you've taken one measurement, take another. If the results differ significantly (by more than 1 mm), take additional measurements until the values are more consistent.

8. See the appropriate MALE or FEMALE body fat measurement chart to find your body fat percentage at the intersection of your age and measured millimeters.

 

How to interpret the results?

1. Get your body fat measurement results in millimeters using a fat caliper.
2. Find where the column with your millimeter reading and the row with your age range intersect.
3. The number in the intersection represents the measured body fat percentage.

Note: For measurements over 36 mm: add 0.25% for every millimeter measured over 36 mm.

 

Results Interpretation Chart