The Important Role of Body Fat Percentage When Gaining Weight
Why is it important to calculate your body fat percentage when you’re on a weight gain program? Surely it’s something only overweight dieters and fanatical bodybuilders should concern themselves with. Not necessarily. Whether you’re goal is to lose or gain weight calculating and controlling your body fat percentage will be at the very heart of your success. If you have ever followed a strict exercise and nutrition program you’ll understand what a key role motivation plays. As with any fitness test this is one the most powerful qualities of calculating body fat percentage. Imagine this quick scenario.
John follows a sound training and nutrition program designed to increase his lean muscle mass. After 6 weeks or so of dedication and determination he notices his body weight has changed only slightly if at all… Arrgh!
Not getting discouraged John has his body fat percentage measured. Before he started the program John weighed 150lbs with a body fat percentage of 15%. After 6 weeks he weighs 152lbs but his body fat percentage has dropped to 12%. The result?
Over 6lb of highly motivating muscle gain (1lb a week is the upper limit of what you can expect when gaining weight) and over 4lbs of fat loss.
The point is this would not show up on the bathroom scales. They give a very limited and often inaccurate picture. Measuring your body fat percentage is the only way to tell if your weight gain program is effectively increasing your lean muscle mass without an associated body fat increase.
So what other benefits does knowing your body fat percentage give you? Let’s look at the long term picture and consider your general health and well being.
Studies are showing that a typical person living in the western world steadily loses muscle and gains fat starting at age 20. So even if a person maintains a steady weight throughout their life there’s a good chance their body fat percentage is increasing and their lean tissue mass is decreasing.
Traditionally aging and all it’s physical detriments was seen as inevitable. Not any more. Most gerontologists (gerontology is the science of aging) agree that simple lifestyle changes can have a dramatic effect on the aging process. The loss of functional strength, increase in body fat percentage, decrease in bone density, reduction in flexibility and decline in aerobic power are all under our control.
Measure your body fat percentage regularly and old age won’t creep up on you. You’ll be able to see, first hand, the changes occurring in your body and, if you choose, you can do something about it.
Are you tired of being the skinny guy that struggles to pack on the pounds? Read my reviews of the best weight gain programs to gain weight and build muscle mass fast!
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