I can tell that I've made a lot of progress in my journey to become more fit over the past 4 months. I've had to get new clothes. I can run longer, faster and farther today then I could at the beginning of February. I am lifting considerably heavier weights during my strength training sessions. Oh, and the scale shows me to be 40 lbs lighter today than at the beginning of February.
All of these benchmarks or milestones are valuable, but I felt I needed some thing more to help me stay motivated and to break through to a higher level of fitness. Even after losing 40 lbs I know just by using the "eye balls" test that I have a lot more weight that needs to be shed. But how much?
According to various web-based body-mass-index calculators I should weigh between 122 to 164 lbs. I struggled to understand how this was possible. I know my body, and while I'm not suggesting I'm muscle-bound, I know that I would be emaciated at 164 lbs (and probably near death at 122 lbs). But most people hear that and think I'm just engaging in delusional thinking.
I knew I wasn't deluding myself. I've been very honest about myself these past 4+ months. I'm not talking myself into complacency when it comes to eating and exercising. That's why I decided that I need to get a handle on what my ideal weight should be.
Thus the UIC Human Performance Lab. For $45 I was able to have a hydro-static weight test performed with a detailed report presented afterwards. Hydro-static weight testing is described as follows:
The most accurate body composition test that uses underwater weighing to determine anatomical mass. The error percentage of this test is 1-2 percent.
For more information on this procedure click here.
After work today I walked the 1 mile from my downtown office to the UIC campus and the Human Performance Lab. The folks at the HP Lab were very friendly and efficient. We got in, discussed the procedure, got underway, reviewed the results and I was able to walk to the train station and get home just a bit later than usual!
About the test itself - it was a bit harder than I had thought. I assumed that it was just a fancy water-displacement measurement and that all I'd have to do is get into a small pool, sit for a while and let a fancy computer do some calculations.
I did have to sit in a pool. A water displacement measurement was a part of the test. It was more complicated and more physically demanding than what I had imagined. The pool has a frame inside of it which I sat on. I guess it is like a scale of sorts. Over the course of several minutes (I'm guessing about 15) I had to exhale and then submerge my head (face first) into the water, exhale some more until no water bubbles were present and then wait about an additional 4 seconds. I wasn't allowed to come up for air until the technician/trainer told me (I could hear him while my head was under water).
The first time I tried it I pulled up way too early. Over the next 6 rounds I was able to do it right and my trainer was able to get a good and reliable reading (that's his characterization). I was ready to continue doing this but he said he had enough reliable measurements to run the analysis. I was winded. It felt like I was intentionally drowning myself. Not exactly a pleasant feeling.
The night before when I told my wife that I was undergoing this test she kind of scoffed at the idea. I told her that I thought the computer estimates (based on height and weight only) were too high - most online test show that my % body fat was over 32%.
My wife told me to pull up my shirt. I did. She looked at my midsection and then looked up and said - the computer sounds about accurate.
Well my dear, you were wrong. The hydro-static weight test shows that my percentage body fat is 23.6%. Hah! That's over 9% less!
The test showed that my fat-free mass (in lbs) is 162 and that the fat mass (in lbs) is 50. My first thought was that 50 lbs of fat is still a lot!
But it turns out that about 2% to 5% body fat is essential and that for my age a body fat percentage between 10 and 14% is consider excellent. If I lose another 25 lbs and get down to 185 lbs then my body fat percentage will be 13.5 %! I can do that!
I'm only 25 lbs away from a very healthy body fat percentage! This is incredible news for me. Given that strength training and high levels of lean protein have been a part of my regimen over the past 4+ months (and because my strength as measured by the weights I'm able to lift has gone up dramatically) I am confident that my weight loss thus far has been mainly water and then fat (not muscle). So, as long as I keep up this regimen I can be down to an ideal weight within the next 2.5 months!
This is precisely why I had the hydro-static weight test done. I wanted a solid assessment of my weight and the amount of fat still stored in my body. I have that information now and with it I'm able to set meaningful goals for the next phase of my fitness journey!
I plan to go back to the UIC Human Performance Lab in late September for another hydro-static weight test to track my progress. It's definitely worth the $45 I invested.
No comments:
Post a Comment