Percentage of fat

Author:

Julio Valero

Published on:

12/23/2020

WHAT IS YOUR FAT PERCENTAGE? DOES IT MATTER?

This is one of the topics in which people have a lot of doubts, and not only that, by not knowing a logical concept, they tend to sabotage themselves and draw unreasonable conclusions, which can end up affecting their process and their mental state.

Fat percentage is simply the amount of weight that is adipose tissue (body fat) in the body.

The desire to know this percentage first arises in the clinical branch, given that high fat percentages are related to many pathologies, and it is then when years later this concept is transferred to the aesthetic branch, given that a body with a low fat percentage, in theory, is thought to look athletic.

I say "in theory" because what many don't know, or at least don't fully understand, is that a low body fat percentage doesn't necessarily equate to an athletic appearance. This is because the assessment doesn't consider the muscle mass-to-fat ratio. To truly look athletic, one needs a relatively high muscle mass compared to their body fat percentage.

Logically, if only a low body fat percentage is necessary for an athletic appearance, then training solely for muscle mass or specific muscles wouldn't make sense in the context of aesthetics. Furthermore, since fat reduction primarily relies on a caloric deficit, it would seem unnecessary to train specifically for bodybuilding or related disciplines.

Okay, assuming you've understood this, let's move on to the topic of specific fat percentage.

Let's say you know your body fat percentage, let's say you are a woman or man with 25% body fat, this percentage is healthy for women, and relatively also for an average man (although men would be on the upper limit...