I have a Tanita model, don't remember which one, but it is several years old.

My experience is that it fluctuates within 3% and I know it gets thrown off by things like hydration level, wet or very dirty feet and time of day (probably due to hydration). Plus, I have no confidence that the actual number I get is "correct" and I don't use it to compare to other people.

BUT I make it a point to weight/measure at the same time every day and I write down the results (not every day, just when it changes) and I can easily track my trends if I give it enough time to average out.

So don't try and use this to see "did I eat too much last night and am I fatter now" -- it absolutely positively will not tell you that. But I can clearly see that in six months of training I've lost 3% of my body fat and that is encouraging. It keeps me motivated to try and lower that number.

I think you're right, merigayle, providing you keep conditions the same as far as possible (time of day, after bm etc.). Even then you get huge variability between measurements made at the same time (therefore identical conditions).

@brandyk: I've seen the same thing. my girlfriend's numbers are way higher than mine and tend to vary more than mine. Men and women do have very different body makeups when it comes to fat storage, but I think the Tanita exaggerates it.

quote:<HR>Originally posted by iceman14:
girls are fat <HR>

and have cooties.


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My Tanita has always been accurate to what they come up with at the doctor's.

The number I get from my Tanita is similar to the number I get from the handheld bioelectrical impedance device I use at the gym, and similar to the number I get from the skinfold device at the gym. I'm not convinced that any of these numbers are correct, because it seems to me that a 5'5" woman who wears a size 6 pants is not obese, but apparently I have 32% body fat so I am.

I don't think that BF scales are really worth the money. I bought mine because I didn't have a scale at all and it only cost me $25 with a coupon from Bed Bath and Beyond. The scale is accurate so I feel like I didn't waste my money, but I very rarely check my body fat % and when I do, it's more out of curiosity and not because I think the number has any relevance to my life or health.

quote:<HR>Originally posted by nadra24:
The number I get from my Tanita is similar to the number I get from the handheld bioelectrical impedance device I use at the gym, and similar to the number I get from the skinfold device at the gym. I'm not convinced that any of these numbers are correct, because it seems to me that a 5'5" woman who wears a size 6 pants is not obese, but apparently I have 32% body fat so I am.
.<HR>

just a comment- you DO realize you could have higher than average body fat % while not necessarily being "obese", right?