Body Fat Assessment: A Comparison of Visual Estimation and Skinfold Techniques

In brief: The purpose of this study was to compare skinfold measurement and visual estimation as methods of measuring percent body fat by testing them against densitometry. Seventy-one male volunteers underwent skinfold measurements and underwater weighing and were photographed from the front, side, and rear. The skinfold measurements and underwater weighing were used to determine percent fat by accepted mathematical methods. Two experts then visually estimated the subjects' percent fat by comparing the photographs with five sets of reference photographs The results suggest that some individuals can visually estimate percent fat about as accurately as it can be calculated from skinfold measurements.