1. Chapter 13: Body Composition
Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts

2. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Lesson Objectives:
Describe a healthy level of body fatness.
Explain how the level of body fatness is related to good health.
Explain how body fatness can be assessed.

3. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What does body fatness mean?

4. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
The percentage of your total body made up of fat tissue.

5. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What are six factors that influence body fatness?

6. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Factors that influence body fatness:
1. Heredity
2. Metabolism
3. Maturation

7. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer (continued)
Factors that influence body fatness:
4. Building extra fat cells by being overfat
5. Diet
6. Physical activity

8. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
How do diet and physical activity affect body fatness?

9. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Diet affects body fatness in the following ways:
You eat a certain number of calories each day (diet).
You use a certain number of calories each day (physical activity).

10. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer (continued)
If you eat more calories than you use, your level of body fat will increase.

11. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
How do you use (burn) calories each day?

12. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
You burn calories in the following ways:
Basal metabolism: calories used for basic body functions such as digestion and warmth
Physical activity: for exercise and daily activities

13. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
How do daily physical activity and exercise affect the amount of calories your body needs?

14. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Vigorous exercise uses a high number of calories.
Moderate exercise uses fewer calories.
However, you can still burn a lot of calories if you exercise for long periods of time.

15. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What does the term body composition mean?

16. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
All of the tissues that make up a person’s body such as bone, muscle, and fat.
Body fat measurement tells you the percentage of your body weight that is body fat.

17. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What term is better to use when relating a person’s body weight to health—body composition or body weight?

18. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Describing a person’s body composition provides a better indication of health.
Body weight does not tell you how much weight is body fat and how much weight is muscle.

19. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer (continued)
Body composition is preferable to body weight:
For example, two people may each weigh 200 pounds.
One person may be muscular.
The other may have a high level of body fat.
The more muscular person is likely to be more healthy.

20. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
Why is a high level of body fat considered a risk to health?

21. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Excess body fat or obesity is related to many health problems.
These include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and Type II diabetes.

22. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What is a healthy percentage of body fat? What is an unhealthy percentage of body fat?

23. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer

24. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What does the term essential body fat mean?

25. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Essential body fat refers to the minimum amount of body fatness needed for good health.

26. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
Why is essential body fat important?

27. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Essential body fat is important because:
Body fat is an insulator (keeps you warm).
Body fat acts as a shock absorber.
Body fat helps your body store and use important vitamins.

28. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer (continued)
Body fat is a form of stored energy— energy you need to practice and compete in sports.
A reasonable level of body fat helps you look healthy and fit.

29. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What is anorexia nervosa?

30. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Anorexia nervosa is
an eating disorder in which food consumption is severely restricted in an attempt to look thin.
a very serious illness.

31. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What are some common characteristics of a person suffering from anorexia nervosa?

32. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
A person who is anorexic
has a dangerously low level of body fat.
is not eating important nutrients for good health.
has a distorted view of his or her own body.
is seeking control over one aspect of his or her life.
is obsessed with seeking perfection.

33. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What is bulimia?

34. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
Bulimia
is an eating disorder in which a person does binge eating, followed by purging.
can result in loss of teeth, gum diseases, digestive problems, and other health problems.

35. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What are some ways to assess body fatness?

36. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Body fat assessment methods include:
body mass index
skinfold measurements (skinfold calipers)
underwater weighing
body measurements
height–weight charts
waist-to-hip ratio

37. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Question
What information does the waist-to-hip ratio provide?

38. Lesson 13.1: The Facts About Body Composition
Answer
The waist-to-hip ratio indicates how much body fat a person is carrying around the waist or abdominal region.
Fat in this area (upper body fat) is more damaging to health than fat carried in the lower body (hips and thighs).

39. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Question
How can you make body composition self-assessments be more personal?

40. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Answer
Your fitness scores are your personal information and should be kept confidential.
Be sensitive to the feelings of others when body fatness measurements are being taken.
Taking the measurements privately may be appropriate.

41. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Question
How do you measure skinfolds?

42. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Answer
Triceps skinfold:
Pick up a skinfold on the middle of the back of the right arm, halfway between the elbow and the shoulder. The arm should hang loose and relaxed at the side.

43. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Answer (continued)
Calf skinfold:
Stand up and place your right foot on a chair. Pick up a skinfold on the side of your right calf halfway between your shin and the back of your calf, where the calf is largest.

44. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Answer (continued)
Use your left thumb and index finger to pick up the skinfold. Do not pinch or squeeze the skinfold.
Hold the skinfold with your left hand while you pick up and use the caliper with the right hand to get a reading.

45. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Answer (continued)
Place the caliper over the skinfold about one-half inch below your finger and thumb. Hold the caliper on the skinfold for 3 seconds, and then note the measurement.
Read the caliper measurement to the nearest one-half millimeter (mm), if possible.

46. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Answer (continued)
Have your partner take three measurements each for the triceps and the calf skinfolds. Use the middle of the three measures as your score. For example, an 8, 9, and 10 give a score of 9. If your three measurements differ by more than 2 mm, take a second or even third set of measurements. Do the same measures on your partner.

47. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Answer (continued)
Now consult your workbook to calculate your body fatness.

48. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Question
How do you use the height–weight charts?

49. Self-Assessment 13: Skinfold Measurements and Height–Weight Charts
Answer
Remove your shoes.
Take your own height and weight measures or ask a partner to help you.
Look at the Normal Weight Ranges in your textbook to determine the normal weight range for a person your sex, age, and height.