Women and Body Fat Percentage
You may think 18 percent body fat is ideal for women if you rely on TikTok for information. But a recent study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research might surprise you.
This study found really fit women who weren’t close to that body fat percentage. Researchers at Towson University measured the body composition of 278 Division I female athletes across 12 different sports.
Most came in between 25 and 30 percent body fat.
In another study, scientists tracked 27 bikini and fitness competitors through their competition training.[2] The findings? The competitors averaged 12.7 percent body fat the morning after their event.
Let’s be very clear: That’s quite low.
But keep reading:
These same competitors were at an average of 23 percent body fat before they started their competition-specific training and dieting.
The point? Fitness competitors’ walking-around bodies are lean, but they’re not ultra-lean. That would not be considered healthy. Even it is “doable,” carrying such low body fat can lead to unwanted health outcomes in the long-run.
Key Takeaway
Those ideal body fat targets you see in fitspo posts? They’re often not based in reality.
But there’s also this: No one but YOU can know your ideal body fat. Every body is different and you can’t really achieve the same number as your favorite influencer because she or he is different and has a different body composition, genetics, lifestyle, training level, eating habits, and so much more.
The body composition you can maintain while eating, exercising, sleeping, and living in a way that helps you feel your best is probably the right body fat percentage for you.
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1. PMID: 31343559
2. PMID: 28119632
1. Dobrosielski DA, Leppert KM, Knuth ND, Wilder JN, Kovacs L, Lisman PJ. Body Composition Values of NCAA Division 1 Female Athletes Derived From Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry. J Strength Cond Res. 2021 Oct 1;35(10):2886–93.
2. Hulmi JJ, Isola V, Suonpää M, Järvinen NJ, Kokkonen M, Wennerström A, et al. The Effects of Intensive Weight Reduction on Body Composition and Serum Hormones in Female Fitness Competitors. Front Physiol. 2016;7:689.
