Body fat percentage is one of the many measurements ZOZOFIT offers, and perhaps the most important to overall health. Body fat percentage provides insight into your lifestyle and can be an accurate predictor of future health. 

What is body fat? 

ZOZOFIT’s 3D body scanning technology is a tool to look at body composition, making it more accurate than BMI or weight. 

Before we dive into body fat percentage, we need to understand what fat is and its function in the body. 

Often, the media and diet culture demonizes fat, but not all fat is bad. Fat is just stored energy, and we all need some body fat to survive. Fat cells are like other cells in the body, but they can grow in size if we eat more calories than we use. 

There are two main types of fat: subcutaneous and visceral. Subcutaneous fat cushions your joints and isn’t as risky as visceral fat, which is in the abdominal cavity. Visceral fat is linked to long-term health impacts like cardiovascular disease and chronic inflammation. 

Measuring body fat percentage to promote health

With ZOZOFIT, we can measure our body fat percentage to promote our overall health. Once you complete your scan, the app will tell you your body fat percentage along with all of the other provided body measurements. 

ZOZOFIT is a great tool because it provides a look into progress over time. By scanning every two-to-four weeks you can watch your body fat percentage change. ColorMetric offers an at-a-glance option to see how your body has changed. Many users like ColorMetric because it takes the emphasis off of the numbers and puts it on physical change, which is often easier for our brains to understand. 

This marker can give you insight into your health. According to WebMD, for women, body fat percentage should be between 21% and 32%, and for men, body fat percentage should be 11% to 21%. 

If you have a higher body fat than the recommended percentages, you may be at risk for long-term health complications. 

However, there’s no need to worry. With ZOZOFIT, you can track your body fat percentage over time. Being able to compare scans and see your body fat percentage will lead you to make informed decisions about your health and wellness. 

When you have information at your fingertips, it becomes much more difficult to ignore. 

Losing body fat to help overall health 

There is no one-size-fits-all or “trick” to body fat reduction. Many of the quick fixes available on the market will only provide temporary change to your body composition. 

To really focus on fat loss, you will need to develop a diet and exercise plan that fits with your lifestyle and fat reduction goals. One of the first steps is to set a realistic SMART goal. Maybe start with a goal to reduce your body fat percentage by 1% per month. Since this goal is achievable, you are more likely to stay motivated. 

The next step is to create your health and fitness plan. Consider what’s reasonable for you. Easy first steps include cutting out sugary drinks and going on daily 30-minute walks. Each of these minimally impacts your day-to-day, but can make a big impact on overall fat loss. 

A good fat loss regime includes regular exercise and a fat-busting diet of whole foods, fresh fruits and vegetables, and healthy fats like avocado. In addition, you want to eat less calories than you use in a day. Many fitness tracking apps have the capability to help you keep track of these things. 

For exercise, start small if you aren’t exercising already. Build your stamina overtime and incorporate both aerobic exercise, like walking and cycling, and anaerobic exercise, like weight lifting and circuit training into your routine.

Tracking body fat percentage over time 

Seeing the difference in your body fat percentage overtime will motivate you to stick to your goal and continue on your fat loss journey. Tracking and measuring your body fat percentage progress is integral to your success. 

As mentioned previously, it’s best to measure with ZOZOFIT every two-to-four weeks. This ensures there has been enough time between scans to notice a measurable difference. If you scan every day, or even every week, you may not notice the progress you are making because the changes will be so small. 

Be sure to reward yourself for a job well done because fat loss isn’t just fat loss; choosing to pursue fat reduction is a step in the right direction for your overall health and well-being.