Ok, so I finally got the hang of the Bodymetrix BX 2000 machine, and I did a Jackson and Pollock 3-site measurement on myself (it's not as accurate as the 7-site method, but I can at least do this one on myself) and it read 17%, so I've got about 8 points to knock off to get back to where I started before this experiment. The 3 sites that make up the measurement are the chest, thigh and abdomen. My total measurements (in millimeters) were 18.5 at the waist (which is the natural place for men to carry their fat), 6.4 at the chest, at 8.1 at the thigh, for a total of 33. The beautiful part about the BX 2000 is that, rather than using the caliper pinch test, it uses ultrasound to measure the fat density. Once I figure out how to get the images, I will post them here so you can see.

17.4% is at the high end of the "Fitness" level, meaning that one is in better-than-average shape.

• Essential Fat: 0-5%
• Athletes: 6-12%
• Fitness: 13-18%
• Acceptable: 19-25%
• Obese: > 25%

Now, to show you how BMI is a worthless measurement, here are the BMI standard levels:

• Underweight: 0-18.5
• Healthy: 18.6-25
• Overweight: 25.1-30
• Grade 1 Obesity: 31.5-35
• Grade 2 Obesity: 35.1-40
• Grade 3 Obesity: > 40

At 5 feet 9 inches tall and a weight of 225 (evening scale weight), I am considered Grade 1 Obesity on the BMI scale. Why? BMI doesn't account for the amount of lean mass that one is carrying. A well-conditioned muscular athlete will have a higher BMI based on the density of muscle (muscle weighs more than fat). At 17% body fat, I have 187 pounds of lean body mass, and I want to keep it!