As a woman who loves to run… I must admit that some of my intentions with running is to reduce my body fat percentage. Although, I am finding that the more miles I run the further I am to accomplishing my lowering my body fat percentage goal. There have been many studies and amazing blog post articles discussing the reasons why runners struggle to lose fat.
I know for me, personally, I love to run. Over the past three years I have found myself running further and more often. Yet, those miles have not changed my body or lowered my weight or body fat percentage. I might be running faster and my endurance is better… yet my body fat percentage is still considerably high.
Why is that?
Two great articles by Bonnie Pfiester from PFitBlog help share some insight to why runners might struggle with lowering their body fat percentage.
3 Reasons You Can’t Run The Fat Off and Runners Beware: 4 Things You Need To Know
I have shared with you my personal struggle with body image. It is a daily battle.
I also shared with you a few months ago when I had my body fat percentage evaluated at my previous gym. I had the trainer run three different type of tests to measure my body fat percentage. Again, my results were not what I was hoping… and reminded me that I am a work in progress.
I know that in order to decrease body fat percentage and increase muscle quality… one must add strength training to their fitness routine.
I do a lot of cardio and running… with little strength training. I need to change this mindset.
A few weeks ago, I received the Skulpt Aim device to help me with my fitness goals of adding quality muscle while decreasing my body fat percentage. The Skulpt Aim measures MQ (Muscle Quality) of individual body parts… thus allowing me to identify which areas (muscles) I need to train more intensely. Using this device will help me stay accountable while seeing progress for my fitness goals.
I like that the Skulpt Aim is easy to use and has Bluetooth capabilities to sync to my iPhone (or iPad) to see my results on their free app.
The device not only measures body fat percentage but also total body MQ – muscle quality. Check out the science behind the Skulpt Aim (how it works). I really like that feature about this product.
I also like that I don’t have to go to the gym and have a super buff and intimidating trainer pinch my insecurities to tell me numbers that I already know. I can measure my muscles in the privacy of my home (bathroom) and am able to view my progress. I am free to share the results with others… or keep them to myself. No stress or anxiety there!
My results: I am an average woman who needs some work. Seems about right. I am a work in progress and am pretty average. Wink.
After measuring my full body and all the body parts, it is very clear that I am much stronger (higher MQ and lower body fat percentage) on my lower body than I do on my upper body muscles. Apparently I have strong abs and upper back? Perhaps it is from all the handstands I do?
I would share a before/after photo of me and my progress… however, like I mentioned above: I am in the peak of marathon training and am doing a lot of cardio and very little strength training. So in the few weeks I have been using this device, my results have not changed. If anything, they have alerted me of my trouble areas and areas where I need to focus.
I do look forward to adding in my strength training post Boston (less than 5 weeks!). Who knows, maybe I will share with you all my details, numbers and photos when I decide on a fitness program to test myself with!
If you are curious about an electronic device that can sync to your smartphone that can help you measure your body fat percentage and muscle quality, I would encourage you to check out the Skulpt Aim device. It is pretty neat!
Check out more about the Skulpt Aim device on Facebook and Instagram.
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
Sounds like an interesting device!
I got my percentages measured last semester in one of my college classes down in the lab!
Sara says
Thanks for sharing! I have similar issues because of doing so much cardio as a group fitness instructor and as a runner. I shared my body fat percentage struggle on my blog back in January – http://sweetsuccessbysara.com/blog/2015/01/06/revealing-my-body-fat-percentage. I haven’t had it done since then, but I have tried to incorporate more strength training into my routine. It’s hard though! I’m training for a half-marathon and I’m often sore from strength training and feel like my runs suffer.
I plan to have another scan in June to see if my twice weekly strength training is doing anything ; )
Tina Muir says
As curious as I am about this….and it is something that is definitely an issue within the elite running world, I am not sure I trust this. I feel like I would become too easily obsessed with it, and focus on the wrong factors. Interesting to read about though. Thanks for sharing!
Janice @ Fitness Cheerleader says
Hugs! I have to admit that now that I’m no longer working out with a personal trainer my body fat % has crept back up. I just tried on some summer clothes and although I weigh the same my appearance is definitely not what it was last summer. Perhaps we can virtually meet online and do workouts together 3x/week?
Rachel says
That would be great! 🙂
Alisa @ Go Dairy Free says
Looks like a neat gadget, but I agree, it’s as easy to get obsessed w/ body fat percentages as weight! How much your awesome body can do and how you feel in your jeans are much better gauges in my opinion!
Christine @ Love, Life, Surf says
Aside from training for my very first marathon, my weight/body fat/etc. doesn’t change no matter how much I run. It’s interesting, isn’t it? But so true that strength training is a big component of that. I like that idea of this in that you can do it in the privacy of your own home. Curious to read more about how it actually works.
Farrah says
I volunteered myself as the test subject in one of my exercise biology classes back in undergrad so I’d get to figure out what my body fat percentage was! I’d love to decrease my body fat percentage as well, but I have the opposite problem in that I detest cardio and love strength training. Imagine if we combined powers! :O heh heh heh…
Best of luck to you on your race!
Deborah @ Confessions of a Mother Runner says
Interesting device! I love strength training and hopefully you will enjoy it a little more. I find it is the only way to really get any definition and shape.
Alyssa @ Simply Quinoa says
Sounds like a really interesting gadget! I don’t do much strength training myself, but I’m also not much of a cardio person either – most of my workouts are yoga and walking. I’ve realized over the past few weeks though, even though I’m going to yoga almost 5 – 6 days per week, I’m not noticing a ton of improvement. So I’ve actually decided to add some weight training into my routine to see if it can help me progress in my practice. I’ve heard the same thing for runners, but I’m sure that during marathon training it’s hard to include everything – since that takes so much time. And as for the body fat percentage – I think it’s easy to get consumed by a number and let it dictate how we feel/live our life – I always try to remember that I need to focus on not the number itself, but how I feel in my own skin 🙂
Cat says
So interesting isn’t it – I used to think it was as simple as ‘the more I run, the less body fat I’ll have’ but I realise at the time I was just skinnyfat. (I hate that term but it’s basically the only one I know!) Now I strength train around 3 times a week, with one run (like 1-2 miles) and some HIIT. I think for me, it was the HIIT workouts that made me see real changes in my body fat, and strength training made me look like I had something to give me shape! Running is just for sunny mornings and endorphins for me.
katie says
I love the Skulpt because it presents a slightly different perspective on health but as with any of these techy gadgets, I don’t let them tell me how healthy I am. Only my body can tell me that. Great post mama!
Jim says
In my experience cardio and running, even weight training are not enough to loose significant body fat and really change body composition: training is only responsible for 20% of the result in this “game”. The remaining 80%, the real influence is given by nutrition and clean diet. With a personalized right diet even 10% body fat lost is possible (together with right training) within 3 months. It means 7-9 meals a day, no starving, but clean and strict eating according to the professionally planned diet.
Abby @ BackAtSquareZero says
I just got one and I plan on using it to see how my body changes now that I have added in strength with OTF.
Melanie says
You and I are at the exact same spot! It’s good to know I’m not alone in how I’m feeling. I run a lot and love it, but now that we are so proficient in running, our bodies are used to it and the big changes we saw when we first started are gone. I’m headed back to my weight training classes and doing more yoga now that marathon training is over. I’m giving myself until July to see changes! We got this! Work in progress, you are so right!