03/08/2024
If you believe what you see on social media, you may think 18 percent body fat is ideal for women. But a recent study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research might surprise you.
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Towson University researchers measured the body composition of 278 Division I female athletes—across 12 different sports—and found that, on average, these super-fit women weren’t really even close to 18 percent.[1]
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Most came in between 25 and 30 percent body fat.
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Another eye-opener: In a different study, scientists tracked 27 bikini and fitness competitors through their competition training.[2] The researchers report that the competitors averaged 12.7 percent body fat the morning after their event.
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Let’s be very clear: That’s quite low.
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But here’s something you might not expect: These same competitors were at an average of 23 percent body fat before they started their competition-specific training and dieting.
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The point? Fitness competitors’ walking-around bodies are lean, but they’re not ultra-lean.
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All of which goes to show: If you want a healthy, athletic build or are an athlete measuring performance and recovery? Striving to lean out to a bikini model’s body fat target you see in competition posts; are often not realistic or necessarily healthy.
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Also note: No one but YOU can know your ideal body fat.
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That’s because 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.
1. PMID: 31343559
2. PMID: 28119632
