| What is a Healthy Body Fat Percentage? | |
If you look around the Internet, you will see a lot of different recommendations for body fat percentages. As far as I can tell, this is the most authoritative, as it is based on World Health Organization and National Institutes of Health recommendations, and takes age into account. Please do not confuse these numbers with the BMI (Body Mass Index) scores, which are not the same thing.
Age-Adusted Body Fat Percentage Recommendations
Women
| Age | Underfat | Healthy Range | Overweight | Obese |
| 20-40 yrs | Under 21% | 21-33% | 33-39% | Over 39% |
| 41-60 yrs | Under 23% | 23-35% | 35-40% | Over 40% |
| 61-79 yrs | Under 24% | 24-36% | 36-42% | Over 42% |
Men
| Age | Underfat | Healthy Range | Overweight | Obese |
| 20-40 yrs | Under 8% | 8-19% | 19-25% | Over 25% |
| 41-60 yrs | Under 11% | 11-22% | 22-27% | Over 27% |
| 61-79 yrs | Under 13% | 13-25% | 25-30% | Over 30% |
Source: Gallagher et al. Am J Clin Nut 2000; 72:694-701
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