Evans et al developed equations for estimating percent body fat from skinfold thickness measurements in athletes. The authors are from the University of Illinois, East Carolina University, University of Missouri-Columbia and Iceland University (Laugarvatn).
Parameters:
(1) cumulative skinfold thickness in mm
(2) race (Black or White)
(3) gender (male or female)
Sites for skinfold thickness measurement - 7 site model:
(1) subscapular
(2) triceps
(3) chest
(4) midaxillary
(5) suprailiac
(6) abdominal
(7) thigh
Sites for skinfold thickness measurement - 3 site model:
(1) abdomen
(2) thigh
(3) triceps
The sites are selected according to the Anthropometric Standardization Reference Manual. Each site is measured 3 times and the average value is used for the calculations.
cumulative skinfold thickness =
= SUM(thickness for each of the individual sites)
|
Parameter
|
Finding
|
Points
|
|
race
|
White
|
0
|
|
|
Black
|
1
|
|
gender
|
female
|
0
|
|
|
male
|
1
|
percent body fat for the 7 site model =
= (0.12077 * (cumulative skinfold thickness)) - (8.057 * (points for gender)) - (2.545 * (points for race)) + 10.566
percent body fat for the 3 site model =
= (0.24658 * (cumulative skinfold thickness)) - (6.343 * (points for gender)) - (1.998 * (points for race)) + 8.997
Performance:
• The skinfold measurements must be taken very carefully to make sure that the results are reproducible. The measurements are taken to the nearest 0.1 mm.
• The performance of the 3 site equation was comparable to that of the 7 site equation.
