Total Body Composition (DEXA) - 1 Yr Post Op

I agree. THIS was a good article on the dangers of low bodyfat. I would be seeing a specialist.

I appreciate the concern. I continue to see all of my physicians regularly and none of them see concerned. I see my PCP again next week and I see my surgeon again in about 3 weeks. I will certainly bring up the results of my DEXA scan, however I have seen both of them at least once in the last 3 months (during which time I have been maintaining) and have had blood work done, and everything appears normal and they have no concerns.

I would like to say that 4.9% is really not so dramatic as to be near death (that is my "Region%", my "Total%" is 5.1). It is just slightly below what is labeled "Althlete" level and at the top of the range for "Essential" Fat.

Trust me, I look nothing like that. In large part because I am not a body builder. I may have a low BF%, but my lean mass is about 133lbs, these guys lean mass is WAY, WAY higher than that I'm sure. In addition, due to some extra skin, the muscles I do have are not as prominent as these guys.

And yes, my DEXA scan results break down my different regions of my body as well. They range from a low of 3.7% (arms) to a high of 5.2% (trunk).

I had DEXa scan done - and on parts that show low body fat% - the skin is almost transparent and oven though I don't have a lot of muscles - you can see definition on all of them..and that was in my arms and trunk with just 15% body fat%

I am not saying yo are lying - but if you really have just 5%body fat - I would be realy concern if I were you.

for woman - essential body fat is 15% when my body dropped to 18%at one time - I got really really unhealthy...... and it took me a while to recover..

Not sure what else to say. You have the results of my scans. i see my doctors regularly. I get my blood work monitored regularly. I follow my plan almost religiously. Literally doing everything I'm supposed to. And like I said, I will bring my DEXA results to my doctor appointment next week. I really am not overly concerned as I'm getting very good and consistent medical care. I'm sure if there are any issues they will be resolved by my medical team.

4.9% does seem low, body builders compete and show at like 5%. Googling says 6-13%, but the extreme ones are 5%. I tried to look at your page for pics but theres none :( I'm super curious! Not saying its wrong, but thats SUPER SUPER low.

I think my goal is like 17-20%. I have 51# of fat per my DEXA scan and 27% body fat. I'd have to lose another 20# of fat to be in the ~18%

Yes, I generally do not post photos of myself on these boards for two reasons:

1) I do not tell people about my surgery, so I don't really want to be "outed"

2) I don't like the terms of service of these boards which generally say they can use your material to promote themselves.

When I had my DEXA scan done at ~185lbs, I was still at 26.5% body fat. Since that time I have lost 35.2lbs. What I find very interesting (and it was in the original post that got truncated) is that while I lost 35.2lbs, I actually lost 41.31lbs of fat and gained 7.36lbs of lean mass, so although I "only" dropped 35lbs, my BF% got MUCH lower given the swap of fat for lean.

And again, I have had 3 total DEXA scans. The first at ~185, the next 2 at around ~150. People seem to have no issue with the results of the first scan I had, but for some reason as you can see on this thread there is a ton of skepticism about both of the last two scans accuracy. I get it, it's a low number. But given I have a scan where I was at 26.5% BF it seems it's not something mysterious about my specific body that throws off DEXA. Combine that with the fact that I have had 2 scans which have confirmed a very low BF% utilizing a technology that is known to be very accurate, I have come to believe that it is most likely correct.

Probably because 26.5% isnt such a low number. Im not saying you arent 4.9%, I'm just surprised, thats all :)

If you went from 333 to 147 with ~5% body fat, I have to imagine you have quite a lot of skin? Wonder if you had plastics what your weight would be, and what that would change your percentages to

I definitely have some extra skin, but probably not as much as you would imagine. In clothes, you can't tell at all. In fact, a number of people have said to me "man, you're really lucky that you have none of that extra skin to deal with that I hear so many people do when they lose that much weight". I just laugh and say "well, you haven't seen me naked, but thanks."

I have some on my abdomen, thighs, butt and arms, but each area it is not terrible. But at my weight that would certainly have a percentage impact as every 1.5 pounds at this point in a percentage point!

My understanding though is that actual skin weighs very little. It's quite thin. People tend to have a reduction of weight with skin removal largely due to the fact that there is fat/other tissue removed with it. I doubt if I had skin removal I would get much fat removed with the skin, so it might be measured in ounces.

Skin doesn't weigh a lot even though it has significant volume, and it is skin not fat. I had what appeared to be about 30lbs of skin and fat removed when I had my Lower Body Lift- but it was 4 1/2lbs of skin, no fat. In the doctor's words "all skin"