Gimpy
The Living Force
One of the local news flyers in my area did an article on a couple of machines that are being used to help people lose weight.
I was curious, the article mentioned that this particular Club refused to carry any supplements, shakes, or restrictive diet programs.
The focus was on losing fat by learning what a person’s metabolic rate was, and eating accordingly to lose fat, not water or muscle. A dietician works out a range of calories needed to keep from losing any lean body mass, and you take over from there. They offered a 6 month plan, but it was too expensive. They also offered an ‘ala cart’ option, and packages for the Metabolism test, BodPod, and dietician separately.
The initial test is done with this machine: Reevue Indirect Calorimeter
This is what it does:
“The REEVUE measures the oxygen that the body consumes. Using this measurement it calculates number of calories that an individual burns at rest in a day*. This technique is called Indirect Calorimetry. This information assists in nutritional assessment and medical nutrition Therapy.
The REEVUE is simple to use and provides on-screen and printed results in just 10 minutes. The printout is ideal for maintaining records and will help the clinician and patient to understand the results of the test.
The REEVUE is lightweight and portable. It does not require a computer or manual calibration.
The REEVUE provides an accurate method for measuring VO2 (oxygen consumption) and RMR* (resting metabolic rate)”
Full info can be found here: _http://www.korr.com/products/reevue.htm
The next machine has a nifty name, its called a BodPod. Its basically like being put in a tank of water to measure body composition, but this machine does the work using displaced air. It looks like a weird carnival ride, but the inside is ok. It was easy to use, even with limited mobility.
The Bodpod information can be found here: _http://www.bodpod.com/home
Here’s what the initial info on the Bodpod says:
The most advanced technique....(yadda yadda yadda ;) )
The patented air displacement plethysmography used by the BOD POD and PEA POD is similar in principle to hydrostatic (or "underwater") weighing. The obvious difference is that air is more convenient and comfortable than water, so that Air Displacement Plethysmography provides a much easier and safer testing environment, better reliability, and significantly improved repeatability and accuracy.
The basic operating principles of air displacement plethysmography include Densitometry, Mass Measurement, Volume Measurement, Thoracic Gas Volume, and Surface Area Artifact.
Densitometry
With Air Displacement Plethysmography, body composition is derived from body density, or Densitometry. In densitometry, the more dense a body is, the lower the percentage of body fat; the less dense a body is, the higher the percentage of body fat.
Density = Mass/Volume
Densitometry is based on modeling the body into two compartments: a fat compartment and a fat-free mass compartment. The fat-free mass compartment consists of protein, water, mineral, and glycogen.
From the subject's body density, relative proportions of body fat and lean body mass are calculated based on the density of fat and lean tissue. Because lean tissue is more dense than fat tissue, a higher density reflects a higher proportion of lean tissue.
A commonly used equation which translates whole body density to percent body fat is the Siri equation:
Percent Fat = [495/Density] - 450
Once the percent body fat is calculated, the percent lean body mass can also be determined as follows:
Percent Lean Body Mass = 100 - Percent Fat
Mass Measurement
Mass (weight) is measured using a very precise, integrated electronic scale.
Volume Measurement
Volume is determined by Air Displacement Plethysmography (ADP), which occurs when the subject is inside the BOD POD or PEA POD chamber. ADP
relies on the relationship between pressure and volume, and allows for the derivation of an unknown volume by directly measuring pressure.
During the volume measurement, small changes in volume occur inside the chamber, and the pressure response to these small volume changes is measured. This is done by measuring the interior volume of the empty chamber, then measuring it again when the subject is inside. By subtraction, the subject's body volume is obtained. For example, the interior air volume of the empty chamber is 450 liters; so if the volume of the chamber is reduced to 350 liters with the subject inside, the body volume of the subject would be 100 liters.
Thoracic Gas Volume
Because any air trapped in the subject's thoracic cavity, either free or trapped, is not part of their body volume, the air in the lungs must be accounted for. Depending upon the capabilities of the device being used, Thoracic Gas Volume may be directly measured, retrieved from a previous test, predicted (using a standard prediction equation), or entered manually.
Surface Area Artifact
Due to isothermal behavior, the volume of air in close proximity of the subject's surface is overestimated by 40%. This small Surface Area Artifact (an apparent reduction in the subject’s body volume) is automatically calculated by the BOD POD and used to correct subject body volume.
The surface area of clothing and hair can also have a significant impact on Volume measurements. It is extremely important that subjects tested using Air Displacement Plethysmography wear minimal, form-fitting clothing and a cap to compress the hair on the head.
(Note: When taking the BodPod test, its done three times to take the Surface Area Artifact into account.)
The Club I went to offered a package that included the Metabolic test, BodPd, and meeting with a dietician for $165 usd. For me, that was cheap. Part of the problem is letting people know these machines are available, and asking about them.
I know BodPod’s are used here in the US now, and the site for the company that makes them does have a listing of international Universities and Health Clubs that use them. Today when I was there, a wide range of people came in to have BodPod’s done. I was surprised to see grandmothers in leg braces, mothers with children, and quite a few men, so there is interest in finding hard data to lose weight.
I think it’s a good thing, and wanted to share it. :D
What were my results?
Surprising! :P
I was curious, the article mentioned that this particular Club refused to carry any supplements, shakes, or restrictive diet programs.
The focus was on losing fat by learning what a person’s metabolic rate was, and eating accordingly to lose fat, not water or muscle. A dietician works out a range of calories needed to keep from losing any lean body mass, and you take over from there. They offered a 6 month plan, but it was too expensive. They also offered an ‘ala cart’ option, and packages for the Metabolism test, BodPod, and dietician separately.
The initial test is done with this machine: Reevue Indirect Calorimeter
This is what it does:
“The REEVUE measures the oxygen that the body consumes. Using this measurement it calculates number of calories that an individual burns at rest in a day*. This technique is called Indirect Calorimetry. This information assists in nutritional assessment and medical nutrition Therapy.
The REEVUE is simple to use and provides on-screen and printed results in just 10 minutes. The printout is ideal for maintaining records and will help the clinician and patient to understand the results of the test.
The REEVUE is lightweight and portable. It does not require a computer or manual calibration.
The REEVUE provides an accurate method for measuring VO2 (oxygen consumption) and RMR* (resting metabolic rate)”
Full info can be found here: _http://www.korr.com/products/reevue.htm
The next machine has a nifty name, its called a BodPod. Its basically like being put in a tank of water to measure body composition, but this machine does the work using displaced air. It looks like a weird carnival ride, but the inside is ok. It was easy to use, even with limited mobility.
The Bodpod information can be found here: _http://www.bodpod.com/home
Here’s what the initial info on the Bodpod says:
The most advanced technique....(yadda yadda yadda ;) )
The patented air displacement plethysmography used by the BOD POD and PEA POD is similar in principle to hydrostatic (or "underwater") weighing. The obvious difference is that air is more convenient and comfortable than water, so that Air Displacement Plethysmography provides a much easier and safer testing environment, better reliability, and significantly improved repeatability and accuracy.
The basic operating principles of air displacement plethysmography include Densitometry, Mass Measurement, Volume Measurement, Thoracic Gas Volume, and Surface Area Artifact.
Densitometry
With Air Displacement Plethysmography, body composition is derived from body density, or Densitometry. In densitometry, the more dense a body is, the lower the percentage of body fat; the less dense a body is, the higher the percentage of body fat.
Density = Mass/Volume
Densitometry is based on modeling the body into two compartments: a fat compartment and a fat-free mass compartment. The fat-free mass compartment consists of protein, water, mineral, and glycogen.
From the subject's body density, relative proportions of body fat and lean body mass are calculated based on the density of fat and lean tissue. Because lean tissue is more dense than fat tissue, a higher density reflects a higher proportion of lean tissue.
A commonly used equation which translates whole body density to percent body fat is the Siri equation:
Percent Fat = [495/Density] - 450
Once the percent body fat is calculated, the percent lean body mass can also be determined as follows:
Percent Lean Body Mass = 100 - Percent Fat
Mass Measurement
Mass (weight) is measured using a very precise, integrated electronic scale.
Volume Measurement
Volume is determined by Air Displacement Plethysmography (ADP), which occurs when the subject is inside the BOD POD or PEA POD chamber. ADP
relies on the relationship between pressure and volume, and allows for the derivation of an unknown volume by directly measuring pressure.
During the volume measurement, small changes in volume occur inside the chamber, and the pressure response to these small volume changes is measured. This is done by measuring the interior volume of the empty chamber, then measuring it again when the subject is inside. By subtraction, the subject's body volume is obtained. For example, the interior air volume of the empty chamber is 450 liters; so if the volume of the chamber is reduced to 350 liters with the subject inside, the body volume of the subject would be 100 liters.
Thoracic Gas Volume
Because any air trapped in the subject's thoracic cavity, either free or trapped, is not part of their body volume, the air in the lungs must be accounted for. Depending upon the capabilities of the device being used, Thoracic Gas Volume may be directly measured, retrieved from a previous test, predicted (using a standard prediction equation), or entered manually.
Surface Area Artifact
Due to isothermal behavior, the volume of air in close proximity of the subject's surface is overestimated by 40%. This small Surface Area Artifact (an apparent reduction in the subject’s body volume) is automatically calculated by the BOD POD and used to correct subject body volume.
The surface area of clothing and hair can also have a significant impact on Volume measurements. It is extremely important that subjects tested using Air Displacement Plethysmography wear minimal, form-fitting clothing and a cap to compress the hair on the head.
(Note: When taking the BodPod test, its done three times to take the Surface Area Artifact into account.)
The Club I went to offered a package that included the Metabolic test, BodPd, and meeting with a dietician for $165 usd. For me, that was cheap. Part of the problem is letting people know these machines are available, and asking about them.
I know BodPod’s are used here in the US now, and the site for the company that makes them does have a listing of international Universities and Health Clubs that use them. Today when I was there, a wide range of people came in to have BodPod’s done. I was surprised to see grandmothers in leg braces, mothers with children, and quite a few men, so there is interest in finding hard data to lose weight.
I think it’s a good thing, and wanted to share it. :D
What were my results?
Surprising! :P