Aria body fat percentage questions

[CarrieV]

Hi, I have a question on whether it is really possible I'm made up of 33% body fat (according to the aria scale).  Here are my stats:

51 year old woman

5' 6"

132 lbs.

currently wearing a size 6

33% body fat according to the charts means I'm obese.  I don't feel obese.  I know I need to lose 8 more lbs. to be at my ideal weight that I feel best at, but this 33% body fat has been pretty consistent the whole time I've been dieting.  Even after I lose 8 more lbs., I do not think it will be much less than 33% body fat on the aria scale.  I'm definitely not lean, so I know selecting the "lean" category in the settings would not apply to me.

I'm fine with just ignoring this and feeling good about the lbs. I've already lost, but every morning it's still a little depressing to weigh yourself and think how is it possible that 33% of my body is pure fat.

I weigh myself bare foot, dry feet every morning before I shower.  I do not move the scale.  It is sitting on the floor in my bedroom, same spot as always.

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity

[mrosback]

So how would someone consistently get approx 25% body fat ovet many years and then take a reading two weeks later 4 lbs heavier while not on a diet but body fat is now 40%?

[BBQDOUG]

Matthew

Please stop with the excuses.  The body fat percentage function of the scale has not worked from day one.  Hundreds of comments bare this out.  Fitbit would do much better PR wise to just admit this then making these lame excuses.  

[mrosback]

Removing batteries is a cop out. These aria scales with regard to body fat are clearly defective. I have replaced and removed batteries. NO change.

[zymurgeist]

The method they are using to measure body fat is the same as one of the methods used by lie detectors to measure truth. Both can be wildly innacurate. It can vary with skin temperature, hydration, skin dryness, the presence or absence of calluses on your feet, the phase of the moon and Bob knows what else. There is no good method to measure body fat with reliable accuracy.  

[LostShepherd]

I measure at the same time daily i.e. when I wake up and after a pee. My readings went from 25/26 -> 38/40% when my router changed. They have consistently stayed there for over 10 months now and after another router change.

Stop saying the readings are fluctuating due to peoples bladders or time of day, that is simply not correct in my case (it may be true for some but definitely not all). I measure consistently and it added 13-15% post router change, simple as that, before that it measured me lower for over 18months consistently.

Am I too late for a warranty swap in the UK?

[buddhasoldier3]

Another idea is to buy a hand held body fat reader, and use it right after you use the scale,or use a visual aid, such as,

http://www.transformernbcfitness.com/visual-body-composition-analysis

[Rick0502]

I don't understand why some people are getting crazy readings. For me, it is fairly consistent.

Date	Weight	BMI	Fat
10/1/2016	181.04	24.55	10.194
10/2/2016	180.31	24.45	10.432
10/3/2016	181.28	24.58	9.916
10/4/2016	180.62	24.49	10.246
10/5/2016	178.5	24.2	10.583
10/6/2016	181.92	24.67	9.8
10/7/2016	180.36	24.46	7.843
10/8/2016	178.57	24.21	9.284
10/9/2016	181.83	24.66	8.888
10/10/2016	176.65	23.95	9.345
10/11/2016	179.58	24.35	9.484
10/12/2016	179.23	24.3	9.97
10/13/2016	176.89	23.99	10.515
10/14/2016	177.22	24.03	10.356
10/15/2016	177.54	24.07	10.197
10/16/2016	177.87	24.12	10.038
10/17/2016	178.19	24.16	9.879
10/18/2016	178.51	24.21	9.72
10/19/2016	178.84	24.25	9.561
10/20/2016	179.16	24.29	9.402
10/21/2016	179.5	24.34	9.237
10/22/2016	180.53	24.48	8.951
10/23/2016	180.09	24.42	9.112
10/24/2016	179.65	24.36	9.274
10/25/2016	180.51	24.48	9.821
10/26/2016	178.57	24.21	10.029
10/27/2016	177.75	24.1	10.227
10/28/2016	178.48	24.2	9.97
10/29/2016	179.96	24.4	9.27
10/30/2016	179.41	24.33	8.564
10/31/2016	179.41	24.33	8.857

[G00mba]

That's because you don't have any errors.any of us do. Count yourself
lucky. My scales now say o am 10% body fat. A week ago I was 19% with no
weight change.

[LostShepherd]

****SOLVED**** my gender of male was somehow lost in my profile, once corrected BF corrected back down to 25%

[cerebro84]

Thank you very much! That was my problem too!!

[mrosback]

UPDATE ******************

So I noticed several users here stated that they found gender settings wrong and after correcting it  appeared to correct bad ratio numbers.  I finally went back into my page for fitbit and after taking some time to locate it I found the gender setting.  Mine was not set.

However some background here is that it read about 25% for over a year and suddenly jumped to 40% a year ago.  After much banter back and forth between myself and fitbit with no plausible explantion except that I did not understand what the fat ratio was I choose to start looking at other user comments.   

So now setting the GENDER field appears to have corrected my fat ratio number.  And to me the only plausible explanations are: 1/ GENDER was added later as a new field so mine was never set, or 2/ my fitbit page reset GENDER, or 3/ fitbit started making GENDER a variable included in determining fat ratio.

Long story short - if you are having issues with fat ratio readings go to your fitibit login and settigns and check your GENDER setting. 

[Dvacurlz]

This is a very probable reading. My measurements are very similar as are my moms. I am 5'6", 128lbs but 20% BF. I am 32 years old. My Mom is 5'5", 130lbs and 28% BF. We don't look like the same weight, or at least her weight is distributed differently than mine and it is very visible that my muscle mass is much greater than hers. Body fat is a data point to be measured over a longer period of time than simple weight - looking at month over month rather that week over week. And, it's a challenge to move the needle. Decreasing body fat is much more difficult than simply losing weight. I suggest doing the research and putting in the time. It's worth it and, in the end, the trend is more valuable than the number.

[Weighttrainer]

I do not think the scale is accurate either or shall I say my Aria is not. Here are my stats
Male
Age 53
162.2
Waist 29"
Aria says body fat is 18.1%
OMRON scale says 11.1% body fat

@ my health club a few days ago the staff was offering free body fat analysis with this electronic gadget that you hold straight out much like my OMRON scale except my scale also has the feet sensors much like the Aria. After my workout, as I was leaving I asked if I could get a body fat analysis. So the personnel at the gym weighed me and measured my height and imputed all this information into his machine and then took 2 readings or body fat percentage measurements. The 1st measurement read 11.3% and the 2nd measured 11.1%.
I then drove the 4 minutes home and immediately took my own measurements with both scales. My OMRON scale said I have 11.1% body fat just like the 2nd reading at my gym and the Aria said I am 18.1% body fat.
There is a pretty big difference in the way the male physic looks at 11.1 and 18.1 and I have been at both percentages in my lin my life and then some, but I do not look like a man who has 18.1% body fat at this time and I have worked hard to get to 11.1 and am disappointed that the Aria scale is so off. I would venture to say you are probably not the 33% your scale is telling you either.

[Obi-Wan]

While I don't disagree that there are some fluctuations in weight and body fat from day-to-day, that is not the "issue" presented here.

I have had the same Aria for a good while now.  I weigh-in at least 3 to 5 times a week.  Very consistent (between 148lb to 150lb) and 15.5% to 16.3% BF.  This has been extremely consistent.  (And that is what has been descibed in this thread.)  Two weeks ago, I changed wifi routers (the procedure for the scale was to "reset" by removing batteries and then go online (same network) and establish Aria as though it is new).

Ever since, my BF has doubled!  Seen in my Dashboard (and on the Aria display): the scale went from 16.x% to 32.x%.  This is not physically possible.  Not to mention, no change in routine or weight.  My weight has stayed the same; 150lb.  

The only thing to "change" in the process was the wifi and "reset" of the Aria.

The bigger question I have is what Firmware everyone is using.  My Dashboard shows Firmware V39.

I do not know (because I did not check) what version the Firmware was before the wifi/reset.

To me, all indications point to the Aria as the culprit; not actual body weight/body fat fluctuations or "Profile" settings.  The ONLY change made anywhere in the family of systems (Surge, Aria, iPhone app, website) was the "reset" of the Aria to change wifi settings.

Is there a possible Firmware fix?  Or, as mentioned is a replacement Aria the only solution (after all of the "reset" options have been tried)?

Update:

After some more digging in the forums, found a jewel.  In a different thread about the Aria, I found a post that stated the owner changed his profile (online?) to Female and weighed twice.  He then changed his profile back to Male, and weighed twice again.  He stated that worked to fix the wonky body fat readings.  The response from Moderator:  "Rare".  So, I tried it...

I weighed 5 times.  Weight was consistent, BF% kept lowering  0.1% each time (but still twice as high as true).

So, I did three things:

1) I changed my Personal Info (Gender) in Settings on the web to Female and weighed 5 more times.  Same result; weight stayed the same and BF kept dropping by 0.1% (still way too high).

2) I removed all of the batteries and waited a few minutes before replacing them. 

3) I set my Personal Info (Gender) in Settings back to Male.

Next step on the scale, still way too high (but dropping by 0.1%).  Stepped on the scale again and *magic*, the BF% dropped by more than 14%!  Back to "normal"!!!

I verified by weighting 3 more times. The Aria seems to be back to normal...

FWIW, the other household user of the scale reported higher numbers, but only by a small amount.  When "my" BF% was fixed, the other user noted a small change back toward "normal" as well.

My guess is that this is related to Settings and Personal Info (Male/Female) more than it is about the Aria.  Somehow the fitbit connectivity/communication uses several factors.  The scale is not "dumb" except that it is.  All settings for the scale are done via "connected" device (phone/laptop/tablet).  So, it makes sense that the Aria is "learning" from your "connected" devices (on the same network) and therefore other device's (or the fitbit Web App) Settings actually "rule" the Aria.  Changes to to Settings after the Aria is connected will affect the scale.

Hope that helps!

Moderator edit: merged reply

[oslekj]

Hi, I have the same issue, the more weight I lost the higher my body fat percentage went up. So I went and did a DEXA scan, the results being I have 18% body fat which is in the healthy range, my Aria scales had me at 34% body fat - figure that ! I now ignore the body fat pecentage on my scales - it is a shame that they can't get that right - you pay for quality scales to get the correct info.

[MatthewFitbit]

@oslekj Check out this post for an explanation of why that happens.

[Vondieamen]

I think I agree with the folks saying it's a male/female thing.  My husband and I weigh about the same amount.

Today I got on the scale and it thought I was my husband (and I wasn't quick enough to change it from him to me).   So it saved as him showing 18% BF.

I then got back on the scale, same weight, this time correcting it to be me and it said 34% BF.

He and I are only a couple inches different in height and similar weight.  So if I pretend to be him, I can show 18% BF.  If I log it as me, I'm 34% BF.

Even my father (who actually has like 15% BF, he's really tall/lean/skinny) wanted to try it out. The scale thought he was me having lost a few pounds, and it said he had 34% BF.

So now I question if it really is measuring accurate BF or just doing a BMI type calculation of height/weight/gender.

[Lisann02]

I've had the same issues.

First of all the scale is a pain to set up. I set one up for my mom and it took about 10 minutes. When I did mine it took 45 minutes. After I finally got it on I was disappointed with the body fat measurements. When I was 15 pounds heavier my body fat was 5% less than what the scale said. I am a size0-2 and am very muscular. It says I am in the overweight category. 

I am incredibly disappointed with this scale and would like to tell everyone not to waste their money on it. The only accurate part is the weight. Like you, I am just disregarding the body fat reading. 

[LoriBee]

I have a sports medicine scale that measures weight, water, and body fat. I purchased the Aria only because it would link to my FitBit and I could have all the info in one place. I am physically fit, work out at least five days a week a for 90 munutes and teach Senior Fitness classes. I have never in my life had more that 19% Body Fat. Imagine  my shock when the Aria displayed 33% body fat! I went to the sports clinic to have it checked at the same time I would have weighed myself and they showed 17.5%

It isn't me, my diet, my water  consumption or my feet causing this reading; it's the scale. There must be some way to correct it. It would be nice if FitBit would own the problem and stop blaming consumers. Of course I can just ignore the reading but when you pay over $100 for a scale, you should be able to use all of it's functions.

[Rick0502]

Go to the Fitbit site and make sure you have the correct gender selected. That seems to be the problem 95% of the time.