How to Take Body Measurements

How to Take Body Measurements

There are a variety of reasons why you may want to take your body measurements. You could be making, tailoring, or purchasing clothes, or you may be trying to gauge weight loss. Different purposes will require different measurements but all are easy to take with basic tools and maybe a helping hand. Use the following steps when you take your measurements.

If you like your scales and don’t have time to calculate body fat, the least you should do is buy a tape measure and keep tabs on your body measurements. This is good practice even if you are calculating body fat percentages. Taking your measurements is an fantastic method of keeping track of your changing body shape as you get fit. When you burn fat and increase muscle mass, there may be times when you weigh a little more despite the fact that your body is getting smaller and tighter.

For a complete picture of your progress when taking body measurements, measure yourself in 10 different places. Otherwise, for a quick approach simply measure chest, waist and hips, including either lower or upper body measurements – depending on your problem area (e.g. thighs, arms).

Before you start measuring, remember to:

Use a non-stretchable tape

Make sure the tape measure is level around your body and parallel to the floor

Keep tape close to your skin without depressing it.

Measurements:

Bust: Measure all the way around your bust and back on the   line of your nipples.

Chest: Measure directly under your breasts, as high up as possible.

Waist: Measure at its narrowest point width-wise, usually just above the navel.

Hips: Measure around the widest part of the hipbones.

Midway: Measure midway between the widest part of your hips and your waist.

Thighs: Measure around fullest part of upper leg while standing.

Knees: Measure immediately above the knee.

Calves: Measure around fullest part.

Upper arm: Measure above your elbows – around fullest part.

Forearms: Measure below your elbows – around fullest part.

Re-measure yourself every couple of weeks and record you measurements, so that you can chart your progress. This is a great motivator! It can be discouraging to see your measurements at the start of the program, but once you begin to see results, the feeling of accomplishment is incredible. Even if you have already commenced your program, it is not too late to get measuring (body fat percentage or body measurements), as it is wonderful and rewarding to watch your body continue to change. If you want, plug your vital statistics into the body fat calculator to get an estimate of your body fat percentage.

Women: Hip-To-Waist Ratio

An interesting fact about body measurements is that research has shown that it is not so much a woman’s weight that determines her attractiveness, as it is her waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). It seems that women with a WHR of 0.7 (i.e. a waist circumference that is 70% of the hip circumference) are consistently regarded as more attractive by men – regardless of culture or body type. Diverse beauties such as Sophia Loren, Marilyn Monroe, Beyoncé Knowles, Kate Moss, Alessandra Amrosio and Salma Hayek have waist-hip ratios of around 0.7.

For best results when measuring your body, use a tape measure made out of cloth. If you want to measure your upper arm, wrap the tape around your arm’s thickest part, which is usually your bicep. Men should measure the circumference of their chest just below their armpits, and women should measure around the nipple line. When measuring your waist, measure just above your belly button for your natural waist and just below the belly button for your lower waist. To complete your lower body, measure your hips, thighs, and calves at their widest points.

Tips

The cloth measuring tape will have both centimeters and inches on it so you can measure according to your preference.

Remember when making or tailoring clothing that extra material will need to be left for seam allowances and hems.

If your new body measurements are drastically different from your previous numbers, you may wish to measure those areas again to double check for accuracy.

For weight loss records, keep a measurement log where you write down every measurement throughout your weight loss journey. Be consistent and take your measurements every 30 days. Subtract the previous measurements from your new numbers to find the difference.

Warnings

Do not pull the measuring tape too tight to where it will press into the skin, though this will give a smaller measurement, it will not be accurate if you are truly trying to record correct size information.