CONTENTS
Ultrasound Method	Caliper Method
Impedance Method	Water Weight

If assurance that the exercise or nutritional program you are following is getting results, you must find an "accurate" way to measure your body composition, LBM. Without doing so, your results are only pure "speculation." Without an accurate method, you are only fooling yourself or setting yourself up for discouragement (a result of inconsistent measurements).

We have our body composition checked once a month whenever following a program and have set goals for ourselves. If you choose not to use an accurate method to track your progress, do not take full credence in just weighing yourself. Look at yourself in the mirror, is your belt getting looser or tighter. These anecdotal procedures are better indicators than just weighing yourself. Society has engrained our thinking towards how much our body weighs. A person may be in relatively good shape. They start an exercise and nutrition program, and use their bathroom scale as a measurement of progress. That person gets discouraged because they haven't tightened their belt or their clothes do not fit looser. All that appears to be happening is they are gaining weight and everyone knows you can't do that! Bull! They are probably replacing bodyfat with LBM. If they took a good hard look in the mirror, they would notice they are loosing that round smooth appearance and getting firmer. Their caloric requirements are increased as a result of increased LBM. I have seen many people quit at this point because they are discouraged by their weight gain!

Ultrasound Measurement Method
We recommend a method to measure LBM which utilizes an ultrasound procedure. Dave Ryan, Living LEAN, has setup a computer program that calculates body composition from taking measurements using an ultrasound machine at two sites on the body. You might ask: Only 2 sites? These two are a result of a lot of various site measurement testing and narrowing down accurate results to just the two sites. This method is extremely consistent and provides accurate results. It has been validated against water weight measurement method. This procedure is highly recommended.

Impedance Measurement Method
This procedure is very impressive and anyone can learn how to apply the procedure (they just need to purchase expensive equipment). On the face, it appears to be very "high tech." In order to get "consistent" measurements the following protocols must be identical:

• The amount of water or liquid you have ingested in the last 24 hours
• Cannot be checked unless there is an adequate rest period after high activity or exercise
• Should not be taken if under high stress