Segmental Fat Analysis

• The measured part: the impedance of each of the five segments, which the whole calculation starts from.
• The calculated part: the fat mass of the segment. It arises in a similar way to total fat mass — water and lean mass are derived from impedance and fat remains as the residual. The manual gives no equation for the segmental split.
• The reference comparison: the percentage. It relates the kilograms to the ideal value for that segment, not to the weight of the segment or to total fat.
• A derived sum: fat in the arms and legs is added together on the Visceral Fat Result Sheet as Arm/Leg Fat, that is limb fat excluding the trunk.
• Weight is the only directly measured quantity in the whole chain; everything else is derived or calculated.

• Sort out the sides first. Right arm and right leg are yours, not the ones on the right of the picture.
• Read the percentage as a multiple of the reference, not as a share. A value of 100 percent equals the reference value for the segment, 200 percent is twice that.
• Read the kilograms and the percentage together. Arms and legs carry far less fat in absolute terms than the trunk, so the kilograms alone cannot be compared between segments.
• The manual publishes no bands or thresholds for segmental fat. It states only that the percentage compares a segment with its ideal value. Do not import thresholds from other sources, and treat the value as a description of distribution rather than a classification.
• A difference between the right and left side is an observation about fat distribution, not a diagnosis of oedema, inflammation or disease. The device does not establish such states.
• A high trunk value does not automatically mean high visceral fat. The trunk includes subcutaneous fat of the chest, abdomen and back. For the question of how much fat surrounds your organs, Visceral Fat Area is the value to use.

• In practice segmental fat moves mainly alongside total fat mass. When total fat falls, the segments usually fall too — not necessarily at the same rate.
• Compare the same segment under comparable conditions. The body composition estimate is sensitive to hydration, the last meal and recent exertion.
• A meaningful horizon is weeks to months. A difference between two measurements a few days apart reflects the measurement conditions rather than a real change in fat.
• Falling fat in a segment while lean mass in the same segment holds or grows is a different situation from both falling together. That is why the two values are read side by side.
• For subcutaneous fat the manual warns that it cannot be reduced in the short term and that a long-term approach is needed. The same applies to what you will see in the segmental values.

General principles: how to read change between measurements →

• Segmental lean mass in the same segment – shows whether the volume of an arm or leg is lean tissue or fat.
• Total fat mass – the context the segments add up to.
• Percent Body Fat – the share of total weight that the segmental values do not carry.
• Visceral Fat Area – the only indicator that separates fat around the organs from subcutaneous fat; the trunk value does not answer this.
• Estimated body circumferences – add a sense of shape and volume that the kilograms alone do not give.

• Sides are read from the point of view of the person being measured. Your left leg appears on the right of the silhouette.
• The percentage is not the share of fat in the weight of the segment. A value above 100 percent is ordinary and means a multiple of the reference value.
• Trunk fat is not visceral fat. It covers subcutaneous and more deeply stored fat together.
• A difference between sides is not a diagnosis. The device does not establish oedema, inflammation or disease.
• Exercising a particular area does not remove fat from that segment specifically. The manual describes no such method and fat distribution is individual.
• Kilograms cannot be compared directly between segments. The trunk naturally holds far more fat than an arm.

• Hydration — fat is calculated as the residual after subtracting lean mass, so a deviation in the water estimate propagates into fat.
• Food and drink shortly before the measurement.
• Training shortly beforehand, which changes perfusion and fluid distribution in the loaded segments.
• Time of day and the shift of water towards the lower half of the body during the day.
• Room temperature outside the recommended 20 to 25 °C, showering or sauna before the measurement.
• Stance during the measurement and the quality of electrode contact — these show up most in the segmental values.
• The menstrual cycle, during which fluid retention fluctuates.

• Confirm the sides before you start comparing left with right.
• Read the kilograms and the percentage together, and add segmental lean mass from the same segment.
• For tracking fat loss, use total fat mass as the main indicator and the segments as supplementary information about distribution.
• When fat around the organs is what interests you, open Visceral Fat Area rather than the trunk value.
• Repeat measurements under the same conditions weeks apart rather than days, and decide from the trend.

• It does not diagnose oedema, inflammation or disease; a difference between sides is an observation.
• It does not separate visceral from subcutaneous fat in the trunk.
• The manufacturer publishes no numeric bands or thresholds for individual segments.
• The equation for the segmental split of fat does not appear in the manual, so the value cannot be verified independently.
• Segmental fat was not part of the manufacturer validation study against DEXA.
• The value is sensitive to hydration and measurement conditions, because fat is calculated as a residual.