Why do I need to get a DEXA scan to use BODYSIM?

An excellent starting benchmark is the foundation to monitoring progress. DEXA scans are the gold standard method to assess body composition by partitioning muscle, bone and fat mass.

Other methods do not work. Even the best “calculators” (we call them anthropometric estimations) can be hugely off for some people—enough to imply a difference in estimated BMR greater than the entire caloric deficit or surplus necessary to reach their goal. Machine learning methods based solely on vision, such as those that take 3D scans of your body in an office, on your phone or even in a special suit, claim accuracy on par with DEXA but do not in fact deliver.

We have seen body fat percentage errors of 50%(!) versus DEXA from even the leading machine learning vision-based app. BIA or body composition scales, home versions and more sophisticated scales you might find at the gym or your doctor’s office similarly may report correct trends but are notoriously inaccurate; we’ve seen consistent, repeated body fat percentage errors of 75%(!!) versus DEXA even on the best home octopolar, multifrequency BIA scale.