A comparison of two body composition tests: the 3-site skinfold and the 2-3 girth measurements.

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis was to determine the accuracy of the 2-3-Girth test and the 3-site Skinfolds when applied to non-weight trained males and females and to weight trained males. Underwater weighing was used as a criterion against which the 2-3-Girth and 3-site Skinfold tests were compared. The 3-site Skinfolds uses measurements of the chest, abdomen and thigh for men and triceps, ilium and thigh for women. The 2-3-Girth test uses measurements of the neck and lower abdomen for men and neck, upper abdomen and hip for women. A Pearson correlation and a t-test were used to analyze the data with a level of significance at 0.01 (two tail). The analysis of the results indicated that the 2-3-Girth test can predict percent of fat accurately for both groups of men. The 3-site Skinfolds significantly underestimated percent of fat in both male groups. In the women the Skinfolds had accurate results, but for the Girth test the results were inconclusive since the researcher obtained a very low correlation.