Thread: Body Pod gave very high body fat percent

Hello Friends,
I used to get my body fat percent measured at the gym every 3 months usign calipers and my body fat was first 12% and then it fell to 8%. However, as my previous posts mentioned I didn't have a six pack abs and had a chubby face. Also I noticed when I was hiking or mountain biking, my endurance seemed to be lower than other people who didn't seem as fit as me. I was very surprised with this. I cut out white rice from my diet, started eating salads and grilled chicken. I would do cardio with a high heart rate,about 75 - 80% of my max heart rate about 3 times a week. I am a rated table tennis player and I played table tennis 4 times a week, which used to be pretty good cardio too. I know most people are unaware that table tennis can be a tiring sport but when played right a player has to move very fast and cardio fitness is vital. With regular ab exercises everyday,within 2 months or so my abs started showing. I still don't have a lean face though. I probably lost some muscle mass since I didn't lift weights at all other than leg exercises. I assumed that my body fat would have fallen to maybe 6% or something and decided I must go back to weight training.
Before that I decided to measure my body fat accurately using a body pod Life Measurement, Inc. BOD POD. I got the shock of my life. The machine which is supposed to be very accurate showed that I had 20.8% body fat which is border line of normal and excessive. I couldn't believe these results because no body would ever call me fat. The technician told me that most people are surprised by the results but it is the most accurate. Does any one have a similar experience? Is there a chance that these machines could go wrong? Should I go for a second reading via some other method like underwater body fat testing?

You have abs showing? Then you don't have 20% bf.