Hydrostatic testing: need help reading the tea leaves (long)

This is going to be long, and I'd love some perspective on this data!

I had my hydrostatic test done today. I am still attempting to wrap my head around what it all means. Here is what it said:

Dry weight: 167.4
Wet weight: 2.86 (does that really mean I weigh almost 3 lbs under water? LOL!)
Body fat percentage: 24.5% (the handheld tagged me at 29% on Friday).
Weight of body fat: 41.1 lbs
Lean body mass percentage: 75.45%
Weight of lean body mass: 126.3 lbs
Resting metabolic rate: 1742 calories/day

This puts me just about at the 65th percentile for women my age (45), and places me at the top of the "Good" category.

A body fat percentage of 23.5% (losing about 2 lbs of fat) places me squarely at the 70th percentile and "optimum health" range. He did say that seeking a body fat percentage of anything lower than that becomes cosmetic.

So here is where things get interesting. The guy administering the test was really impressed that my surgeon got me SO CLOSE to optimum body fat percentage with my goal weight of 160. He asked me a lot of questions how doc arrived at my goal of 160. I explained that it had to do with my starting/presurgery weight of 258, and that he simply drove it off of BMI. The guy was still impressed.

Regarding goal weights - part of the report had this chart:

% fat - target wt - to lose
24 - 166.3 - 1.1
23 - 164.1 - 3.3
22 - 162 - 5.4
21 - 160 - 7.4
20 - 158 - 9.4
19 - 156 - 11.4
18 - 154.1 - 13.3
17 - 152.3 - 15.1
16 - 150.5 - 16.9

He flagged the 18 because that would put me at 154 pounds and in the 90th percentile, the same value as performance athletes - something to shoot for.
My doc's goal of 160 would put me at 21% body fat, landing between 80 and 85th percentile which is highly athletic.
My personal goal of 150 would put me at 16% body fat, landing at about 95th percentile, beyond performance athletes.

Based on the above, I am seriously rethinking my goals. Based on this, I am thinking that my target goal should be 155-160 instead of 150. I am apparently teeter tottering on the boundary between burning fat and burning muscle, particularly because my typical daily caloric intake of ~800 calories is so very far below my RMR of 1742 calories. According to materials they gave me, my lean mass weight of 126 lbs means I need between 85-90 grams of protein each day, which is where I have been. The guy administering the test indicated that I should remain on the high protein low carb approach that I am on, but consider increasing my carbs through low GI carbs. Here is where I am stumped. What happens if I get more protein than I need? Which is going to be better for me, adding low GI carbs or adding fat?

So, my decisions at this point:
1. Deciding whether to change my goal weight, and if so, what to
2. Deciding to modify my nutrition or not. I haven't been working with a NUT, but perhaps it is time. What do you think? Another option is to stay the course. It seems to me that this data will give me an opportunity to fine tune/customize a plan to my body's unique needs, but I'm not sure what that is.

Either way, I am THRILLED with these results and am extremely proud of the fact that this is undoubtedly the best shape I have ever been in.

Thanks for reading this far.

Laurie

I have only had the handheld fat analysis done and I was just over 20%...20.4 I think. Anyway...I am really intrigued by what you shared.

Where did you have this done? What was the time duration for the test and how long after it did you get your results? What was the test like? How much did it cost and is this an insurance covered test or OOP?  Do you get it done again at goal or any other point? 

I know you were looking for answers, not question...but I have lots of questions! :)

I had it done at a mobile lab that came to a wellness center down the street. They are at bodyfattest.com and have labs in different cities. Go to the website and watch the video. The only difference was that I got to lie on my stomach instead of laying back, but the rest of it was all the same. The cost for me was $45 for the first test and $35 for subsequent tests. He recommended a retest for me in 6 months and a retest for my hubby in 12 months. This wellness center has the lab here every 4 months and they do some sort of a competition among their members. I paid cash, and won't run through insurance.

Hope this helps!
Laurie

I have no idea what all this means and have never done a hydrostatic test, actually never heard of it, but it is clear that you have done some amazing work! Kudos!

I am not sure what any of the results mean but I am interested to learn more. Sounds like you have been successful. Thanks for sharing. I will be researching about this.

Based on your results, I'd change your goal.  Why work to lose muscle?  I don't know about the dietary changes, but that'd be a great question for a RD.