MODEL RELEASED. Body fat assessment. 39-year-old overweight man having his body fat measured. Callipers (right) are used to grip an area of skin, usually on the abdomen, thigh or upper arm. The distance between the tips of the callipers is recorded and used to calculate the amount of subcutaneous fat present. From this a measure of the proportion of the body that is fat is obtained. The average body fat percentage for men is 10-20 percent, while for women it is 17-27 percent.