What is FFMI? FFMI stands for Fat free mass index, and it measures the amount of muscle you have in reference to your height. It is a great indicator whether someone is on steroids or not. It is used as a validator if someone is natural meaning they are not taking performance enhancement drugs.
What is FFMI?– Istock-photo credit: PeopleImages
A great FFMI score for a natural fitness enthusiast is anywhere from 22 to 24. Anybody that has a score of over 25 is an indication that they are probably taking performance enhancement drugs to boost their lean muscle mass on their body.
It is either they are taking them, or they have taken them before. It is important to also know there are unique rare outliers’ cases where someone is just a genetic freak and possesses an enormous amount of lean muscle mass than 99.9% of people in our society.
There was a study that was done at the Mcclean Hospital on 157 athletes who were either elite bodybuilders or powerlifters. In the study it revealed that 31 admitted to steroid use in the past and 52 admitted to taking steroids the year before. And about 74 people of the study admitted to not taking steroids.
The data in the study revealed that the steroid users had an average FFMI of 24.8 but the non-users had a score of 21.8. None of the natural fitness enthusiasts had an FFMI score above 25. The final analysis of this study showed that enhanced fitness enthusiasts with a normalized FFMI over 25 were using performance enhancement drugs.
The best way to calculate the FFMI if you don’t have an online FFMI calculator is the following: This helps to calculate the FFMI for men and women.
Fat Free Mass Index=Weight, (KG)*(1-(Bodyfat/100)
The FFMI is a better indicator of how muscular someone is as opposed to the BMI, Body Mass Index. If you are a guy who has a lot of muscle for your height the BMI will label you as overweight or obese. So, the BMI doesn’t really accurate assess very fit athletic people from a health perspective.
The fat free mass index is one of the best indictors to tell if someone is enhancing their body with performance enhancement drugs. The only information you need to figure out is your height, weight and body fat percentage. And it will give you an overall score.
The Bottom Line is FFMI stands for Fat Free Mass Index which measures the amount of muscle you have in reference to your height and bodyfat percentage. It is an exceptionally good indicator to tell if someone is on performance enhancement drugs or steroids.
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References
1) Kouri EM, Pope HG Jr, Katz DL, Oliva P. Fat-free mass index in users and nonusers of anabolic-androgenic steroids. Clin J Sport Med. 1995 Oct;5(4):223-8. doi: 10.1097/00042752-199510000-00003. PMID: 7496846.
2) Kadi F, Eriksson A, Holmner S, Thornell LE. Effects of anabolic steroids on the muscle cells of strength-trained athletes. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1999 Nov;31(11):1528-34. doi: 10.1097/00005768-199911000-00006. PMID: 10589853.
