Bodybuilding Measurements Calculator

Finding your ideal body measurements can be challenging since there are many things that need to be considered.

 In addition, finding your ideal body measurements is extremely important if you are a competitive bodybuilder. 

However, amateur ones can still benefit from knowing the metrics used in a competitive landscape.

Your chest, biceps, hips, waist, and the rest of the body parts should all be in harmony, which is the point of bodybuilding in general. 

Keep reading below to learn everything you need about the bodybuilding measurements calculator, how to use it, and more.

Quick Summary

• Bodybuilding measurements or ideal Grecian calculator is a piece of software that estimates your natural genetic muscular potential or ideal proportions of your body.
• The bodybuilding measurements calculator is very straightforward to use, and there are just three steps you need to complete.
• All of your body measurements should ideally be taken in the morning since we want to avoid measuring your muscles while pumped or being in an unnatural state.

What Is a Bodybuilding Measurements Calculator?

A bodybuilding measurements calculator, often referred to as a bodybuilding BMR calculator, is an online tool that helps you estimate your body's perfect proportions and natural genetic muscular potential.

It is essential for developing a well-rounded and balanced physique, especially in bodybuilding.

Since the dawn of time, bodybuilders have been trying to find a way to build the best-looking physique, and the key to their seeking is to be found in Old Greece and its vast mythological corpus.

More precisely, the answer lies in the Golden Ration or Adonis Index, which is essentially a shoulder-to-waist ratio that helps us build the best-looking physique, according to old Greeks.

 In addition, many other measurements need to be taken into account, and some include the hip, waist, biceps, chest, and other body parts.

What Is the Grecian Ideal and How Does It Work?

The Grecian ideal of bodybuilding is an idea that characterizes the perfect male body by the wider shoulder in comparison to waist size, solid muscle development and balance, and low body fat percentage.

The Grecian ideal works by giving the best body proportions, which assures to build the best-looking body according to old Greeks and their philosophies.

Essential components of an aesthetically pleasing and good-looking physique are decent muscle mass, proportion, symmetry, and leanness.

An old ancient Greek idea characterizes the perfect body of the male as having wider shoulders than usual compared to waist size and a solid overall development of muscles and balance. In addition, it also emphasizes low body fat percentage. 

How to Use the Grecian Ideal Calculator?

To use the Grecian Ideal calculator, you must choose the measurement unit, enter wrist size, and press the calculate button.

Here is the step-by-step guide on how to use the Grecian Ideal calculator:

• Step 1 is to choose the preferred use of measurement, which can be imperial(lbs, hours, and minutes) or metric (kilograms, hours, and minutes).
• Step 2 is to enter your wrist size.
• Step 3 and the final step consist of entering the calculate button.

After you hit the calculate button, the tool will provide the ideal measurements for each part of your body, and then you can see how you currently match up. In addition, the calculation will estimate measurements for the following groups of muscle:

• Waist
• Chest
• Biceps
• Hip
• Forearm
• Calve
• Thigh
• Neck

All these body parts are essential to measuring since that is the only way to attain the perfect or Grecian Ideal body.

How to Measure Each Body Part?

To measure each body part, you will need to use a soft measuring tape.

In addition, you will need to measure body parts such as your calves, biceps, chest, thighs, hips, waist, and more. 

Now you most certainly think that the only step there is to be made to measure different parts of your body is to take the tape and start measuring.

However, that isn't exactly the case since the time of measuring your body parts is crucial too. 

Ideally, all of your measurements should be taken early in the morning and before you have anything to drink or eat. 

Also, you should do all your measurements before working out.

Furthermore, measuring your body parts should be done when you are not carb-loading since that will give the most accurate results of your arm size, but for the rest of your body parts too.

Wrist

A common recommendation for measuring your wrist is to measure your non-dominant hand.

To measure your non-dominant wrist, turn your palm up, open your hand, and measure the circumference of the area between the bony protrusion of your wrist and the same hand.

Chest

When focusing on chest exercises, it's essential to know the size and progress of your chest muscles. The most accurate measurement of your chest is when you wrap the tape around the part of your chest that is sticking out the most.

This can be challenging but will produce the most accurate measurements. 

Keep in mind to wrap the tape around your shoulder blades and under your armpits too.

The best measurement is produced after taking a normal breath.

Waist

The best and most accurate way to measure your waist is when you wrap the tape right above the belly button.

However, you should also wrap the tape below the ribcage to produce the most accurate results.

Hip

The hip is the largest part of your buttock below the waist and can be tough to measure precisely.

However, you can have accurate measurements by having someone do it for you since many mistakes are made when measuring all by yourself.

Biceps

When focusing on getting bigger biceps, it's essential to track your progress accurately. There is no way to only measure your biceps muscles since you will need to wrap the tape around the whole upper arm, which will also consider the triceps.

However, flex your arms and wrap the tape over the highest biceps point, around your triceps, and straight down for the best possible measurement. You should measure both arms.

Forearm

To get the most accurate measurement of your forearm, you should flex it and measure the meatiest part. 

Thigh / Upper Leg

To get the most accurate measurement of your thighs or upper leg, you should flex your upper leg and measure at the biggest part.

Calve

To get the best and most accurate results from measuring your calves, you should point your toe down and then flex your calf to measure the thickest part of it.

Neck

Accurately measuring the neck is done by standing up straight and having someone measure the thickest part of your neck.

However, you can also do it all by yourself. Just remember that getting the most accurate results can be a little more challenging.

Golden Ratio/Adonis Index

It is well-known not just in the fitness industry but in general that a broad set of shoulders represents a universal symbol of strength and a male trait that most women find attractive and desirable.

Adonis Index, or the Golden Ratio, is an old idea that describes the perfect shoulder-to-waist ratio, which is believed to be 1:1.618.

However, it is much more complicated than that and goes much further in analyzing the perfect balance between the waist and shoulders. 1.618 represents an ancient and unique mathematical number and concept studied by some of the greatest minds in history.

Some of them include Pythagoras and Euclid from ancient Greece and Leonardo of Pisa in Italy. 

It is well-documented that the Golden Ratio can be found almost anywhere in nature.

Some examples include geometry, leaf growth patterns, mathematics, financial markets, architecture, music, human shape, proportions, etc. 

Essentially, what it represents is a combination of various different elements which are put together in the most aesthetically pleasing way you can imagine. Here are a couple of examples of Grecian Ideal measurements:

• Flexed calves - Same size as arms when flexed
• Flexed arm - 2.5x larger than non-dominant wrist
• Shoulders - 1.618x larger than waist 
• Chest - 6.5x larger than non-dominant wrist
• Upper leg - 1.75x larger than knee

Even though the standards are not the same for everyone, these measurements are still accurate enough regarding the most aesthetic physique possible. It is also well-known that any Ideal Grecian calculator doesn't provide all the necessary measurements and, most of the time, isn't 100% accurate.

However, by far, it gives the best possible measurement if you seek to build the most aesthetic physique possible. 

One of the good things is that you don't have to try and do all the hard math by yourself since the calculator provides all the necessary information regarding perfect proportions for your body.

For example, imagine you have a 7-inch wrist. According to the Grecian Ideal calculator, your ideal proportions will look something as follows:

• Waist – 32 inches
• Chest – 46 inches
• Biceps – 17 inches
• Hip – 39 inches
• Thigh – 24 inches
• Forearm – 13 inches
• Neck – 17 inches
• Calf – 16 inches

But What About Body Fat Percentage?

The body fat percentage is still crucial for building the best-looking physique since the perfect proportions may become less ideal if the body fat percentage is too high.

For instance, having a higher body fat percentage will also mean a larger midsection of your body in comparison to other parts of the body, but only for some people. In addition, body fat can sometimes have a significant effect on certain proportions.

There are no specific details given by the previous generations regarding ideal body fat percentage since the lack of proper measurement instruments were lacking at that time. 

In addition, performance-enhancing drugs were also not available back then, and people didn't have the proper diet plan and sufficient training knowledge like we have today.

This is one of the reasons, amongst many, why you should take your results with a grain of salt.

Typically, you should aim to have as low a body fat percentage as possible since that will signify your muscles and the proportions we talked about earlier in the article.

It isn't the same to have 17-inch arms and 25% body fat or the same arm size but 10% body fat.

 Ideally, for men, you should aim to have between 8-10% body fat since that will make your muscle mass more visible and attractive. 

However, this can also differ based on your personal and fitness goals, meaning that 15% body fat can also be acceptable and even rewarding for the people with the corresponding body composition goal. 

Can You Gain a Lot More Muscle Than What the Calculator Estimates? 

Yes, you can gain a lot more muscle than what the calculator estimates since it isn't 100% accurate. 

It may be helpful for you to aim for a proportional and aesthetic physique, and the calculator will provide enough accurate information to achieve that.

 It is also important to mention that not everybody has the same genetics, which can also play a role in how accurate the calculations are. 

The point is to not solely rely on the calculations but rather use them as a form of guidance.

FAQs

Why Is Bodybuilding Measurements Calculator So Important?

The bodybuilding measurements calculator is so important because it allows us to estimate ideal ratios, which help us build the most aesthetic physique.

The ideal physique can be achieved through rigorous training, but you should remember that your genetics and environment also play a significant role.

Nevertheless, you shouldn’t be discouraged by the factors you can’t control to build your dream physique since it has been repeatedly shown that a rigorous workout regime coupled with appropriate diet and recovery can substitute poor genetics and similar factors.