3d body Scanning
It’s time to throw away your humble tape measure – you can accurately find out just how big (or small) your waists, thighs and arms are by using a scanner called Styku, which is now available for the first time in the UAE at Haddins Fitness in Zayed Sports City.
Styku is a 3D scanner that gives you an analysis of your body. It measures every limb, but more importantly, reveals how much of your body is made of fat. “There really is no hiding place with machine,” grins the gym’s owner Michael Haddin.
The scan is so accurate, Haddins’ Lydia Cordero tells What’s On during our test, that you could even use it to go shopping. “You could send the measurements to a tailor to get a suit made,” she says.
So how does it work? Styku is a white cylinder with an Xbox Kinect camera fitted inside (yep, the same one that kids use to play games with). You stand on a white turntable a few feet away from the camera and the turntable rotates 360° slowly to capture a three-dimensional image of your body. The test is done three times so an average can be taken. Then the results are broken down into a PDF you can take home.
As well as giving you measurements of almost every part of your body down to the nearest millimetre, the report also compares your fitness level with people who are the same sex and who are a similar age to you, and ranks your body composition: for example, if your body fat is between six and 13 per cent, you’re classed as ‘Athletic’. Fourteen to 17 per cent is classed as ‘Fit’, 18 to 25 per cent is ‘Average’ and any higher is classed as ‘At Risk’.
Styku also reveals how many calories you burn daily and you can use it to set goals if you want to lose weight – it calculates how much food you should eat every day if you want to achieve your goals.
But there is some accountability if you use this machine – the Dhs500 price includes two scans, a before and after, and a training programme from one of the trainers at Haddins after your initial scan. So you’ll have to return at a later date to use the scanner again to prove you stuck to your diet and fitness regime – and this is one camera that never lies.