It’s one of the most commonly asked questions on the ATHLEAN-X YouTube channel.

What is my height and my weight?  What is my real body fat percentage?

Everyone’s got their guesses, and some of them are pretty surprising!

Some people have me at 5’6 and 226 lbs of body weight.

I’m neither of those.

Today I’m going to share my own body stats to make a point that you can apply to your own body, training, and nutrition.

Jeff Cavaliere’s stats are really not that important. What is important is that there’s a value in this example.

I’ll share with you a valuable teaching point that we can make as you set your own fitness goals.

Without further ado, first let me share my stats.

JEFF CAVALIERE HEIGHT AND WEIGHT

So, let’s start by looking at my height.

As you can see below, with shoes removed, I’m 5’10-½” tall.

Wearing my usual clothes–no shoes–the scale shows I weigh 175 lbs. Let’s subtract 2 lbs for the clothes, so 173-ish.

Those height and weight numbers may surprise you.  Am I taller than you expected, or weigh less than you expected?

JEFF CAVALIERE BODY FAT PERCENTAGE

In addition to height and weight, we need to measure body fat level for a clearer picture. Somebody could be 5’10”, 175 lbs and be 30% body fat and look completely different than someone with a body fat percentage of even 10%. A single digit body fat percentage is very lean.

To calculate body fat, I’ll use a method I used with the professional baseball team I worked with, the skinfold caliper. I use the Skyndex skinfold caliper. The skinfold test is a staple of athletic trainers and personal trainers due to its speed, portability, and accuracy.

The test method I use requires three pinches: chest, abs, and thigh. We start with the outside edge of the pecs, midway between armpit and nipple.

Then we measure the abdomen. And last, we measure the thigh skinfold.

The caliper shows my current body fat percentage at 5.8%, and that’s the body fat percentage I maintain year-round.

I do that with consistency, commitment, and prioritization. Being athletic and lean is important to me. Athletic and lean compose our company brand name: ATHLEAN-X.

THREE THINGS YOU CAN DO TO LOOK BETTER NOW

Now you know my stats, but as I mentioned, they really shouldn’t be important to YOU.

What should be important is that you work toward being the best version of yourself that you can without comparing yourself and your results to others.  Those types of comparisons can lead to disappointment, feelings of inadequacy and just deciding to give up altogether.

Instead, focus on yourself and on improving your training, nutrition and consistency.

There are three things you can start doing now if you want to look and feel better.

GET LEANER

You can put on muscle and build strength. Not only will you feel stronger, but even if you’re carrying excess weight, muscle looks better.

But what this underscores is the value of leanness. When you’re lean, whatever muscle mass you carry looks bigger and better.

My current body fat percentage is admittedly very low. In fact, a healthy body fat percentage for men can be higher. For men, ideal body fat percentage is between 8 and 19%. Naturally, someone at a 19% body fat percentage will not have the same classic beach body as someone in a leaner body fat range.

Leanness also contributes to athleticism. Being athletic becomes easier when you carry less excess body fat. Too much weight slows you down and weighs you down too.

Getting lean requires a commitment to healthy nutrition. And it IS possible to reach your goals and still enjoy your food, too!  In fact, I’ve designed the X-Factor Meal Plan that accompanies all of the ATHLEAN-X programs around meals that guys enjoy.

Meals that you like enough that you won’t be thinking as much about cheat meals.

For more information on how to eat to build muscle and stay lean, check out my article How To Build Muscle Fast.

DON’T COMPARE YOURSELF TO OTHERS

Don’t compare yourself to others, especially when it comes to body stats. Be inspired by attributes beyond the body stats. A person’s degree of fitness entails more than numbers.

When I was a kid, Sylvester Stallone was my physique role model. I wanted to look like he did in Rambo. His lean muscle mass and athletic look appealed to me. That was my dream physique.

I could have aspired to develop a body like Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was one of the bodybuilding icons of that time. But that would have been a big mistake.

Why? Because Arnold is 6’3”, 240lbs. And as you now know, I am just 5’ 10” and 175 lbs… totally different body type!

Look at professional wrestlers Hulk Hogan. Rick Rude, Sheamus, and Cesaro. Some of these guys have visited my gym. Jinder Mahal has been here too, as have Drew McIntyre, Florian Munteanu, and Creed. These are big guys, but I don’t get self-conscious standing next to them.

I’ve come to grips with the fact that I’m not going to be like them, physically. Having a physique like professional wrestlers or famous bodybuilders is not in the cards for me. I don’t have the frame for it. But my passion for fitness inspired me.

Look at our skeleton here. This is not the skeleton of a big guy. This guy looked a bit more like me. People have different underlying structures that dictate how big they can get naturally.

Muscles attach to bones, so the bigger the frame, the bigger the muscles that attach and insert to the bones can get. Bigger guys have much bigger skeletons underneath. Pecs, for instance, originate along the sternum and clavicles and insert out on the upper arm bone, the humerus.

If you have narrow clavicles, your pec muscles can only be as wide as the clavicles will allow. Longer clavicles mean wider pecs and wider shoulders.

Lean muscle mass holds more water, which adds weight.

But again, these are just stats. There’s more to fitness and looking your best in your own individual body.

Instead of comparing yourself to others or striving for a physique that isn’t possible given your genetics, your fitness goals should be based on where you are now and guide where you want to be tomorrow.

WORK HARD AND BE DEDICATED…CONSISTENTLY

Look to the pros and learn from their dedication and work ethic, like Thor Bjornsson, who’s deadlifted 1000 lbs. I’m never going to have 1000 lb deadlift, but what I can do is be inspired by that and apply the same intensity to my training.

Let’s consider action stars like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson for a second. Who, in this world, cannot benefit from aspiring to match his work ethic? Who works harder at what he does in the weight room?

Many of these professionals have grueling travel schedules; they’re in a different city every day. They carry their nutrition with them to make sure their diets stay on track. That’s dedication.

Being lean and staying in great shape requires sacrifices. I don’t eat cheat meals and I don’t drink, even when I go out with my friends. That makes staying lean easier. I’ve also been doing this consistently now for years. I’ve made being lean and having an overall well-rounded physique my life’s focus.

It’s important for you to define yourself. Identify what you feel is important and what you aspire to. That’s what matters most. Don’t limit yourself to body stats alone because body stats can be deceiving.

But once you have a goal, the only way to reach it is to be consistently dedicated. That applies to any goal both in or out of the gym. If it’s a fitness goal, you’ve got to be committed and consistent with your training and nutrition to reach it.

Now I’ve given you a clear idea of my height, weight and bodyfat level.  But, while that might be interesting to you, it shouldn’t really be important to you.  That’s because you shouldn’t be comparing yourself to Jeff or to anyone else.

When setting training or physique goals, you’ve got to take into account your own genetics and create a set of goals for yourself that are focused on you, not someone else.

If your goal is building muscle and looking better, the way to get there is through training and nutrition which will also help you get leaner… getting leaner makes the muscles pop and look bigger. Dedication and consistency are key to reaching these goals or any goal.

Apply these training principles and be the best you can be.

If you’re looking for a complete training program to help you build strength and muscle mass, let me be your coach. Check out our ATHLEAN-X programs to see which one is the best fit for your goals and fitness level.

JEFF CAVALIERE FAQS