Seven Reasons To Have A DEXA Body Composition Scan

June 2025 by FitTrace

Introduction

As with many medical tests, there are two main reasons: screening and monitoring.  Screening is an initial test that captures where you are now.  Monitoring is successive tests for the purpose of tracking changes.

Why get an initial scan?

• Snapshot: It’s like a picture of your current health and fitness. It’s good to have even if you’re not planning changes.
• Spot problems: It can flag issues like too much visceral fat (bad for your heart) or sarcopenia (losing too much muscle as you get older).
• Set your baseline: If you plan on getting more scans, this first one is super important for comparing future results.

Why get follow-up scans?

• See if changes work: Are your diet and gym time actually doing what you had hoped? Is fat decreasing? Is muscle increasing?
• Optimize for performance: Especially for athletes, these scans help fine-tune training and nutrition to get the ideal body makeup for their sport/position.
• Check post-injury recovery: See how much muscle you’ve lost during recovery and if you’re truly ready to get back in the game.
• Stay motivated: Seeing your progress or comparing yourself to others can really keep you going when you’re working towards a goal.