difficulty with finding cross sectional area of skeletal muscle at l3 for assessing sarcopenia

In segment Cross section area there are three options (row, column, and slice). Since we always work with 3D data in Slicer, all of them will generate a result, even in a single slice. Perhaps you are not choosing the right axis.

If you are unsure which axis to choose, create a single circular segment with the diameter of 40mm (paint segment tool). The cross-sectional area reported for that should be about 1,256mm2. Go through all three of them and see in which one you see the correct cross-sectional value, then repeat the same with your data.