Questions about weighing in "stone"

Options
orangegato
orangegato Posts: 6,570 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
This is a totally innocent and honest question. I live in the US and am not familiar w/ "stone" as a measure of weight. It seems that many MFP users from Great Britain, Ireland and Australia (I think?) use this measurement. Just wondering if it is used for other things or only for human body weight? Would you use it to describe the weight of your dog, or would you use it to describe how much weight you are bench pressing?
«13

Replies

  • thegeordielass
    thegeordielass Posts: 208 Member
    Options
    If I recall right, the vets have only ever weighed my uncle's dog in kg. I don't think anyone would use it weight lifting (happy to be proven wrong, it's not something I do). I think it's pretty much just people.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,220 Member
    Options
    Stones are used for animal measurements I believe. 14 pounds is a stone when it comes to a living animal (human, dog, etc.). I'm fairly certain everything else is the metric system.
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,483 Member
    Options
    Here you go.

    http://www.weightconversions.org/imperial-imperial.htm


    Cheers, h.
  • jrochest
    jrochest Posts: 119 Member
    Options
    Stone and pounds is kind of analogous to feet and inches, although Brits are the only people who use it, I think: Canadians think in pounds for body weight, but I'm not sure about Australia and New Zealand (or India, for that matter).
  • Fionella
    Fionella Posts: 17 Member
    Options
    Australia is in kilograms.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,885 Member
    Options
    In both Australia and Canada we measure in kilograms. :)
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,654 Member
    edited March 2018
    Options
    Machka9 wrote: »
    12 x 14 = 168 lbs + 1 = 169 lbs. :)

    And there you have proof positive of an epic out of fingers add fail!!!! I will blame the stones, or just call it water weight due to high sodium and that will be my final answer!!!
  • mazcor536
    mazcor536 Posts: 115 Member
    Options
    It’s like learning a new language. You hear the word but need to mentally translate it before you understand.
  • crabbybrianna
    crabbybrianna Posts: 344 Member
    Options
    Machka9 wrote: »
    In both Australia and Canada we measure in kilograms. :)

    Not in Canada. Canadians use lbs for body weight. I’ve never come across anyone who uses kilograms here, except they will convert lbs to kgs on drivers licences.
  • Bedazzled35
    Bedazzled35 Posts: 51 Member
    Options
    A stone is an archaic measurement, originally used to trade goods although this is no longer legal in the UK.

    However it remains most British people's goto measurement for bodyweight. I can visualise a 10 stone woman and with a quick run through my 14 times table I can easily equate that to 140 pounds. I'd struggle to do that with 68kg although the conversion isn't difficult.

    The same thing exists with height, I'm 5'7 not 1.7m
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    Options
    Yeah a stone is still referred to by us in the UK even though we actually are metric for measurements/weights now. Most of us understand both.
    I think in stones and pounds but also convert easily to kgs.
    I like that my weight sounds lighter in kgs - 57kgs instead of 8 stone 13lbs or 125lbs
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,885 Member
    Options
    crabbybrianna wrote: »
    Machka9 wrote: »
    In both Australia and Canada we measure in kilograms. :)

    Not in Canada. Canadians use lbs for body weight. I’ve never come across anyone who uses kilograms here, except they will convert lbs to kgs on drivers licences.

    Really? I did. When I lived in Canada, we switched to metric when at some point in the 1970s and I used metric from that point on. Did Canada switch back to imperial since 2009? I haven't had that impression each time I've visited .........
  • Muscleflex79
    Muscleflex79 Posts: 1,917 Member
    Options
    Machka9 wrote: »
    crabbybrianna wrote: »
    Machka9 wrote: »
    In both Australia and Canada we measure in kilograms. :)

    Not in Canada. Canadians use lbs for body weight. I’ve never come across anyone who uses kilograms here, except they will convert lbs to kgs on drivers licences.

    Really? I did. When I lived in Canada, we switched to metric when at some point in the 1970s and I used metric from that point on. Did Canada switch back to imperial since 2009? I haven't had that impression each time I've visited .........

    we definitely use pounds for bodyweight in Canada, other than for surgery I notice they've always made note of my weight in kg - other than that, everything and everything else I see discussed in pounds.

Categories