A pound is a pound...

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Replies

  • JigglyPig
    JigglyPig Posts: 231 Member
    Nice job wording this! Hopefully it will help some people FINALLY get it! :)
  • JigglyPig
    JigglyPig Posts: 231 Member
    it's like "lose vs loose" and "should i eat my exercise calories". my opinion hasn't changed, but i will say. . this has been done already.

    Hahahaha the lose/loose thing drives me NUTS! It's like...really?
    Same with you're/your, too/to/two, etc. I could go on and on.

    Lol, so funny.
  • bbb84
    bbb84 Posts: 418 Member
    :drinker:
  • Chuckw40
    Chuckw40 Posts: 201
    I disagree, the fact that we are comparing the same volume is usually implied when talking about a substance. If I said to a buddy, "hey, what weighs more, lead or styrofoam?", should he say, "well they both weigh the same"?

    Of course not!

    Lets make it even easier, if you replaced all the fat in your body with muscle, would you weigh more or less?
  • dragonflydi
    dragonflydi Posts: 665 Member
    It seems that photo bucket hates me. I can do this if I upload the photo to my profile and get the image code, but when I do the exact same thing from photobucket, it doesn't work saying my photo or video has been moved or deleted ... when it hasn't :(
    You can use a photo link from anywhere.....if you have a photo on Facebook, you can use that link. If you just Google a photo, you can use that link. Etc. You don't have to take a photo and move it to photobucket in order to post it here.

    OK, I may have figured this out. The only hosting site I have an account at is photobucket (have FB, but pics for this site aren't on there) ...

    Let's see if this works ....
    5lbs.jpg
  • llkilgore
    llkilgore Posts: 1,169 Member
    I really don't think ALL of these people failed grade 1 math but it really seems that way sometimes.

    I don't know why it should. I don't think first graders are expected to know the difference between a constant and a variable.
  • kdao
    kdao Posts: 265
    Totally agree with you! :)

    People should stop encouraging others when they have put on a few pounds by saying 'oh don't worry, youve been to the gym so youve probably gained muscle, it weighs more than fat!' They are just giving the poor cow false hope.
    Anyone in this situtation should really ask themselves if they are being totally honest with themselves ... How many times do you look at a piece of cake, biscuit or chocolate and say 'oh a little wont hurt...' but the truth is it does!!

    Great post :)

    This! :smile:
  • clw_888
    clw_888 Posts: 157 Member
    I don't think anyone will disagree with you that a pound of fat or a pound of muscle or a pound of butter are the same weight. We all understand that a pound is a pound is a pound. As mentioned by several other posters, the issue here is volume. If you take a cup of fat and a cup of muscle, which is going to weigh more? Of course, the muscle as it in denser than the fat. That is the issue that causes the confusion. So, to sum it up, people are correct in saying that muscle weighs more than fat because it does. They are incorrect in saying a pound of muscle weighs more than a pound of fat.

    Sorry to duplicate other posters responses if I did so!
  • Chuckw40
    Chuckw40 Posts: 201
    Great pix - and if they were both dropped from the top of the Empire State Building they would both go SPLAT at the same time.

    If the empire state building was in a vacuum you would be correct. Since it isn't then you have to take drag into account.
  • ImBabyBunny
    ImBabyBunny Posts: 75
    You are completely right. How do we measure body fat vs body muscle compositions tho?


    I want to know the exact same thing! I have a bad feeling I am skinny-fat *Gulps* :(
  • agent300
    agent300 Posts: 73
    it's like "lose vs loose" and "should i eat my exercise calories". my opinion hasn't changed, but i will say. . this has been done already.

    Hahahaha the lose/loose thing drives me NUTS! It's like...really?
    Same with you're/your, too/to/two, etc. I could go on and on.

    Lol, so funny.

    seriously this is one of the most annoying things. i seriously wish there could be an intelligent section of the forums. and you have to know the difference between lose/loose to enter. you're/your used to be my number one pet peeve but now being on a weight loss website, lose/loose has taken over.
  • ZebraHead
    ZebraHead Posts: 15,207 Member
    *Looks around for that dead horse. "Now where did I leave that thing??!!"
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    Found it!!

    Beating_A_Dead_Horse.gif
  • westcoastSW
    westcoastSW Posts: 320 Member
    *Looks around for that dead horse. "Now where did I leave that thing??!!"
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    Found it!!

    Beating_A_Dead_Horse.gif
    :laugh: WINNING! :laugh:
  • Losingitin2011
    Losingitin2011 Posts: 572 Member
    Yes, muscle does weight the same as fat. I think the phrase that it weighs more comes from the fact that 1lb of fat LOOKS like a lot more than 1lb of muscle. For example, I am about a size 14, and I'm still right around 200lbs. There are people who weight about the same as me who are a size 22/24. Just means I've got less fat in me than they do.
  • Chuckw40
    Chuckw40 Posts: 201
    Yes, muscle does weight the same as fat. I think the phrase that it weighs more comes from the fact that 1lb of fat LOOKS like a lot more than 1lb of muscle. For example, I am about a size 14, and I'm still right around 200lbs. There are people who weight about the same as me who are a size 22/24. Just means I've got less fat in me than they do.

    So using your logic water weighs the same amount as air, right? I mean a pound of air is the same as a pound of water right? Think about what you are saying, does this make any sense to you?

    Fill a gallon jug with water and then fill another with air and tell me which jug weighs more.
  • Djbass728
    Djbass728 Posts: 71 Member
    Well put - it helped me see the light!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • tross0924
    tross0924 Posts: 909 Member
    Yes, muscle does weight the same as fat. I think the phrase that it weighs more comes from the fact that 1lb of fat LOOKS like a lot more than 1lb of muscle. For example, I am about a size 14, and I'm still right around 200lbs. There are people who weight about the same as me who are a size 22/24. Just means I've got less fat in me than they do.

    So using your logic water weighs the same amount as air, right? I mean a pound of air is the same as a pound of water right? Think about what you are saying, does this make any sense to you?

    Fill a gallon jug with water and then fill another with air and tell me which jug weighs more.

    482.jpg
  • SiltyPigeon
    SiltyPigeon Posts: 920 Member
    Really? I always that when it is stated that "muscle weighs more than fat" that there was a general consensus of understanding that the given portions of muscle and fat were of equal volumes (such as a cup or a cubic inch). With that understanding the muscle does weigh more. Also, a person containing 30 lbs of muscle would be "smaller" than a person containing 30 lbs of fat. All other factors held constant of course. There fore it is possible for two people to be the same weight and height but for one to be physically smaller than the other. Similarly it is possible for one person to remain the same weight or even to gain weight, as long as it is muscle weight, and be physically smaller than they previously were with a higher percentage of body fat. Hmmmm.... maybe that consensus was only an assumption on my part and this explanation must accompany every claim of fat vs weight from now until the end of time. Eh.
  • Chuckw40
    Chuckw40 Posts: 201
    Really? I always that when it is stated that "muscle weighs more than fat" that there was a general consensus of understanding that the given portions of muscle and fat were of equal volumes (such as a cup or a cubic inch). With that understanding the muscle does weigh more. Also, a person containing 30 lbs of muscle would be "smaller" than a person containing 30 lbs of fat. All other factors held constant of course. There fore it is possible for two people to be the same weight and height but for one to be physically smaller than the other. Similarly it is possible for one person to remain the same weight or even to gain weight, as long as it is muscle weight, and be physically smaller than they previously were with a higher percentage of body fat. Hmmmm.... maybe that consensus was only an assumption on my part and this explanation must accompany every claim of fat vs weight from now until the end of time. Eh.

    I always thought the same thing but apparently people are caught up in semantics. They have basically decided that weight as a unit of measure is worthless since everything weighs the same anyway.
  • wintermama13
    wintermama13 Posts: 172 Member
    muscle weighs the same as fat just like a ton of bricks is as heavy as a ton of feathers. If you are doing it that way yes, but volume-wise Muscle weighs MORE than Fat!!!
  • MittenKitten1219
    MittenKitten1219 Posts: 82 Member
    As a physics grad student, thank you! That is a significant detail lol
  • rachel871
    rachel871 Posts: 113 Member
    I disagree, the fact that we are comparing the same volume is usually implied when talking about a substance. If I said to a buddy, "hey, what weighs more, lead or styrofoam?", should he say, "well they both weigh the same"?

    Of course not!

    Lets make it even easier, if you replaced all the fat in your body with muscle, would you weigh more or less?

    I think you're missing the point here - if you were going to ask the lead vs styrofoam question, you would, assumingly, be asking if a similar amount (with regards to volume, length, whichever measurement you choose) of one substance is heavier than the other, i.e. if you've got a 1ft length of lead, and a 1ft length of styrofoam, OF COURSE the lead will be heavier.

    That, however, is not the point. The point is that 1tonne of lead weighs EXACTLY the same as 1tonne of styrofoam (1tonne=1tonne), but the lead would take up a hell of a lot less room!

    :smile:
  • Ms_Natalie
    Ms_Natalie Posts: 1,030 Member
    Hiya all,
    Can we please leave the personal remarks and insults out of this thread? Let's keep it friendly...debate is fine, but resorting to personal insults makes for uncomfortable reading. I will re-read the thread and may delete some specific posts which are insulting or contain quotes from personal posts...just to let you all know.
    Thanks for your co-operation :wink:

    Ms_Natalie
    MyFitnessPal Forum Moderator :flowerforyou:
  • Barelmy
    Barelmy Posts: 590 Member
    Um, duh? Was anyone seriously confused by that? O_O
  • Barelmy
    Barelmy Posts: 590 Member
    So using your logic water weighs the same amount as air, right? I mean a pound of air is the same as a pound of water right? Think about what you are saying, does this make any sense to you?

    Fill a gallon jug with water and then fill another with air and tell me which jug weighs more.

    Yes, a pound of air weighs the same amount as a pound of air. They weigh a pound, you just said that.

    But, no, the volume of air required to fill a gallon jug does not weigh the same as the volume of water required to fill a gallon jug. There, you're comparing volume, not weight.
  • bmontgomery87
    bmontgomery87 Posts: 1,260 Member



    Stop being so obsessed with body weight and start paying attention to body composition.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,021 Member
    For the love of all that is holy ... muscle DOES weigh more than fat by volume, and that's what people are talking about when they say "muscle weighs more than fat." NO ONE thinks that a POUND of muscle weighs more than a POUND of fat.
  • bmontgomery87
    bmontgomery87 Posts: 1,260 Member
    , but volume-wise Muscle weighs MORE than Fat!!!

    no.
    volume and weight are two different things.

    muscle is more dense.
    density= mass/volume
  • Chuckw40
    Chuckw40 Posts: 201
    I disagree, the fact that we are comparing the same volume is usually implied when talking about a substance. If I said to a buddy, "hey, what weighs more, lead or styrofoam?", should he say, "well they both weigh the same"?

    Of course not!

    Lets make it even easier, if you replaced all the fat in your body with muscle, would you weigh more or less?

    I think you're missing the point here - if you were going to ask the lead vs styrofoam question, you would, assumingly, be asking if a similar amount (with regards to volume, length, whichever measurement you choose) of one substance is heavier than the other, i.e. if you've got a 1ft length of lead, and a 1ft length of styrofoam, OF COURSE the lead will be heavier.

    That, however, is not the point. The point is that 1tonne of lead weighs EXACTLY the same as 1tonne of styrofoam (1tonne=1tonne), but the lead would take up a hell of a lot less room!

    I hope this clears this up for you. I also hope you are satisfied with my correct use of spelling, grammar and capitalisation. (excuse the UK spelling as opposed to the US 'z'.)

    :smile:

    As a reasonably intelligent person I of course know that a ton of anything weighs the same as a ton of anything else. That is not even in question here. The question is does one substance weigh more than another. When trying to answer this question it is not helpful to compare an equal weight of the 2 substances. You would instead compare an equal volume of the 2 substances.

    In the context of weight loss we are concerned with the fact that 2 people the same height may weigh the same thing but one could be considerably thinner. How could this be true? I suggest the answer is that the thinner person has a much lower percentage of body fat. This would indicate to me that muscle must weigh more than fat or else they wouldn't weigh the same thing.

    As far as the grammar thing, I only called that person out because he was putting others down for their word usage.
  • ZebraHead
    ZebraHead Posts: 15,207 Member
    Such a simple topic with a single logical answer. Why does it have to consume everyone so much?
This discussion has been closed.