Muscle vs Fat

I don`t think there has been a lack of respect going on here, just an exchange of ideas. People take offense when their point of view or opinion is refuted. Nobody is criticizing the OP, perhaps the OPs opinion, but that isn`t a disrespectful thing to do, right?

I don`t think anybody would ever claim that a pound of fat weighs more than a pound of muscle. That is obviously not true.

Imagine if you replaced all the fat on your body with an equal amount of muscle, so you stayed the same shape and size but with no fat. You would obviously weigh more. That is because muscle weighs more than fat.

It's interesting how "to heart" people take things that are posted on a public and free forum. Why do people always go for the throat in their responses? Is it cause you can let it all loose knowing no one really knows who you are? Just because we all hide behind a "User Id" doesn't mean we cannot treat people with respect. The OP was just trying to bring up a pet peeve (from how I read it) when people compare a pound of fat to a pound of muscle. The do not usually bring up volume. I totally know where she is going with that. When I was at weight watchers and would hit a plateau, people would always say "Don't worry, your gaining muscle and muscle weighs more than fat". I truly doubt they were all speaking about volume.

I don't think the OP needs to be criticized for her topic or her opinion.

I didn't I was nice :bigsmile: :bigsmile: xtra points for me right?

::ducking:: "rebuffed" not "refuted" [Hey, just demonstrating being really a bit overly peev-y -- for all I'm concerned you can write "refuted" whenever you like...]

whoa, did not know.

So it's rebuff becasue I dismissed the claim.

If I had present an alternative argument it would have been refuted.

if you take a 2 people that weigh the same and measure them out cup by cup ..... you will still end up with the same weight you will just have a lot less cups to fill...... but you will still have the smae weight!! I am basing this rant on scale weight not volume!!

Well, you know it could be that people don't bother to explain that they mean muscle weighs more than fat, CUP BY CUP, because the unit of volume is completely 100% irrelevant to the argument. A given volume of muscle always, always, ALWAYS weighs more than an equal volume of fat, whether you're talking about cups, liters, or reservoirs. That's assuming similar gravitational forces, of course, but then maybe that's too big an assumption too.

So, Which weighs more in space a cup of muscle or a cup of fat?

Ah, fat in space, lol! Now we're talking mass, and it's gonna do a lot more damage if your spaceship gets hit with a one-cup size muscle meteor vs. a one-cup size fat meteor!

It may be beneficial if everyone could agree that a person that weighs 200 lbs and is 19% body fat would look smaller than a 200 lb person who is 35% body fat.

If we all can agree on that then we should be able to agree that having muscle is beneficial.

So with those two points down. I can say a lot of the people I have seen here on MFP who say they are "not" doing any weight lifting because they do not want to gain muscle because (say it with me) "muscle weighs more than fat" are the ones who need to understand that muscle is "less" dense than fat and if you add 10 pounds of muscle and lose 10 pounds of fat you will not only "look" slimmer but really start to ramp up your metabolism (and start to lose more weight).

So if we can agree on everything I wrote thus far I think we can start helping people who geniune just want to know should they try to build muscle or not.

We can say yes build "muscle" and do some weight lifting because it is beneficial and will "not" make you look bulky because it is less dense than fat and overall will make you feel healthier because I know in the end the real purpose of all the "muscle vs fat" discussions are to help people be become healthier.

Good luck to you all and I wish you all success in your fitness goals!

This is the stupidest thread ever.

If we all can agree on that then we should be able to agree that having muscle is beneficial.

But WAIT! More muscle = more weight.... I don't know if I can agree. Unless we're in outer space of course. With a cup of gold.
And what if I turned my fat into gold? Then how much would I weigh?
:laugh:

I know people have mentioned this before but I continue to see people post that Muscle weighs more than Fat...

It DOES NOT!!! A lb of muscle is the same weight as a lb of fat!!

Muscles are a lot more dense so they take up less room... so you look smaller...but a lb is a lb.

For example a 2 lb brick and 2 lbs of feathers..... a 2 lb brick will take up a lot less space then 2 lbs of feathers!! but they are both still 2 lbs!!

If you take a person who weighs 200lbs but has a lot of muscle (lower body fat) and put them next to a person with more fat the one with more muscles will actually be and look smaller but will still weigh the same......

thats why when you are working out it is important to take your measurements because if you are working out you are building lean muscle mass which might not make the scale move right away but you will be getting smaller!! Eventually the scale will move because muscles burn more calories then fat does even when resting..... so once you turn fat into muscles your body will work more efficiently and eventually burn off the fat and lbs!!

ok thats my rant for the day!! a lb is a lb!!

Well said! It is sad how many will stop weight training because their weight loss may slow down. You are so right. It is better to keep up the weight training because you will may be losing weight slower NOW but in the end if you are patient you will get the desired weight loss and so much more. There are so many that are misinformed or just don't know. A pound is a pound!

TRUE A POUND IS A POUND IS A POUND REGARDLESS OF THE SUBSTANCE. WHEN STATING MUSCLE WEIGHS MORE THAN FAT PEOPLE ARE USUALLY COMPARING VOLUME AS IN A TONED FIT MUSCULAR SIZE SIXTEEN MAY EASILY OUTWEIGH A SOFT FLABBY FAT PERSON WEARING THE IDENTICAL SIZED OUTFIT HEAD TO TOE.

I'LL CUT FOLKS SOME SLACK FOR SAYING MUSCLE WEIGHS MORE THAN FAT BECAUSE BY VOLUME THIS IS TRUE. NONE THE LESS; IN SPITE OF NEVER HAVING SEEN A CUBIC FOOT OF PURE MUSCLE WEIGHED AND COMPARED TO A CUBIC FOOT OF PURE FAT; AND DESPITE KNOWING A POUND IS STILL EQUAL TO A POUND; I WILL CUT FOLKS WHO MAKE THIS ERRONEOUS STATEMET A LITTLE SLACK TOO.

I UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY MEAN. A LEAN MUSCULAR PERSON OF THE SAME HEIGHT/ WEIGHT IS SMALLER IN SIZE THAN A FAT FLABBY PERSON OF THE SAME HEIGHT/ WEIGHT REGARDLESS OF THEIR EQUAL BMI.

MSW
(NO, I'M NOT SHOUTING AT YOU I'M JUST HARD OF SEEING. )