Does gas "weigh" more?

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Replies

  • Stella3838
    Stella3838 Posts: 439 Member

    I guess that is going to depend on how good the sphincter muscles are - a muscle group which is sadly often neglected by fitness enthusiasts ;)

    Is there a workout that will build the sphincter, but not make me bulk up on my glutes?
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    Intestinal gas is typically:

    59 percent nitrogen, 21 percent hydrogen, 9 percent carbon dioxide, 7 percent methane and 4 percent oxygen. It has less O2 than air which would make it heavier but has more methane, which it lighter than air. So, it's probably about the same weight per volume as air. So, no, you're not changing you weight by farting.

    But it is pressurized. If it weren't then you wouldn't be able to fart.

    I guess that is going to depend on how good the sphincter muscles are - a muscle group which is sadly often neglected by fitness enthusiasts ;)

    But not the sex enthusiasts

    Crap. Gonna get warned again now....
  • Nikion901
    Nikion901 Posts: 2,467 Member
    But boy, doesn't it feel good to let one go? pfffffff....
  • CafeRacer808
    CafeRacer808 Posts: 2,396 Member
    I'm sitting at my desk at work desperately trying not to burst out laughing and look like a crazed person

    qgometnoi90j.jpg

    I'm so with you. Thankfully, I work from home, which means I'm actually laughing out loud like a crazy person. My dog's giving me the side eye, but he's always been the judgemental type, so I've learned to ignore it.

    That's stink-eye. ;)

    I see what you did there... :D
  • dotwilldoit
    dotwilldoit Posts: 53 Member
    Best thread ever. Now.. how many calories did I use by so much deep belly laughing?
  • Stella3838 wrote: »

    I dunno, are we talking normal human stomachs or the core of a main sequence star?

    Are you an astronaut?!?!

    vQqeT3AYg8S5O.gif

    Nah, I'm not even a real scientist, just a data scientist
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,149 Member
    bagge72 wrote: »
    This is pretty awesome. I would suggest waiting until you have a big toot, and then go stand on the scale right before you let it out, and then see if the scale changes once you do!

    works for poops.



    um... or so I've heard.

    yeah. that's what I've heard. I've never tried it.
    eta... and CERTAINLY not yesterday, when I lost two pounds.

    I did that a few times and my weight always went up after #2.
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    edited February 2017
    this thread delivers. haha
  • BCullari
    BCullari Posts: 33 Member
    sp1219 wrote: »
    I eat a fair amount of lentils and beans because I am a pescetarian However, it has the unpleasant side effect of making me gassy :o Can gas make the number on the scales go up?

    For the record, I get protein from a variety of sources, and drink tons of water and herbal tea. But I like beans, lentils, broccoli, etc!
    Gas does not make the scale rise.....but it can get risky when coupled with mild diarrhea.
    I learned that lesson the hard way....

  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
    Stella3838 wrote: »

    I guess that is going to depend on how good the sphincter muscles are - a muscle group which is sadly often neglected by fitness enthusiasts ;)

    Is there a workout that will build the sphincter, but not make me bulk up on my glutes?

    "To begin strengthening your sphincter muscles, the National Health Service recommends lifting and squeezing your sphincter as you would if you were trying to avoid passing gas. After you practice this movement, tighten your muscles in the way you would if you were trying to stop urine in mid-flow. After you practice these two movements separately, combine them by starting the first movement and holding it while initiating the second movement. Once you completely tighten your muscles, keep them contracted for a few seconds, then fully release the contraction before starting over again."
    livestrong.com

    You're welcome.

    The things I google for MFP :D

    You should know by now that livestrong.com is not a reputable source. Has this technique been peer reviewed and independently verified?

    PS - How does one go about independently verifying the strength of someone else's sphincter? (Don't answer that...)

    I think possibly the very last thing I want to do is learn how to verify the strength of someone else's sphincter :o
  • CafeRacer808
    CafeRacer808 Posts: 2,396 Member
    sp1219 wrote: »
    I eat a fair amount of lentils and beans because I am a pescetarian However, it has the unpleasant side effect of making me gassy :o Can gas make the number on the scales go up?

    For the record, I get protein from a variety of sources, and drink tons of water and herbal tea. But I like beans, lentils, broccoli, etc!

    Bringing this back around to the OP's question, have you tried Beano?
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    sp1219 wrote: »
    I eat a fair amount of lentils and beans because I am a pescetarian However, it has the unpleasant side effect of making me gassy :o Can gas make the number on the scales go up?

    For the record, I get protein from a variety of sources, and drink tons of water and herbal tea. But I like beans, lentils, broccoli, etc!

    How about testing this. When you feel a good fart coming, step on the scale. Step off, let'er rip, and step back on again. Only way you will know for sure.
  • ammo7
    ammo7 Posts: 188 Member
    Gas doesn't weigh anything- it's just air.

    Try performing this experiment, to see that air does have weight.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5LT_wfI98w
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    Stella3838 wrote: »

    I guess that is going to depend on how good the sphincter muscles are - a muscle group which is sadly often neglected by fitness enthusiasts ;)

    Is there a workout that will build the sphincter, but not make me bulk up on my glutes?

    Mexican food the night before squats might do it? But then again, squats = glute work so I'd recommend Mexican food + front squats: Kind of like the plank for the sphincter.

    Edited to add: Don't go to failure :(

    Or if you are, do it at home. No one else should have to clean up that *kitten*.
  • Stella3838
    Stella3838 Posts: 439 Member
    @StealthHealth Is this something where I need to work in progressive overloading or is it just max reps?
  • CafeRacer808
    CafeRacer808 Posts: 2,396 Member
    sp1219 wrote: »
    I eat a fair amount of lentils and beans because I am a pescetarian However, it has the unpleasant side effect of making me gassy :o Can gas make the number on the scales go up?

    For the record, I get protein from a variety of sources, and drink tons of water and herbal tea. But I like beans, lentils, broccoli, etc!
    Gas does not make the scale rise.....but it can get risky when coupled with mild diarrhea.
    I learned that lesson the hard way....

    Shart happens...
  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
    ROFLO. Oh my gosh! Laughing so hard I'm crying. Feeling sorry for the hernia repair guy. :D
  • blambo61
    blambo61 Posts: 4,372 Member
    This is how it works.

    Any gas in the body would increase the bodies weight by mass of the gas x gravity. Any extra volume of air that the body displaced due to the gas being inside of the body and expanding the bodies volume would create a buoyancy force up (reducing the scale weight) by the amount of the weight of the air in the volume of air displaced.

    That is how denser-than-water ships float. They sink into the water to the level of where the water that is displaced weighs the same as the weight of the ship. The weight of the ship is countered by the upwards buoyancy force of the water displaced.

    There ya go.

    Gas in a body would be negligible on the scale.
  • dotwilldoit
    dotwilldoit Posts: 53 Member
    Who else thought of this thread at socially embarrassing times? Ha!
  • Brans34
    Brans34 Posts: 599 Member
    Oh my gosh. As a science teacher, this thread hurts my heart just a little bit. Lol

    GAS is not going to weigh enough to have a weight difference. It will make you bloated just like blowing up a balloon as (previously mentioned), which will make your pants tighter. Retaining water will make you gain weight, as the density is much higher, and it usually occurs in most of the cells in your body.
  • markrgeary1
    markrgeary1 Posts: 853 Member
    Sure it is. That's why fart balloons are so heavy.
This discussion has been closed.