Muscle DOES NOT weigh more than FAT

...extending my previous thought...

If I eat gold, my body fat percentage will go down!

I think the expression is intended to mean that muscle, relative to density, weighs more than fat. Should say a pound of fat takes up more room in your pants than a pound of muscle. I'll take a pound of muscle over a pound of fat any day.

5lbs of anything = 5lbs of anything else.

5lbs is 5lbs. It's more of the way you think about it. "Muscle weighs more than fat." Not really, because it's still 5lbs. Muscle is 'smaller' than fat, which makes it more like a play on words.

5lbs of rock is still equal to 5lbs of feathers. I see no problem with the phrase.

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The point is that if you take equal volumes of fat and muscle tissue, one cup for example, one cup of muscle will weigh more than one cup of fat because muscle is more dense.

Oops, didn't read the post above mine that says the same thing.

LOL! Ok, I'll admit that I'm guilty of saying that, BUT, not for the reason originally thought. It's like a layman's term when you're trying to explain to someone who is overweight, has never exercised in their life and they question their weight, because they only go by the scale NOT the tape... you try to explain the density/volume ratio of muscle vs fat, and their eyes gloss over, so you just sigh and say "muscle weighs more than fat"... *click* "ohhh, I get it". ;-) ... sometimes you have to use hand puppets too... such a misused term... and irritating, but hey, people's misuse of your/you're and their/they're/there really irritates me, but I won't start a thread on it... or will I...

Here's my twopenneth for all you pedants:

If I go into a shop (and its a univeral shop that sells everything) and ask for a pound of fat, a pound of muscle and a pound of steel I would receive a pound of each (if shop keeper is honest with me!), they would all weigh the same but would be different sizes.

If I go into the same shop (because let's be fair, they sell everything!) and ask for a cubic inch of fat, a cubic inch of muscle and a cubic inch of steel (oh and a bag of apples for the kids please while you are there), I would get the same sized item but they would all be a different weights.

Now, if I understand all your debating correctly - you are all saying the same thing.

End of. I am a thread killer. Let's end this now shall we.

Muscle is approx 17% more dense for you nerds out there.

I keep seeing responses to posts that muscle weighs more than fat when in fact this is an old myth. When you take 5lbs of muscle and weigh it against 5lbs of fat, according to my math, 5lbs is 5lbs. Fat is much thicker than muscle, so by going by the scale if you are working out and you are not losing weight, you are simply replacing the fat with muscle. You could go months without losing weight, but your clothes are getting bigger and bigger on you. This is because you are losing the fat and converting it into muscle.

Please read here if you could: http://www.onemorebite-weightloss.com/muscle-to-fat.html

Let's stop this myth for everyone's sake and don't always go by what the scale says but what you see in the mirror or how your clothes fit!!

Hope this helps!!
Cheers
Ed

Wow, that is all so silly. Things that are more dense than other things of the same size weigh more than the less dense things. Therefore, muscle weighs more than fat. What unit of measure is used doesn't make any difference. The fact that 5 lbs of muscle is smaller than 5 lbs of fat is because muscle weighs more. This is not a myth.

Fat does not get converted into muscle. You can gain muscle at the same time that you lose fat, but the fat does not turn into muscle. You are also unlikely to gain muscle at the same rate you lose fat.

Wow. You have no idea how much I needed to see this picture. Now it makes sense to me and its motivating.

EXACTLY! ^^this!!!

BUMP

THANK YOU, Booboo78. A picture is always helpful! I had never seen this depicted before.

i know ive seen this pic before was gonna post it myself haha

That is because when someone makes the statement that "muscle weighs more than fat". Then weight is the variable in the equation and your suppose to make the conclusion on your own that with equal volume of muscle and fat. Muscle will weight more.

So in your example if you make weight a constant and you take 5lbs of muscle and 5lbs of fat. You will have more volume of muscle.

^^^^^^^^this!

I think we should stop obsessing about what weighs more than what and simply aim to have less fat and more muscle IN GENERAL. People get so caught up in the fine print... how do you feel, how do you look? Are you strong? Etc. The minute I stopped obsessing about that stuff and focused on being healthier and stronger in general, the fat pretty much melted off. Just sayin.