End the mystery, how much is a "stone"?

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  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
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    Stones are only used for "people weight", not to weigh anything else. I think we can better visualise weight and weight loss when it's measures in these chunks of 14lbs as it's what we're used to.

    We're supposed to have gone metric in the UK, but we still buy beer in pints, have road signs in miles and use pounds in recipes! Worse, we do cold temperatures in Celsius (brr, it's below zero) and hot temperatures in Fahrenheit (phew, it's over 80)!

    No wonder we're confused! :laugh:
  • psiren28
    psiren28 Posts: 530 Member
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    I still talk about my weight loss in stones to my British friends even though I use lbs on here. I can't get my head around kilos at all even though I now live outside the UK where kilos is the way. I have my British scale that weighs in Stones and lbs.
    I can visualise a stone, I can guess someone's weight in stones. Kilos? Forget it! That's for airport baggage :laugh:

    A recent conversation:

    Friend: How much weight have you lost?

    Me: About 60lbs

    Friend: Oh... ummm... well done

    Me: Just over 4 stone

    Friend: WOW!!! That's brilliant!!!

    :laugh:
  • zoodalia
    zoodalia Posts: 294
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    Stone is a European measurement of weight. It used to vary from village to village before settling on about 14 lbs. It is no longer a "recognized" form of measurement, but is still used informally in some areas. It is especially common in Scotland and outlying areas of Europe. (P.S. I am American, but I am also one of those people to keep handy when you are playing Trivial Pursuit) :smokin:

    Hi, first post. Hello from the UK.

    Yes, a stone is 14lb. But it's not 'informal' at all here. Most bathroom scales bought in this country will be marked in stone/llbs as well as KG. Ask someone here what their weight is and (assuming they don't think you're being rude!) you'll hear the answer in stones/llbs.

    Exactly, it's definitely still well-used here (in the UK)... my friends and family wouldn't know what I was talking about if I started talking 'pounds' to them.
  • AtticusFinch
    AtticusFinch Posts: 1,263 Member
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    You say we're moving towards metric, but we've been doing that for at least 10 years already and it's not changed yet so I wouldn't hang about!! :) Us English can be set in our ways sometimes :P

    Ten years? Try multiplying that by four :laugh:

    British currency went metric in 1971 and schools not only dealt with that but also started introducing other metric units to pupils, for weight, volumes, and lengths (I know because I was one of the confused). So it's really been 40 years and counting.

    Can I just compliment everyone on keeping the comments good natured, it's been fun to read everyone's opinion.

    May be we should all be looking at whatever system they use in China, perhaps that will be the dominant culture in another 40 years, (The UK will still be 'converting' to metric then I bet).
  • Hoakiebs
    Hoakiebs Posts: 430 Member
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    The real question is why stones??
    Why not? Sounds better to say 15 stone than 210 pounds. Every measurement is historically arbitrary. Why lbs, Ozs, tons, kilograms? Somebody had to decide on something and I guess the stone the used that day was 14 lbs.!
  • foramanwhohashope
    foramanwhohashope Posts: 90 Member
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    Thank god!
  • carlie_carl
    carlie_carl Posts: 285
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    Its deffinitly more common in the UK, the majority of people here use the stone measurement over lbs and kg
  • ncw89
    ncw89 Posts: 61 Member
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    I think it would be less confusing if people just said pounds. Stones do not make sense to me :-\

    Personally I have had to concentrate quite hard to get used to working it out in just lbs. I've spent my whole life dealing in stones and lbs so trying to divide everything by 14 doesn't work well :-/
  • BoxingCoachMo
    BoxingCoachMo Posts: 420
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    i agree with many of my English folk above. We use still use 'stones'
  • Ballybabe1
    Ballybabe1 Posts: 57
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    Stone is a European measurement of weight. It used to vary from village to village before settling on about 14 lbs. It is no longer a "recognized" form of measurement, but is still used informally in some areas. It is especially common in Scotland and outlying areas of Europe. (P.S. I am American, but I am also one of those people to keep handy when you are playing Trivial Pursuit) :smokin:

    Are you for real - I am from Ireland and this is the main unit of measurement, stones and lbs, why is it not recognized anymore, did someone forget to tell us ! Its not informal and we are not an outlying area of europe we are a country all of our own and proud of own measurement system. Of course some use KG's but the majority still work with stones and lbs and it has always been 14lbs in a stone. So no mystery there.
  • mikeschratz
    mikeschratz Posts: 253 Member
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    See, what are friend for... and then you would laugh your arses off... gotta love having friends and not google...
  • DawnPerks
    DawnPerks Posts: 14 Member
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    I'm English and I was brought up with stones, pounds and ounces as weight measurements. I have a hard time figuring things out in kilogram or gram - mainly because I can't visualise it in my head.

    I have the same issue with length measurements - I was brought up on feet and inches so metres and centimetres are lost on me. Mind you, my husband still likes to convert money to pounds, shillings and pence...lol

    One thing that helps me is that I know a bag of sugar weighs a kg/2.2lb so that gives me a kind of reference but I'd still rather see the weight in 'old fashioned money' - as my husband would say..:smile:
  • newtattie
    newtattie Posts: 47 Member
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    Just to join in - 14 lbs.

    Most people form the UK measure their weigth in stones and lbs. So for example if I am asked my weight I would say "14 stone 10" with the "10" being the lbs. Now thanks to mfp I would answer "13 stone 11"

    When I watch the US version of Biggest Loser my son sits with a calculator to convert the lbs into stones as it means more to us.

    Yep - we do that we our phones - its a guestimate at first then a race to see who gets the right weight first
  • Solly123
    Solly123 Posts: 162 Member
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    I'm from Ireland and we are "gone metric" since the early 70's, but most people still weigh themselves in stones & lbs.

    Took me a while to grasp the "only lbs" here on MFP.

    As for Kilo's - not a notion..

    All our sign posts etc are now gone to Kilometres & our cars speedometers are in kilometres - but everyone over the age of 30 it still calculating in miles.. I know 100km/ph is about 70 m/ph. I know when I've walked a mile - no idea when I've walked a kilometre.. Lol...

    I'm also still trying to work out the cm for measuring horses.. Someone tells me their horse is 170cm - I've no idea is it big or small - but say 16.3hh and I'll know exactly..

    So hard to grasp visually these changed measuring systems.....
  • HeidiRene
    HeidiRene Posts: 335 Member
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    This is a fascinating thread - exactly what I was hoping for! I love learning about other cultures.
  • Johnnyswife
    Johnnyswife Posts: 1,447 Member
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    Stone is a European measurement of weight. It used to vary from village to village before settling on about 14 lbs. It is no longer a "recognized" form of measurement, but is still used informally in some areas. It is especially common in Scotland and outlying areas of Europe. (P.S. I am American, but I am also one of those people to keep handy when you are playing Trivial Pursuit) :smokin:
    Congrats on losing 13.3 stones! :) I think I calculated that properly.. I actualy like it when people use that word in weight loss. Not sure why, other than its different.
  • MrsR0SE
    MrsR0SE Posts: 341 Member
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    The other problem I have with measuring weight just in pounds is I keep thinking people are talking about money...... Eg. I lost one hundred pounds! Or was that £100?
  • Cath2008malteser
    Cath2008malteser Posts: 7
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    Hi , I'm from the U.K. Wales to be exact a stone is 14 lbs(pounds) it's a measurement us Brits use to weigh ourselves, hope this helps
  • viclee1
    viclee1 Posts: 156 Member
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    thank goodness for this post! I've always wondered!

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