Do You Get Shorter?

kie_kie
kie_kie Posts: 106 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I read in a post yesterday that you can lose a shoe size when you lose a significant amount of weight.

My question is can you lose like an inch or so off your height if you lose 50 pounds or more? (I've always wanted to be a bit shorter)

Replies

  • GnochhiGnomes
    GnochhiGnomes Posts: 348 Member
    Unless you have a significant amount of fat on your feet acting like a sort of heel. I'm thinking not.
  • now_or_never12
    now_or_never12 Posts: 849 Member
    I doubt it.

    Shoe size is different as when you are larger your feet do grow with fat and swelling from water retention etc so they do tend to be bigger... you don't really grow fat on the top of your head or the bottom of your feet though.
  • SmileyFaceGuy
    SmileyFaceGuy Posts: 201
    Just a guess, but you might actually get taller due to improved posture after losing weight.
  • tigerlinly
    tigerlinly Posts: 219 Member
    i hope not i'm already short enough as it is
  • mamagooskie
    mamagooskie Posts: 2,964 Member
    Just a guess, but you might actually get taller due to improved posture after losing weight.

    I think this is probably more accurate. The only way I could see you getting shorter is by losing bone density in your spine by not getting enough calcium and that is not a good thing.
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
    Do you have an inch of fat on the bottom of your feet or on the top of your head?
  • cm1458
    cm1458 Posts: 742 Member
    I didnt drop a shoe size but i dont have to wear all wide width shoes anymore....my 9s fit a little better than they used to, too. so maybe i did a little, but not a significant amount
  • ahmommy
    ahmommy Posts: 316 Member
    I agree with those who say if anything you'll get taller. I was measured once when pregnant, had gained 25 lbs, and I was 1.5 inches shorter than usual. I figure it was partially due to the extra weight and partially due to the fact that it was mostly hangout off my front, both of which would affect my posture.
  • Velum_cado
    Velum_cado Posts: 1,608 Member
    I seem to have. At 360 lbs I was 5' 7.7" in bare feet. At 287 lbs I'm now at 5' 6.5". I've been using the BMI machine at my doctor's office and my height has gone down consistently as I've been using it to weigh myself. My feet are also visibly much slimmer, so I think I might have had fat on the soles of my feet or something? I don't know.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
    Don't laugh.

    You often change shoe size permanently when you're pregnant because the extra weight flattens your feet. And yeah, you get shorter.

    But I have super high arches. The way the physical structure works, when you have a really high arches they get higher with weight gain. My shoe size shrunk a full size. And I got taller.

    I wouldn't count on it. The good news is that you definitely shrink as you get older. And we all do that.
  • postrockandcats
    postrockandcats Posts: 1,145 Member
    I can see foot width changing, but shorter? That would be nice as I have big feet LOL :)
  • melissaksee
    melissaksee Posts: 1 Member
    I've lost 108lbs so far and when I was at my heaviest I was 5ft 9ins. Now, I am 5ft 5ins. I have no explanation for this. The only thing I could think of came to me when I was looking at a body scan of an overweight 250lb person, was that as I was losing weight I was losing it not just from my problem areas but from around my joints, around my internal organs, I dunno. It might not be true but it's all I could come up with. To add to my point, I have not had leg shortening surgery or anything. Haha x

    Ooh yeah and I've also lost a shoe size. My friend using MyFitnessPal has also lost a LOT of weight and also some inches off her height and a couple shoe sizes. So... yeah. Either there's something in the water or I really want an expert opinion on this :)
  • 777Gemma888
    777Gemma888 Posts: 9,578 Member
    I have lost shoe sizes to date along with my weight. As for height, I gained an inch (just assumed that maybe parts of my neck or spine got squashed by the fat. Even my sister shared similar losses and gains.
  • princessdracos
    princessdracos Posts: 125 Member
    The next time I'm at my doctor's office, I'm going to ask them to measure my height. A dear friend who is like a mother to me insists that I look taller. Then another lady that comes in to my work asked me how tall I am. When I told her that I'm 5'5" she was surprised and kept saying that I look taller. I always assumed it was the difference in my posture.
  • JennyLisT
    JennyLisT Posts: 402 Member
    I have plenty more to go, but I've already lost a shoe size and gained an inch in height. Additionally, I don't always have to shop for wide shoes now (brand dependent, of course).

    With all the weight I have to lose still, I'm hoping for more improvements! :drinker:
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
    Just a guess, but you might actually get taller due to improved posture after losing weight.

    I think this is probably more accurate. The only way I could see you getting shorter is by losing bone density in your spine by not getting enough calcium and that is not a good thing.

    Yeah, you get shorter with osteoporosis and related conditions. Lots of little fractures can destroy your posture, making you appear shorter and hunched. That's why it's so important to eat nutritious foods and do weight bearing exercises that strengthen your muscles and bones and also slow bone loss as you age.
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
    ...The good news is that you definitely shrink as you get older...

    That's the good news? I'd hate to hear the bad news. :huh:
  • krissy_krossy
    krissy_krossy Posts: 307 Member
    Nope and I'm glad. I'm already short enough to have to actually climb grocery store shelves to reach something. And I hope I don't lose a shoe size... it's hard enough finding something in a 5.5 (or, in the case of my Vans and Converse, a men's 3.5.)
  • mactaffy84
    mactaffy84 Posts: 398 Member
    Nope and I'm glad. I'm already short enough to have to actually climb grocery store shelves to reach something. And I hope I don't lose a shoe size... it's hard enough finding something in a 5.5 (or, in the case of my Vans and Converse, a men's 3.5.)

    That's because there is no man size 3.5; that's boy size.
  • krissy_krossy
    krissy_krossy Posts: 307 Member
    Nope and I'm glad. I'm already short enough to have to actually climb grocery store shelves to reach something. And I hope I don't lose a shoe size... it's hard enough finding something in a 5.5 (or, in the case of my Vans and Converse, a men's 3.5.)

    That's because there is no man size 3.5; that's boy size.

    Well, they make them. I have to order them through the brand's website, though.
  • Naneli
    Naneli Posts: 3 Member
    Is it possible that working out would make you shorter? I used to be 169.5 cm I was shocked yesterday to find myself 164 cm. I feel a bit disappointed :(
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    2012 THREAD

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