SERIOUSLY... 70 LBS. LOST- ONLY DOWN 1 & A HALF PANT SIZE!!

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Replies

  • MikeInAZ
    MikeInAZ Posts: 483 Member
    Find a different brand of pants that are smaller!!! LOL..

    No seriously, that's weird. But some people have more to lose in the waist, others in other places. Keep it up, the only way to lose fat is through cardio. Lots of it. No amount of crunches or squats will cause you to lose weight in those areas.
  • I agree with the advice to measure yourself and use that to gauge your progress. You always hate measuring the first time but you will love the rest of them. Working out hard with weights and doing lots of cardio helps get rid of those inches, too, regardless of what the scale says. Once you have your inches, go to the "size chart" of the clothing lines you like and use your measurements to determine your size. Talbot's is very forgiving for women and has nice clothes in larger sizes. In some other lines, a ten to twelve is considered extra large! You look better in clothes that fit your body. If you need more inches in a size, buy a larger size and get it taken in by a tailor. It's worth it to have clothes that fit you. Don't do what I used to do, which is hide in baggy stuff. It only makes you look bigger.
  • firstsip
    firstsip Posts: 8,399 Member
    Outside of the clothing manufacturer business (which is SUPER accurate), I'll post my typical anecdote:

    I dealt with anorexia. I weighed 95lbs at 5'6" at my lowest weight. I could MAYBE squeeze into a size 5, but was generally a size 7, even though my hips were so boney you could probably fill the pockets of my skin and bone with water.

    At my "normal" weight, I wore a size 9.

    At my highest weight, I wore a size 11/12, sometimes a 13 (depending on manufacturer).

    Without giving exact numbers... that was a 75+ lb difference between my absolute lowest and highest weights. But my pant size has stayed the same three different sizes through it all. My hips are just wideset, regardless of my weight, and so my pants reflect that.

    You may have somewhere that just seems to carry weight, or is just wideset naturally... don't let a clothing size determine how you feel or how you look!
  • I haven't read all of the other comments, but perhaps you have lost a lot of muscle from eating too few calories? Just an idea, I hope that is not the case though!
  • DonaA123
    DonaA123 Posts: 337 Member
    bump
  • gauchogirl
    gauchogirl Posts: 467 Member
    Don't let it discourage you, the number on the tag doesn't matter, just that you're getting smaller and healthier. The sizing from different manufacturer's, and different cuts and styles, is radically different. I have pants at size 18 that fit the same as others that are size 12's (I started out at a size 24W at 265 lbs, I'm 5'6", and have lost 70 lbs so far, so 195.)
  • florymonde
    florymonde Posts: 261 Member
    Women's clothing sizes are wack. There needs to be an international treaty on it. Men's pants sizes are the actual length, the actual waist and the cut, which is a little more fishy. Women't sizes don't even account for height. Ya'll need to revolt.
    No kidding. And, to add injury to insult, the women's clothing usually costs more, too! I've been gravitating toward stores that target mostly men (like Mark's Work Wearhouse here in Canada). They usually carry at least a few lines of good quality women's clothing, the sizes seem more consistent, and they're designed to be worn, not just to look good on a skinny model!
  • Jelly23x
    Jelly23x Posts: 1 Member
    I have the same issue when I change sizes. After weight loss, my top is tiny, but my jean size hasn't really changed. My last measurement change was 1.5 in the waist to a .5 in the hips, so the ratio of waist to hips is growing larger as I lose!
  • alisiaendris
    alisiaendris Posts: 213 Member
    Odd numbered sizes are intended for teenager (aka...no curves) so, if you try on a 17 and are curvy, it will fit more like 14 in womens sizes. As said on 'What Not to Wear'...women over 18 years old should stay out of the juniors department. :)
  • Hi! Your photos show how slim you are now despite what the sizes say!
    Clothes differ from stoe to store and regular and plus are different also. I assume you have your old clothes? Try measuring your size 22 trousers and a regular size 22 to see if they're the same.
    Also you say you've dropped sizes on top so could be just shapely hips rather than ''fat'' xx
  • mizzie1980
    mizzie1980 Posts: 379 Member
    That's actually really normal. In women's sizes, anyway, the larger sizes tend to have a larger difference between the sizes, if that makes sense. There is a MUCH bigger difference between a 22 and a 20, than there is between a 4 and a 2. And that actually does make some sense. A woman who starts at 170 and loses 50 pounds has made a HUGE difference in her body. She lost 29.4% of her starting weight. On the other side, a woman who starts at 400 pounds who also loses 50 pounds also did something amazing, but still only lost 12.5% of her starting weight. It makes sense that it's makes more of a difference on the smaller woman, who will see more of a change in her body than the larger woman.

    So for a long time it'll seem like you're not really getting anywhere as far as your clothes sizes, but just keep going. I've heard women who have lost weight before say this. 14+ and it seems like you have to lose a LOT of weight before getting down to the next size and under that you start to fly through them.
  • NoleGirl0918
    NoleGirl0918 Posts: 213 Member
    Don't lose heart! You have got this! i would say also to take into consideration how you feel. i'm not at my goal yet but i know that i FEEL so much better than i did when i started. HUGS! Feel free to add me as a friend if you'd like :wink:
  • HMToomey
    HMToomey Posts: 276
    Hello all of my MFP friends!
    I am so confused...

    I started my weight loss journey last year in November. Back then I weighed 305 lbs. I was in a size 20-22. Now almost a year later I'm down to 229 lbs. and a size 18 is just a bit big on me. I can't fit in a size 16 at all. So, I guess I wear a size 17??????

    This is so weird because I see people drop just 20-30 pounds and drop two or three pant sizes.

    Yes, I do have junk in the trunk, but I would've thought I'd be in at least a size 16 by now. I will be totally satisfied when I can fit a size 12-14.

    Is anyone else experiencing this issue or am I being paranoid? What do you guys think about this?

    PLEASE HELP!!!!!!!!

    Just for reference I am 5'5" and I was 230 pounds in April 2011 at the time I was a loose 20 and comfortable in an size 18. Now, at 183 I am in a size 12 / 14.
  • Slavic_Spice
    Slavic_Spice Posts: 78 Member
    I think you made a good point when you said that you lost sizes up top... I am the opposite- I lose from my but and legs first, but look the same from the waist up. And while I might go down a couple of pants sizes, I still have to deal with back fat. : (
  • iampam4399
    iampam4399 Posts: 81 Member
    I have big hips and a big butt too! I have lost 34 lbs, but officially no pant size yet. Shirt size, yes. I think it's because we are bottom heavy that it prevents us from going down in sizes as quickly as others. My 16's (dress pants) are loose, but can't fit in a 15 yet. :(

    Don't be so quick to judge yourself if the barometer you have set is a size 15. There is a HUGE difference between a size 16 and a size 15. Misses sizes run even numbers, and juniors sizes run odd numbers. I believe that you will find a size 15 (junior) to be more like an 8 or 10 (misses). The cut variance between the two is night and day. In order for you to truly guage your losses (and I so applaud you!!) you will need to pick either misses or juniors, and stick with it. Otherwise you will experience unnecessary disappointment.
    Also, the difference between a size 20 and a size 20W is huge in the exact same way. If a size has a "W" with it, it means that it is a Woman's size, and is cut more generously than the extended Misses size counterparts.

    Keep up the great work!!!!
  • hopsonc24
    hopsonc24 Posts: 143 Member
    I agree that its different with every pair of pants (not just manufacture). When i started this journey I wore a size 18/20. I typically buy all my pants from maurices bc they fit my shape best. I have lost a total of 59lbs since Oct 2011. The sz 18 capris I wore last summer still fit me snug, while the same brand jeans sz 14 are loose on me today.
    The moral of this story is the same as others...you can not let your pants size discourage you. Take pics, and absolutely track your measurements..
    70lbs is huge!!!!!! Please pat yourself on the back for that!!
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,650 Member
    At 228 I was in a size 20. The only way I wore a size 14/16 was if it was an elastic waist stretch pant. Wearing elastic waist stretch pants is how I gained 50 pounds without realizing it, because then I could say I was still in the same size I was at 175.

    Button up jeans with no elastic is how you can tell when you drop a size.

    Also, size numbers don't mean anything. They vary so drastically between brands. Basically, the more you are willing to pay, the smaller size pant you can wear. The high end stores know that women will pay twice as much for a size 8 than they will for a size 14. They play to our vanity and warped sense of reality.

    You can take one look at your before and after pics to see that you have shrunk considerably. Don't get hung up on sizes. Just look at your pictures and be proud of all you have accomplished.
  • ladyonaquest
    ladyonaquest Posts: 605 Member
    Some clothes aren't true to size, so I try not to even care about the size anymore but I will say I think it depends on how you are shaped too. At 249 I wore 18's and 20's, mostly 18's because the 20's looked too lose sometimes depending on the cut. Not my official weigh in day but I got on the scale anyway this morning...LOL and I'm 225.6, 16's fit loosly. Mind you, my weight is wide from side to side...LOL!! Not front to back. I have no butt, just enough to cup which your hand...LOL!! So I can get into smaller sizes thanks to my flat booty!!

    LOL!!! sounds like we are similar as far as how we carry our weight. -Well minus the butt part. Although it is getting smaller due to tightening and toning. I do too many squats..

    ^^
    I was born with mine...LOL!!!
  • ladyonaquest
    ladyonaquest Posts: 605 Member
    At 228 I was in a size 20. The only way I wore a size 14/16 was if it was an elastic waist stretch pant. Wearing elastic waist stretch pants is how I gained 50 pounds without realizing it, because then I could say I was still in the same size I was at 175.

    Button up jeans with no elastic is how you can tell when you drop a size.

    Also, size numbers don't mean anything. They vary so drastically between brands. Basically, the more you are willing to pay, the smaller size pant you can wear. The high end stores know that women will pay twice as much for a size 8 than they will for a size 14. They play to our vanity and warped sense of reality.

    You can take one look at your before and after pics to see that you have shrunk considerably. Don't get hung up on sizes. Just look at your pictures and be proud of all you have accomplished.

    ^^

    Tell it like it is!!! So true!
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,650 Member
    And if you want to add to all of this confusion, I know a woman who is 5"6, wears a sz 4..... ummm 170lbs figure that one out !

    I'm 5'6 and have size 8 Geoffrey Beene stretch knit pants that I can get into at 210 pounds. But that sure as heck doesn't make me a size 8! I call shenanigans on that one!