Women's clothing sizes

OK, I'm not sure that this is the proper forum for this question but it is one that has puzzled me for a long time. And this may well be a silly question.

After seeing some of the before and after photos in another topic here, one person states the weight they were and they wore a size 22 jeans. Lost 60 lbs ( or something like that) and got into size 16 jeans. I weigh 226 lbs and I am wearing size 24 jeans (baggy though.) I have some size 20s in my drawer and there's no way I can get into them yet. I have to be down around 150 to get into a size 16! I see this all the time in weight loss ads. How come others that are heavier than me can wear so many sizes smaller? I do have quite a bit of stomach out front. I suppose that's the reason. Has anybody else found they are in a similar situation?

I think its where you carry your weight at because I am 231 right now and I were size 16. Of course they have to be like Apple Bottoms that are made to fit over a women's curves because I have booty and thighs and I carry alot of my weight there and in my breast.

Example those ladies on Biggest Loser would weigh in at 218 and look way bigger than me but its where the weight is that makes them look bigger than me or for that matter make women wear different sizes. So I think.

OK, I'm not sure that this is the proper forum for this question but it is one that has puzzled me for a long time. And this may well be a silly question.

After seeing some of the before and after photos in another topic here, one person states the weight they were and they wore a size 22 jeans. Lost 60 lbs ( or something like that) and got into size 16 jeans. I weigh 226 lbs and I am wearing size 24 jeans (baggy though.) I have some size 20s in my drawer and there's no way I can get into them yet. I have to be down around 150 to get into a size 16! I see this all the time in weight loss ads. How come others that are heavier than me can wear so many sizes smaller? I do have quite a bit of stomach out front. I suppose that's the reason. Has anybody else found they are in a similar situation?

Others are correct regarding the height of the person concerned. Another reason will be how toned a person is and how much muscle they carry. If two people were to weight, say 150lbs, but one of them was in size 16s and the other in a size 10, the size 10 person will have more toned muscle because although they weigh the same in poundage, toned muscles actually "pull" the body in and make it appear smaller, even though the weight is the same.

Hence why, the difference in dress size.

i'm 5'4 and as of today i weigh 259 and i wear a 18/20. When i was 160 i wore a size 10(8 in dresses) I see a lot of people that weigh as much as me and they seem soooo much bigger, but i dunno if its because i'm hourglass shaped or because i have always been muscley?

Lol I have just seen the date of the last post..oops I'm nearly a year too late :bigsmile:

Lol me too, I replied because you brought this thread up again and I didn't take a blind bit of notice regarding the original date :laugh:

(I wonder what size they all are now?

Back when I originally posted on this topic I had lost 38 pounds and hadn't lost a size. I was a UK 18/20. Well, it took me 40 pounds to get down to a UK16/18, but I've now lost about 62 pounds and am a UK12/14 depending on the fit of the clothes. Most my trousers are 14s, but some of my tops and dresses are 12s. I am now the smallest adult size I've ever been. I put this down to being leaner due to the exercise...

WTG!!! That is excellent news!

Yes, being leaner will make all the difference in the world. All those dress sizes you dropped!! :flowerforyou:

it really depends on where you carry your weight. and how comfortable you are with tight clothes. I guess I am considered an Apple shape (Never have understood the fruit shape analogy so if I am wrong please tell me) I am 5'6" and have almost all of my weight in my abdomen and chest, with very little extra weight in my butt, hips, or thighs. In fact My butt is almost flat.

When I started loosing almost 2 years ago, i was 363 pounds and wore a size 36 bottom and a 6x top. Now at 198 pounds, I am able to wear size 14 pants, If they have a zipper and size 12 pants if they are elastic waist without a zipper. (I do have to arrange my extra stomach skin regardless of if there is a zipper or not) For Tops I wear size large if they are pull on tshirt type and 1x or 2x if they have buttons (It depends on how the buttons pull and gap across the girls, 56DD is hard to cover nicely!) Eveything I wear is slightly loose as I hate feeling like my clothes are too tight!

Just to add to what everyone else is saying here...I would like to add that I agree height, shape, bone structure, and muscle have everything to do with sizing. Sizing is a tricky thing for women because we can very well assume that the number means everthing. Unfortunately designers use a person a inspiration and if that person is shaped entirely different than you well...you will not fit into the clothing the same way as the person they designed for. My experience has been that I gain weight proportionally over my entire body so most people alwys guess that I am smaller than I am....this has a lot to do with my height.

I will give you a little run down...keep in mind I am 5'8

At my biggest 240 I wore a 16
At 220 I wore 12/14
At 215 and below I wear a 12....very strange how all of this works!

Look up Carlton Kressly (sp) "How to look good naked"....there is an episode about sizes and you would be floored!!

someone on this forum pointed out that they are 148 and wear an 8... i'm 170 and an 8.
i think it also depends on how much muscle you have! it makes you weigh more.

We must be about the same size/shape. I have lost 11 lbs. but still wearing a 12. I think the size has a 20-pound range in either direction! Can't wait to get down to a 10.

Im 196 and im in a size 16 at 5'6"

its all in how you carry your wt and how tall you are. I was 390 at my highest and I'm 5'8.5". I was in a tight 28. I lost 100lbs before I fit into a 20 and I had people around me who started @ the same size and lost 60Lbs and were in a 20. I don't stress about it. its about where you carry your wt and the height...

Great answeres and stories everyone! Yes, women sizes ARE jacked up AND how/where you carry your weight has a lot to do with sizing.

When I started my journey, I was 265 lbs, 5'1"-ish and mostly wore 22/24s. I lost 100 lbs and finally fit into size 10s. Then came a YEAR long plateau AND yo-yo weight loss/weight gain of about 25-30 lbs. When I first met my boyfriend, I was about 177/180 lbs and wore a size 18 from Lane Bryant. I had some complications and got down to 152 lbs and my size 10s were fitting loosely. I started getting better and steadily started gaining weight. I got back up to 184 lbs (at my heaviest) and still managed to stay in 12s (and SOME 10s depending on the cut/style). Since then, I'm back to 160 and back in size 10s. I tried on a pair size 8 jeans at old navy and I was able to button them up but I had a severe case of muffin top, plus they are really tight across my butt and in the thigh area. I'm thinking another 10-15 lbs loss will get me to the size 8s...

However, my ex roommate, claimed she was 234 at her heaviest (she was/is a lot rounder than me in the midsection but has like practically no *kitten* and wears her pants under her waist). She only claimed to wear 20s and after just barely getting under 200 lbs said she is "almost ready" for size 12s... she says her 14s are getting loose. Again, she wears her pants under her belly but her butt and thighs aren't as big as mine. And she's slighter shorted than me as well.

So, yes, height and body composition have a lot to do with it. But also, how you wear your clothes can be a factor!

I'm guessing that some people are referring to UK sizes and some to US sizes as well (I think a UK 12 = a US 8?) so this could be part of the difference in comparisons.

Plus I agree with the body fat % contributing as a lower BF% in 2 people of the same weight would probably mean a smaller size.

Shops don't help either with sizes that vary so much. Is it any wonder we get frustrated with sizing when we go shopping?! :grumble: