Smaller measurements, but weigh more than friends. WTH!?

You obviously have more muscle than she does.

My friend and I are both trying to lose weight, so we weighed and measured ourselves yesterday. I'm 5'9" 158.2lbs and 39.5 bust, 27.5 waist, 40 hips. She's 5' 8" weighs 157.6 37 bust, 31 waist, 41.5 hips. What the heck!? I'm smaller, but I weigh more? If anyone has any clue how this happened, I would love to hear it. I'm kinda bummed at the moment.

Probably just muscle mass and the fact that your bust is slightly larger. Keep it in perspective though, I'm not sure which person you are in the picture but you all look good so who cares?

also the fact that you are an inch taller makes the difference as you both weigh basically the same thus your smaller but taller!!

You're the lucky one, don't worry. Only 8% of women actually have an hourglass figure and it's definitely more desirable. You also probably have a lower body fat % than your friend as well. You can do a fairly accurate at home test for body fat here: http://www.healthcentral.com/cholesterol/home-body-fat-test-2774-143.html#accurate (my result from this site was only 2.2% higher than my calipered one).

In the end, nobody walking by you both at the mall is going to have any idea who weighs more than who. They are going to see you have better muscle tone/definition and WAY better proportions. (Your WHR is .68. Most Playboy centerfolds fall into the .68-.7 range, "perfect" is .7 and perceived attractiveness slides downhill the higher you go above that. Your friend is sitting at a .75 WHR.) Not to mention you are better endowed in the cleavage department (unless it's causing you back problems, few women complain about that!).

Assuming you were both identical in every respect save the measurements you provided, in a scientific study you'd be picked as the more attractive one hands down every time.

(Edited to also point out that your BMI is 23.4 and you are in the 56th% of other girls your exact age and height. Her BMI is still higher at 24 and she's in the 59th % of other girls (I'm assuming she's) your age and her height. You can figure that here: http://www.halls.md/body-mass-index/bmi.htm. Feel better now?)

NOW do you see how irrelevant the scale is?

Thank you, everyone. I hadn't even considered the muscle weight. I wonder, though, how much muscle weighs compared to fat? I didn't think it was that much... I'll have to look it up.

Thanks again

A pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat in the same way a pound of rocks weighs the same as a pound of feathers. The thing is, that pound of muscle or rocks is going to take up WAY LESS space than a pound of fat or feathers.

See? : http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y24/dumbfox/FatvsMuscle.jpg