What are your measurements to wear size 8 (US) pants (waist, hip, largest part of thigh)?

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benevempress
benevempress Posts: 136 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
When I started losing weight, I had a dream in mind: wearing size 8 (US) clothing. I've lost about 70 pounds (5'10", 144#) and am wondering if I'm small enough to achieve that dream. I'd like to have an idea of what my measuring tape needs to say to see if I am close. I imagine there will be a small range of answers rather than one measurement answer, because women's clothing varies so much from one manufacturer to another.

If my measurements would need to change a lot to wear size 8, I'll have to change my dream because I don't think losing much more weight would be good for me. If they only need to change a little, I can keep my size 8 dream and work on just firming up through exercise, which is what I've started working on anyway.

Would you share your Waist (smallest part), Hip (largest part) and Thigh (largest part) measurements if you wear a US 8?

Thanks!

Replies

  • autumnblade75
    autumnblade75 Posts: 1,660 Member
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    I weigh 144 at 5'3" and my jeans are a size 8. Waistband: 36" Hips: 41.5" and Thigh: 24.5"

    They are Falls Creek jeans. AFAIK, that's a Meijer brand. Right now, I'm wearing the Straight Cut Jeans. They are the Medium length, and the Short and Tall lengths both fit differently in the hip and thigh area. I could probably wear the 6 in their Boot Cut jeans. Don't ask me why those are cut roomier in the thighs.

    Because I hate shopping, I buy my jeans in batches. I did recently try on a pair of capri's at WalMart - The size 6 of whatever they were fit well enough in the hips, but the thighs were crazy-tight and the waistband gapped in the back. I have no idea what body shape those would fit. I have an old pair of pants from Aeropostale whose tag says 8. They're still too snug to wear regularly.

    Between vanity sizing and bizarre cuts, I have no idea what size the clothing industry wants me to believe I am. But when I try on pants, I start with size 8. Good luck to anyone shopping for pants.
  • benevempress
    benevempress Posts: 136 Member
    edited May 2016
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    When I started my weight loss last year, I had clothing ranging from size 10 to 18 in my closet. For me, it is amazingly easy to deny how much weight I am putting on when "the size is irrelevant" and I just "wear whatever size you feel good in".

    @autumnblade75 I used to live in Michigan and I miss Meijer! I hate shopping too and it makes me crazy to waste time trying on three or four sizes of the same article of clothing only to determine that none of them look good on me. It would be so much easier if women's clothing was sized consistently like men's seems to be.
  • MamaFunky
    MamaFunky Posts: 735 Member
    edited May 2016
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    benevempress wrote: »
    When I started my weight loss last year, I had clothing ranging from size 10 to 18 in my closet. For me, it is amazingly easy to deny how much weight I am putting on when "the size is irrelevant" and I just "wear whatever size you feel good in".

    Donate your bigger sizes so they are not in your closet. If your new clothes start feeling tight, eat a little less and exercise a bit more. At your height and weight you may very well be in a size 6 now, depending on the brand. I'm 5'8 (140 lbs) and wear a size 4/6 depending on the brand. My point was, go out and do some window shopping and see what fits. You will probably be pleasantly surprised. :smile:
  • BeYouTiful94
    BeYouTiful94 Posts: 289 Member
    edited May 2016
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    Congrats on your loss!!! That's seriously amazing :)

    I agree with others to just go try on a pair because every pair of pants I own fit sooo differently. I own size 11 juniors jeans that fit tighter than my size 7 or 9 ones, and I have a pair of size 7 jeans that are too loose and I would probably need a 5 in them, while other size 9 jeans fit perfectly. Likewise, I range anywhere from a 4 to an 8 in misses. It's a game really lol.

    However, I'm going to post my measurements because I'm typically a loose 8/tight 6 in misses, so they might be of help to you:

    My measurements are (inches):
    Smallest part of waist (about an inch or so above belly button): 26.75
    Waist at top of hip bone (and pretty much belly button level: 28
    Hips at widest part: 37.75
    Thigh at widest part: 22
    Also, I weigh 148.0 and I'm 5'5.5"

    Don't get caught up on the size number though. No one knows what it is but you (and maybe a few besties that raid your closet for clothes all the time lol). If you feel great, that's all that matters :)
  • spoonyspork
    spoonyspork Posts: 238 Member
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    Problem is: size IS irrelevant, because *nothing* is true to size. I currently have size 2's that fall off me. I'm 5'7" 130-135 lbs.

    My measurements are basically 34/28/36 (chest/waist/hip). I *should* be in ~ an 8, but every 8 I've tried has been waaaay too big (with the exception of Old Navy jeans and some stuff from China - China 7 fits a bit snug and short, and Old Navy 6 is a bit snug and 8 a bit loose)

    I'd bet at 5'10 and 144 you're currently 6-ish in today's department store 'sizes', maybe even as small as 4. That's a good sweet spot to be in, cause many department stores don't carry smaller than that. I bet you also look great at that height and weight. Congrats! :)
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    It will depend on the brand, and at 5'10", your frame will be wider than mine (probably), so your 8 might be an equivalent to my 4 anyway, you know? I'm 5'5" and 136 pounds.

    My waist is 30.5 inches and my hips 35 inches and I fit in 6s (Lee brand). Quite sure I fit in 4s of Old Navy easily, maybe even 2s. To give you an idea of how messed up sizing is though - still talking about Lee here - size 8 jeans tend to fall off are too wide at the butt/legs. Size 6 jeans are starting to slowly slide down too BUT still give me a bit of a muffin top (but that's my genetics, my waist is ridiculously large, and the only thing I can wear that doesn't look ridiculous are high rise jeans). But I tried size 6 shorts and Summer pants at the store and they were sliding off too.

    Bottom line - clothes size don't mean anything.
  • dopeysmelly
    dopeysmelly Posts: 1,390 Member
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    I think you can tell from all these great replies that size really is irrelevant. For the same height and weight, it's going to depend on how muscular you are, where you have those muscles and where you accumulate fat, and those are a combination of genetics and the interaction of genetics and how and whether you work out.

    OP: my advice is to stop worrying about size. Trust me, however much weight you've lost, in clothes that fit you, you will look absolutely amazing, and what's even more important, you'll feel great.

    Case in point, I never in a million years thought I'd be size 2 when I reached a "normal" weight for my height, but I am, even though my build means I can't for the life of me get a pair of skinny jeans to get past my ankles regardless of the size (I have a much more athletic build than I ever knew).
  • Pipsg1rl
    Pipsg1rl Posts: 1,414 Member
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    I'm 5'2 and when I was in that size range (8/10) my favorite brand was from Kohl's, the Wallflower Curvy. They also have a website with khakis and shorts, but in my family, the butt is the determining factor for size, not the waist. Even my son has serious glute issues and should be in a 32W, but b/c of the junk in the trunk he's in a 34 (old navy).
  • benevempress
    benevempress Posts: 136 Member
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    Okay, I will accept that due to the significant unpredictability of sizing for women's clothing that there is no answer to my question. I suppose that since all of our bodies are shaped somewhat differently that it is necessary to have some variation in how clothing is cut.

    Someone asked why I am "fixated" on a size. I had hoped that significant weight loss would offer the benefit of being able to know what size clothing to choose off of the rack and being able to simply decide whether I like it or not rather than wondering if it is going to be too tight in one or more areas. I hate having to take many pieces/sizes of clothing into dressing rooms only to find that they don't fit (too tight, usually) and don't flatter and then I go home feeling discouraged and ugly, that I wasted my time and still have nothing nice to wear. My challenge here after will be to not continue my decades of negative self talk "and the reason nothing fits or looks good on me is because there is something wrong with my body/I'm not thin enough." And if I find a style/size that does fit, I'll stick with that brand and hope that the sizing will be consistent!
  • robininfl
    robininfl Posts: 1,137 Member
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    Hey, bevenempress, I am close to your height and weight (5'9" and 136) and 4 usually fits me best, or the size "Small Tall" if it's available. Sometimes 2 Tall if I can get 'em because the ease through the rise helps and I like tight jeans!
    Size inflation is crazy, I was a size 9 the last time I was this big.

    My measurements are 35-29-37 thighs I think are 21", and I am built straight through hips, not curvy.

    Measure, then compare to the published size chart of the store you are going to (you can usually find these online) then go and try on that size, it will probably be too big but is a good starting point. Don't count on consistent sizing, and also realize you can get things tailored if you want, make the clothes fit you instead of the other way around.
  • chimaerandi
    chimaerandi Posts: 153 Member
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    benevempress wrote: »

    Someone asked why I am "fixated" on a size. I had hoped that significant weight loss would offer the benefit of being able to know what size clothing to choose off of the rack and being able to simply decide whether I like it or not rather than wondering if it is going to be too tight in one or more areas.

    I'm a 27.5'' waisted, 37'' hipped gal, and I own and wear everything from a 4 to a 16, there is no balm in Gilead, I'm sad to say.
  • lemej
    lemej Posts: 1 Member
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    I think that you should be able to wear it now. Sizes do vary a lot even if it's the same #, just to warn you. I'm about 5'10" too and when I was 145ish pounds I could easily fit into a size 8, and it was loose too. You're probably a size 6 actually, but body weight is distributed differently from person to person. Just go try something on to really get your answer!
  • jrwms714
    jrwms714 Posts: 421 Member
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    I have to agree with everyone here. I am 5'0", 136 lbs., 38 hip, 31 waist, and my sizes vary everywhere. I can even try on jeans that are the same brand, the same size, and they can be totally different in fit. I wear anything from a size 4 to a size 10 in jeans, depending on so many factors out of my control,a nd a lot of that has to do with quality control from the manufacturer. One company has a jean that is a 38 in the hip and a 24 in the waist - go figure. I bought jeans from them all the time and then they changed venues and now I can't order from
    them. Instead of a size to focus on, keep thinking about how you feel and how you think you look, because that is all that matters. And if you are happy with where you are, work on maintaining ... you've done a great job!
  • mitch16
    mitch16 Posts: 2,113 Member
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    Sizes vary widely by brand.

    Why don't you just go out to the store and try on some things in a size 8 and see if they fit?
  • kristen6350
    kristen6350 Posts: 1,094 Member
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    At 5'10 and 144, I'm 99% sure you are currently smaller than an 8. I'm 5'11 and at 143 I was a 4 in most jeans, 6 in most pants.

    Go try stuff on, everything will vary. And congrats!
  • benevempress
    benevempress Posts: 136 Member
    edited May 2016
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    Thanks, everyone.

    You have let me know that in the years where I have not bought any new clothes (other than larger and elastic waist pants) the sizing may have become even less consistent than it was 15 years ago. Therefore, just like a scale number can't define my level of fitness, the size tag in my clothing apparently doesn't determine whether I'm slim or chunky.

    I understand (now) that the only way to find something that will fit and flatter is to spend that most precious commodity (TIME) shopping and trying on various brands and sizes. Online shopping isn't going to work unless I have already found a brand that works for me. Between my job, my husband's schedule, my daughters' challenges and ages, and a need for sufficient sleep I have a hard time finding 15 minutes in a day to exercise. Shopping isn't on my to-do list except for grocery shopping. When I have some unexpected free time, I'll go out and see what I can find. In the meantime, my old 10s from the back of my closet are a little loose, but they aren't falling off me so it's not a desperate situation.

    For all of you who suggested that I'm probably a 8 or even smaller (*gasp*), I still have the brain of a fat person and that sounds like a compliment... so Thank You! We'll see what happens when I actually go shopping. I'm not firm and fit like a younger woman who has been strength training and has not had children. I have wide shoulders, so still wear a size Large coat since the Medium doesn't allow me to pull my arms together in front of me without straining the fabric. Also, I'm very much a pear shape, so while my top is thin/bony right now, my bottom half is not. Usually I wear a larger size pant than one might otherwise expect since most styles I've tried have thighs that are too tight.

    Thanks again for sharing your experiences with me.


  • jrwms714
    jrwms714 Posts: 421 Member
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    benevempress wrote: »
    Thanks, everyone.
    Also, I'm very much a pear shape, so while my top is thin/bony right now, my bottom half is not. Usually I wear a larger size pant than one might otherwise expect since most styles I've tried have thighs that are too tight.

    Just know that I am the same body type. Butt, thighs, always bigger than most petites. If your pants are an 8 and your top is a PXS, doesn't matter. Harder to find clothes, especially pants, but once you find the time and find the pant/jeans, just buy them up in every color that you want. That is how I do it. Most manufacturers think women are built the same, long thin legs, flat butt, no thighs. Skinny pants for everyone. NOT. And again, congrats on all you have done and are doing!
  • Chilena69
    Chilena69 Posts: 15 Member
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    I'm 5'10" and 148 lbs., and I went from a size 14 to a size 8. But not all size 8s are the same. You just have to get out there and try things on.

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