Men over 6'4-- what's it like?

In My Humble Opinion
1

My 10-year-old is 5’1 already, and while there’s a chance, based on his father’s growth patterns, that he might skip the adolescent spurt, and end up being 6’2, instead of the 6’7 that he is heading to, it happened that he broke his arm when he was nine, and so we asked casually if they could guess at his height from his hand x-ray.

Now, he didn’t have the proper kind of x-ray for really doing that, and it was a casual look, not a real analysis, but the doctor said if he had to guess, the boychik is going to be over 6’6. That agrees with other analyses we’ve looked at that project an adult height of 6’7 for him.

I worry about what that has in store for him. I mean, honestly, I’d rather he be overly tall than overly short, but I worry about anything that could cause him trouble. I mean, he already has been getting his clothes from the adult section of the store for almost two years. He even wears a medium T-shirt, not a small. He’s got really broad shoulders (c-section). And his shoes are a 1/2 size bigger than mine.

At least he will live in a time when you can order anything you want over the internet. My mother used to have to order my brother’s size 15W shoes from a catalogue, and he is “only” 6 even.

He’s unfortunately a little bit of a klutz. He doesn’t do well in sports. None of the men on either side of the family have really had any interest in sports, but people of course always ask me if he plays basketball.

So what problems or benefits will he face? Is it going to cost $1,000/month to feed him when he’s a teenager? Is he going to get arthritis? Bang his head a lot? are strangers going to be asking him to get things off shelves?

2

Just a runt myself, but I’ve known some tall ones. If you haven’t already, find something for him to get involved in that will inspire good posture, because some of the men and most of the women I’ve known over 6’4" have a tendency to hunch over so they don’t look as tall. Not sure what that might be; martial arts, dance or yoga, if he’s inclined, but it’s better if you catch it young.

He will never have to wonder how often people clean off the top of their refrigerators.

3

A tiny little hijack but I’ve found it amazing the ranges in height that I can claim when someone sees me in my wheelchair. Just for shits and giggles, I’ve claimed to be 6’3" when asked and not an eyelid batted. It seemed “about right” to them. When I have asked someone how tall they think I am, I regularly get 6 feet or close to it. I guess it’s extremely hard to gauge a person’s height when they are sitting? I wouldn’t think so but it regularly happens.

ETA: I’m 5’7"

4

I’d assume an obvious benefit - if it turns out to be his thing - is that he’ll have no shortage of women swooning over him.

Not so great:mattress length, showers, most cars, coach, etc (in essence: comfort)

5

He does martial arts. He’s terrible at it, but he loves it.

He had a very brief hypoxic episode at birth, so I think he might be slightly dyspraxic. He was late to walk and talk, although his receptive speech was on target, and he was walking around furniture from eight months. His doctor said that sometimes very tall children walk late. We tried to get him diagnosed, but he needed to be two standard deviations below the norm, and he was one and a half. We had him tested again after a movement and music class for three-year-olds, and he was one SD below,

He has swimming in the summer. He has had a very hard time learning to swim, but so did I-- I didn’t learn until I was eight-- and I eventually got pretty good at it. I passed the Red Cross Advanced Swimmers program when I was 13, and I was the youngest person in my class that summer. I could have taken lifeguarding when I was 18, but I was busy with other stuff.

He also wet the bed pretty late, although he was potty-trained during the day perfectly well. Apparently that’s another issue for tall kids, because sometimes their bladders are small for their bodies. We sometimes get him up at night and take him to the bathroom still, then send him back to bed.

6

Yeah. We were hoping his childhood bed, which was my childhood bed, would last till college, but it’s looking like he’s gonna need an extra long because if the way he sleeps.

ETA: I’m pretty sure women are his thing. He was a big fan of the show iCarly when he was five, and there’s always been a little girl in each of his classes he has shown special interest in.

7

My husband is 6’6" so I asked him:

Watch out for doorways and low stairwell ceilings and light fixtures. The instinctive ducking does not come soon enough to prevent scars and occasional stitches.

Growing pains will be a solid bitch. Please believe him if he claims his legs are killing him, or his back hurts.

Likewise much food is needed for growing. Be generous with the grocery budget and teach him to make protein-inclusive easy college foods for once he’s on his own.

Remember that Big and Tall stores are not Big OR Tall, so unless he’s a linebacker, go online for Tall lengths in regular sizes. Likewise if he needs anything more than a 34" inseam, good freaking luck in person.

Practice patience and maybe humor with answering the same stupid questions and comments over and over again: how’s the weather up there, did you play basketball, how tall ARE you, are you the tallest person you’ve ever met, etc etc etc forever.

Learn to crouch with the knees to dance or kiss people, rather than bending over: very bad for the lower back to bend. Relatedly, exercise for the legs and knees is helpful and helps alleviate growing pains and helps with posture.

Accept that you’re tall. No hunching or scrunching into your shoulders or slouching (for being short) or slumping. It’s bad for you, it hurts, and it doesn’t fool anyone. (His addendum is that this was more of an issue for his sisters, all over 6’2" and painfully uncomfortable in school because of it, but he figures it’s good general advice regardless.)

You’re gonna be clutzy. Things will grow too fast to keep track of, and muscles will shorten, and hands and feet will be further away (or bigger) than you think they are. Find a martial art or a sport or a physical exercise that you enjoy and can help mitigate the collateral damage from the impending flails.

Being tall is a generally good thing, socially and financially, but it also seems to be physically stressful to your heart and vascular system: please be aware of that and try to make healthy choices to compensate for that intrinsic physical stress. This will become more important after you hit 30 or so.

8

Thanks, Lasciel-- that was very helpful.

9

Just for clarification, my husband is 6’2, but he had an unusual growth pattern. He was a big baby, who grew an extra inch over his peers every year, was always the tallest in his class by a head (like the boychik is) and was 5’10 at age 14, but then he only grew four more inches. He had no adolescent spurt. This is what I’m hoping for for my son.

However, if he’s 6’2 like is dad, plus with a growth spurt, he’ll be the 6’7 that all the analytics suggest he’ll be.

FWIW, DH’s parents got divorced when he was 14, and he didn’t eat a lot of meals for a few years. He ate a lot of school food, and a lot of what he could scrounge, plus, he decided to become a vegetarian in a dinky Indiana town with no guidance, so he could have been seriously nutritionally deprived, which is something that just occurred to me in recent weeks. That might have killed his growth spurt.

Not that there’s anything wrong with being 6’2, but his father was 6’4 in his youth.

My mother had a grandfather who was born in Slovakia in the late 1880s, and came to the US around 1905. He was 6’2. I always wonder how tall he could have been with late 20th/21st century nutrition.

10

I’m a mere 6’3 but want to give my 2c anyway: I don’t think it’s such a big deal.
Yes buying clothes can be a pain, and some airplane seats are very uncomfortable, and you’ll hit your head from time to time but that’s pretty much it.
As mentioned upthread, you should advise him not to slouch. That’s about the only difference I think in raising a tall kid.

When I was in my 20s I was hopeless at talking to women*, but I’d often get other guys lament to me “Oh it must be so easy for you – you’re tall”!

Now, without bragging, things are very different. But I don’t think my height is such a big factor. I often attend social events where everyone is sat down, and I’m not disadvantaged by the fact that my height is not obvious in such a setting. In fact, I prefer it; standing over people I might seem intimidating.

  • No, that’s not a typo for “teenager”. I really was a late bloomer to the serious relationships thing. :frowning:
11

I’m 6’ 4.5"so I’m just a smidge over your requirement of 6’4".

My only contribution: I don’t necessarily hunch because I’m trying not to appear tall; I do it out of habit-- a constant ducking after years of banging my head on things. I like to wear baseball hats, but this creates a blind spot above me, which means more banging. So if I appear hunched, its because I’m sick of cracking my skull on things.

12

A friend who is 6’8’’ has had multiple episodes of collapsed lung. He tells me that very tall men have an increased risk of spontaneous collapsed lung.

13

My brother is 6’ 5", his wife 6’, their son 6’ 2".

When they spent a month in China they were openly ogled. Families gathered around them, wanting a photo taken. He took it in stride and agreed to pictures so long as he could also get one on his phone.

14

The studies I’ve seen show that the financial benefit of being tall peak at about 6’ 2". Over that, the curve starts to go negative again.

15

My husband is 6’10", and has had collapsed lung several times. He also has multiple minor heart irregularities; nothing major so far. And he has flat feet, but no arthritis.

Aside from the usual things, like buying clothing, his biggest problem is that he has to do a lot of international traveling for his business. The airlines try to accommodate him, but their options are often limited. And hotel accommodations can be cramped.

But the usual downside is people’s reactions to him. The stupid remarks and questions, as if he hadn’t heard them before. And the people who openly flirt with him, even when we’re together. He’s very good-natured about it and takes it all in stride.

And no, he doesn’t play basketball. Yes, he has to squat in the shower. No, he doesn’t get his clothing from the circus. Yes, he sleeps diagonally on our king size bed. No, he doesn’t suffer from altitude sickness when he’s standing. Yes, the weather up there is just fine. No, his parents aren’t exceptionally tall, but one of his grandparents was. Yes, he’ll take a selfie with you. No, you can’t have his baby. Yes, he knows who hasn’t cleaned the top of their refrigerator. No, he has met people even taller. Yes, he can dust the ceiling fans. No, he doesn’t have to wear extra sunblock because he’s closer to the sun. Yes, he’ll get something off the top shelf for you. No, kids, he doesn’t live atop a beanstalk; he won’t eat you and you can’t climb him. And yes, he’s anatomically proportional and then some. Thank you for asking. :slight_smile:

16

Laughed out loud, literally.

17

I had never heard about the collapsed lung. Does that affect people who are slender more often? My son had very broad shoulders for a 10-year-old-- he looks like he’s wearing shoulder pads. He’s got a very triangular shape, and actually looks built more for football than basketball. Can anything be done to mitigate it, like breathing exercises, or running?

18

6’5" checking in. In addition to economy class airline seats being a pain many buses and trains can be a squeeze too. I also have to ‘test sit’ cars. Virtually all sports cars are too small. Not enough head room and not enough leg room to work the pedals without bumping the steering wheel or other controls with your knees. And just because a car looks big or small you still need to check it. Recently I tried a Jaguar XKR that was too small inside, but I drove a Smart ForTwo for several years with no problems.

19

My son was legally allowed out or the car seat, and then the booster a year early because of his size.

20

Only 6’3" here, but figured I’d offer. Was 6’ in 8th grade.

I don’t really think of myself as tall, but other people often use that word to describe me. When someone is noticeably taller than me - say 6’5" or more, I think of them as REALLY tall. I mean, I only rarely bump my head on doorways - tho basements can often be an issue.

The posture is a real concern. I have pretty poor posture, and sense that I often bend down to hear other people - especially if there is a lot of background noise. You tend to get really good at unconsciously ducking around common low points after cracking your head enough times. For example, a part of my garage door opener angles down when the door is open, so I always duck or avoid walking in that area. And you learn not to bound down stairs where there might be a doorway or something. But you don’t want that to turn into a general slouch.

“XT” clothes generally fit me off the rack, and size 12 shoes are generally available. Once you get up to size 13, your options are more limited.

Things like airplane seats are uncomfortable for everyone, not unusually moreso for me. But I push my car seat all the way back. Imagine another couple of inches would be significant. If you were really tall, things like counter/toilet height would be an issue - tho I imagine you would just get used to it.

You really pretty much just get used to things. Maybe you just think EVERYBODY drives with their legs bent a certain way. Here’s a weird one - this past winter I got “Tallfingers” gloves. It was the first time I ever had a pair of gloves fit me. It was so weird - but I guess that is what gloves always feel like for shorter folk. Yeah, my feet always hang off the bed - don’t everybody’s? :stuck_out_tongue: And it is a pleasant surprise when you encounter a shower that is tall enough.

As a younger person, he’ll hear a bunch of “How’s the weather up there?” jokes. Gets a little old, but easy to shake off.

I have often heard that jobs/prospective SOs place a premium on height, but I’m not sure that would hold as one gets taller than 6’5" or so. But overall, IMO the benefits of being tall vastly exceed the detriments. Whenever I am in a crowd, I think how weird and unpleasant it would be to be looking into other peoples’ backs. And it often kinda surprises me when my wife asks me if I can see/reach something on a higher shelf.

Many pre-teens are awkward. Encourage him stick with the MA/swimming, and encourage other physical activities, and he’ll grow into his body. I used to do a ton of MA - believe me, height is a significant advantage.