# Undoing belt after meal. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 12, 2018, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003 "2018-12-12T17:19:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![pianodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e79b87/32.png) [@pianodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pianodave)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/1 "2018-12-12T17:19:34Z")
Hi SD, I always wanted to know if this cliche is a real thing. After a big meal, characters undo their buttons/belts and their bellies flop out. They sigh in relief, having “room.” This implies that one’s gut protrudes noticeably after a lot of eating, a notion I find difficult to stomach. Does one’s waistline or tummy truly expand so much after a large meal, so much so that it may make pants uncomfortably tight? It is certainly something I have seen people do, but I am not sure if it helps or if it is a symbolic gesture more than anything? Does bloating have to do with it? Fight my ignorance, please! ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/2 "2018-12-12T17:59:43Z")
Well, I certainly have done it. I have a flat stomach, and if I really gorge myself, loosening my belt makes a big difference. ---
**Author:** ![KMS94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ad7895/32.png) [@KMS94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KMS94)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/3 "2018-12-12T18:06:01Z")
Recent discussion on the topic. [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=838787](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=838787) ---
**Author:** ![kk\_fusion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kk_fusion/32/15276_2.png) [@kk\_fusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kk_fusion)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/4 "2018-12-12T20:20:06Z")
That depends on the couture, I think. Blue jeans seem to have the beltline below the (male) belly, so yeah, there’s no point in loosening other than to show off your gluttony. In a formal suit, I can sense the waist getting even more uncomfortable after a rich business dinner. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/5 "2018-12-12T20:49:05Z")
That food and drink has to go somewhere. Take that volume of food (and liquid), just imagine it just placed inside, things bulge out somewhere. Also a belt may hold the gut a bit up, so that food can’t naturally fill the belly area. Loosening the belt would allow things to settle down and out, and be more comfortable. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/6 "2018-12-12T22:02:44Z")
I have small hips so I cinch my belt tight. I often loosen it a notch after a meal. Of course if I am at home it’s sweat pants all the time, no need to. Dennis ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2018, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/7 "2018-12-13T03:29:57Z")
Google “food baby”. It’s a real thing. I experience it daily, even when my meals are moderate in size. I have discovered that anything with lots of carbs will make me bloat. Raw veggies also do a number on me. Last year, I ate a salad for lunch each day for a couple of months. I had to stop because I was tired of looking six months pregnant. Not even Beano helped. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2018, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/8 "2018-12-13T07:02:14Z")
> [@pianodave](#): > > Hi SD, > > I always wanted to know if this cliche is a real thing. After a big meal, characters undo their buttons/belts and their bellies flop out. They sigh in relief, having “room.” This implies that one’s gut protrudes noticeably after a lot of eating, a notion I find difficult to stomach. > > Does one’s waistline or tummy truly expand so much after a large meal, so much so that it may make pants uncomfortably tight? It is certainly something I have seen people do, but I am not sure if it helps or if it is a symbolic gesture more than anything? Does bloating have to do with it? > > Fight my ignorance, please! If you’ve never done it, you’ve never REALLY eaten! 😛 Seriously though, I’ve seen even really skinny people loosen their belts after a heavy meal. Despite what most people think, the stomach is way higher than the belly, located just below the lungs. But it can expand a lot and push down on the intestines which are roughly where you wear you belt. Though for me, my belt is between my non-existent hips and the permanent baby bump I carry around. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2018, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/9 "2018-12-13T07:10:08Z")
I’ve always worn my belt under my belly. Putting it up any higher just seems like it’d be uncomfortable. ---
**Author:** ![Hermitian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hermitian/32/470_2.png) [@Hermitian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hermitian)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2018, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/10 "2018-12-14T15:28:31Z")
I have personally never done it or observed it happen. I assume it is more likely to happen when people wear tight pants to begin with? I don’t tend to wear my pants that tight. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2018, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/11 "2018-12-14T16:53:16Z")
Since this will mostly get anecdotes, let’s move it to IMHO. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2018, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/undoing-belt-after-meal/826003/12 "2018-12-14T16:57:51Z")
I have certainly done it after Thanksgiving dinner or other large meal if I happen to be near the limit for my current wardrobe. Having lost some weight recently, it wasn’t necessary last Thanksgiving. And I would never do it in public, only among family.