# You guys are too fat! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 18, 2007, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573 "2007-09-18T02:31:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![cwthree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/41 "2007-09-18T16:20:26Z")
[QUOTE=Chasing Dreams] I’m 5 feet 6.5 inches tall, male, 151.4 lbs as of this morning, and I have a 29 inch waist… What is this world coming to when I can’t get a pair of pants that fit? Everyone needs to lose some weight so we get back normal sized jeans. [/QUOTE] I’m 5 feet 7 inches, male, 155 lbs as of a month ago, and I require pants with a 32 inch waist, at least. Do you have an hourglass figure, or what? Even at my skinniest (122 lbs) I couldn’t cram myself into anything smaller than a 30 inch waistband. Just wrap a some batting around your middle and buy the 32’s. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/42 "2007-09-18T16:29:41Z")
Until I was 30 years old I had had to buy too large of waists to get the thighs not rip out. I had large thigh and calf muscles from all the hiking I did spring to fall, and the work at my job. It’s not a problem any longer. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/43 "2007-09-18T18:33:31Z")
[QUOTE=Autolycus] This wont end well… [/QUOTE] It won’t start well, either, and the middle is crud. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/44 "2007-09-18T18:55:34Z")
May we perhaps interest you in three dozen banana splits? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/45 "2007-09-18T19:00:36Z")
[QUOTE=Kythereia] It won’t start well, either, and the middle is crud. [/QUOTE] I dunno. 45 posts so far, most of them useful and informative. I dunno what your definition of “start” is, but in my book, we’re well past that point. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/46 "2007-09-18T19:10:41Z")
It’s going pretty well, IMHO. Consider all these replies: [QUOTE=Q.E.D.] Sorry, folks, but the [NIH](http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/) says the OP is of normal, healthy weight. Actually, on the upper bound of that. His BMI, given the data in the OP is 24.1, while the upper limit for normal, healthy weight is 24.9. At 26.9, I’m moderately overweight. I’m fat and so are most of you. [/QUOTE] [QUOTE=bump] A 32-34 waist isn’t fat; it’s pretty much normal. If you’re a grown man and you have a waist under that, you’re most likely a runt or malnourished. [/QUOTE] [QUOTE=silenus] Bean poles aren’t normal. [/QUOTE] Is the OP fat…is he thin…is he normal? Another great example of how BMI often tells us very little. ---
**Author:** ![Velma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/85e7bf/32.png) [@Velma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velma)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/47 "2007-09-18T19:35:56Z")
BMI wasn’t made to tell you how a person looks. It is just a unit of measure. Statistics show that over a certain BMI you are at increased risk for certain diseases. It doesn’t mean, after this number BMI you are certain to look like a cow, or under a certain BMI you are certain to look like Kate Moss. And obviously, if you are a champion weight lifter or pro athlete your BMI isn’t going to reflect your real health stats. It also matters where you carry your weight. If you carry it in your waist, like me, you are at greater risk for disease than if you carry the same extra weight in your hips and thighs. I have to work hard at keeping weight off because it goes straight to my abdomen, the worst possible place health-wise, even though most people wouldn’t think I look overweight with a few extra pounds there. Just 5-10 pounds means about 2 inches on my waist. I have a 32 inch waist (well not right now, but before I got pregnant) and my BMI is 23. I don’t have an hourglass figure at all, my hips are about 38-39". I like the lower-rise jeans fad because I can just buy jeans to fit my hips, “curvy” style jeans always are big in my hips and dig into my waist. My husband used to be a 30" x 34" (now he’s a 33" but claims a 32" 🙂 )and I never had trouble finding him jeans. I also need a 34"-36" inseam and I buy a lot of stuff online, they always have the extended sizes that you can’t find in stores. I like Gap jeans (and their offspring, Old Navy and Banana Republic) a lot. Wait for them to go on sale, they will. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/48 "2007-09-18T19:58:09Z")
[QUOTE=Zoggie] Another great example of how BMI often tells us very little. [/QUOTE] According to the BMI calculator linked to upthread, I’d have to weigh 183 to be considered “healthy.” All the dieting in the world wouldn’t get me down to 183: I’d have to saw off a leg. That’s why my doctor and I agreed between us that while he’d like to see me get down to 215, he’ll stop fussing at me if I can get to 225. ---
**Author:** ![Chasing\_Dreams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/258eb7/32.png) [@Chasing\_Dreams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chasing_Dreams)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/49 "2007-09-18T20:31:44Z")
[QUOTE=Clockwork And Candy] Well, I swear I’m not saying this just to be contrary, but… 5’6"/151lbs/29 waist; unless you’re quite muscular, you sound like a fatty to me. No offense intended. Though, what passes for “average” today, I would generally call overweight. But that doesn’t mean I don’t understand where you’re coming from. I do. Last time I went looking for jeans, the smallest size I could find was a _28_ (ha!) hidden deep within a sea of 32s/34s/38s. It’s ridiculous. And even if I do find the right size, which is exceedingly rare, the length is never long enough. Apparently all men are very round, with short, _stumpy_ legs. I either go to the womans section, or buy my jeans online now. It’s sad. [/QUOTE] I don’t think I’m THAAAAAT fat, although I would like to lose some weight. I have quite large and muscular legs due to my genetics and cycling and that is where most of my body mass is. My body type is of a sprinter so I tend to be heavier than most people my height. I also don’t have a protruding belly and actually have the outline of a six-pack on my abs. However, it is the cycling off-season for me so and I am somewhat overweight right now. This past summer I was racing around at 145-148 lbs, so I am few pounds too heavy right now. I want to get down to 140 lbs before the spring races start and I can put the hurt into people. ---
**Author:** ![Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4da419/32.png) [@Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gala_Matrix_Fire)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/50 "2007-09-18T21:03:57Z")
I’m sorry about that, but I really like to eat. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/51 "2007-09-18T21:11:12Z")
The problem might be the fact that you were clothes shopping at Loblaw’s! I have never seen anything there that interested me and they really don’t carry that much selection of styles and sizes ; to me it’s like going clothes shopping in a grocery store and Canadian Tire. I have trouble finding clothes that fit, but that’s mostly because I refuse to believe that the size I want to be isn’t the size I fit into 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![myskepticsight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cc9497/32.png) [@myskepticsight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/myskepticsight)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2007, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/52 "2007-09-18T22:28:57Z")
I have a 6’0" male best friend that’s under 120 lbs. That boy eats so damn much but cannot gain weight. I think he buys a lot of jeans at places like Gap and Express Men, and he’s also bought girls’ jeans in size 0. You did say you have muscular thighs so that might pose a problem - the only jeans that look good on his skinny ass are slim ones, which are a main style at stores like that nowadays it seems. I’m a tall chick with a 37" or so inseam - my jeans come from [www.gap.com](http://www.gap.com) xlong tall size. Haven’t found any other jeans I can try on that come in that length around here. I can deal with $60/pair, but it’s a bitch to find dress pants and khakis that I like that don’t flood. And I don’t like paying that much for pants I don’t wear often - as a college kid my uniform is jeans. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2007, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/53 "2007-09-19T03:40:12Z")
I’m 6’3" and about 230 pounds. I wear about a size 38 waist. Used to be even that was almost impossible to find in Thailand, and when you could, they never had my leg length. The situation has improved in recent years, but I still stock up when I visit the US, which isn’t often these days. Thankfully, I no longer have to rely on tailors over here, although they do work cheap. ---
**Author:** ![ForumBot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ee59a6/32.png) [@ForumBot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ForumBot)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2007, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/54 "2007-09-19T04:38:58Z")
I’ve got a similar problem finding pants. I’m 5’8, weigh just under 150 and wear a size 30 waist–rather, my waist is a size thirty, but I have to wear a size 31 or even 32 because my thighs are too big. Guess it’s all that manly manly muscle causing them to bulge. So now my great ass (really, I promise. I get many compliments) is swallowed by these too-big pants and it looks like I haven’t even got one. I guess I just try to get by one day at a time. But it’s a struggle. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2007, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/55 "2007-09-19T21:59:41Z")
[QUOTE=GingerOfTheNorth] You’re very thin. [/QUOTE] According to medical height/weight charts, he’s spot on. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2007, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/56 "2007-09-19T22:07:46Z")
[QUOTE=Least Original User Name Ever] I have some trouble finding pants. I have thick thighs from years of swimming, and apparently, I have an ass. Pants get tight in the upper thigh/crotchular region. [/QUOTE] Is it…warm in here? ::fans self Anyhoo, OP, maybe it’s not that guys are too fat. Maybe there’s so many of yous walking around that the pants that would fit you are all sold out. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2007, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/57 "2007-09-19T22:16:38Z")
[QUOTE=kittenblue] My ex-husband wore a 28" waist with a 32" inseam (amazing that I can remember that ten years after the divorce) and we had to shop in the boys department. He was 5’3" and 130 lbs. When he finally gained a few pounds and had a 30" waist, we finally could move up to men’s, and he was still far from fat. [/QUOTE] Wow long legs. I’m 5’6" with a 28 inch inseam. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2007, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/58 "2007-09-19T23:50:46Z")
[QUOTE=jjimm] I am exactly the same height and weight as you - _exactly_ - and my waist size is 32 in. A few months ago I was down to 142 lbs and I still had a 31 in waist. What are you doing that I’m not? [/QUOTE] I’m the same height as the two of you (well, I’m 5’7") and weigh 170 right now with a 32 inch waist. Roughly 32 anyway, it varies from 30-32 depending on style, brand and all that. It really just depends on body type. At 140 pounds I have about a 27-28". ---
**Author:** ![Yumblie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/76d3ee/32.png) [@Yumblie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yumblie)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/59 "2007-09-20T04:41:01Z")
I have the same problem. Anything below 32 is very difficult to find. I’m 5’9, and around 135-140 lbs. I used to only be able to fit into 29-30, but I went pants shopping for the first time in years the other week, and found that I can fit into 32s ok (I’m getting fatter?). 33s I can wear if I don’t mind it sagging a bit, but beyond that no way. I look at all the upper 30s and 40s size pants and I’m amazed that there are so many people that can fit into those pants. I know I’m ridiculously skinny, but normal people don’t seem that much wider… ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573/60 "2007-09-20T13:36:23Z")
[QUOTE=Yumblie] I know I’m ridiculously skinny, but normal people don’t seem that much wider… [/QUOTE] The human eye is terrible at estimating the circumference of a solid cylindrical oval. Didja know many (maybe even most) pregnant women end up at some point bigger around then they are tall? 'Strue. But “around” the middle is a hard number to guesstimate - it’s almost always bigger than you think. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-guys-are-too-fat/419573.md?page=4)