dropping weight vs sizes

I am reading on some spotlight profiles about people dropping 2 sizes with a 10 pound loss, 3 sizes with a 28 pound loss. I know it's different for everyone, just wondering what others' experience is.

I'm still at the beginning of my journey, but in past attempts to lose weight, one size was about 15 pounds, sometimes more.

Sat. Jun 30, 11:31am

That depends on how you are losing and what you are gaining. I dropped a size after 10 pounds, but I was working out every single day. My pants started to ride lower and sag in the back as my abs, thighs and butt firmed up and my shirts started to drape over my smaller bust and upper arms. So, I probably lost more weight in fat than 10 pounds, but gained some in the form of muscle. However muscle takes less space than fat so overall I got smaller even though I didn't really lose that much 'weight'. Hence I lost 10 pounds and went down a size. If I was just losing weight through diet alone I don't think I would have seen quite that much change in my body.

Saturday, June 30, 2007, 11:45 AM

It also depends on your height. My friend's 5ft, and when she loses 5lbs its very noticable.

I'm 5'8 and gained about 20lbs and still fit in some of the same clothes (differenly, of course, but I remained around the same size) and people said they didn't really notice much of a weight change. Its a little annoying though, since I've lost 10lbs and have yet to see a size change really lol

Saturday, June 30, 2007, 3:11 PM

OP here-- that explains things better, 11:45. i'm 5'10", so maybe it just takes more weight to make a diff.

Saturday, June 30, 2007, 5:30 PM

Yeah, I'm 5'2" and 10 lbs for me is 2 whole sizes.

Saturday, June 30, 2007, 8:51 PM

Height is definitely a factor (for me.) I'm 5'3" and 5 pounds is a size for me.

Sunday, July 1, 2007, 12:43 PM

so unfair! another downside to being tall. =)

Sunday, July 1, 2007, 4:52 PM

4.52, I'd call it an upside... if we gain 10lbs, no one really notices =)
Plus we get super long lean legs to look foward to!
=)

Sunday, July 1, 2007, 5:02 PM

I agree 5:02! As a shorty every pound counts - up or down!!

Sunday, July 1, 2007, 5:13 PM

sizes

Well I think it depends on how much weight you have to lose. The less you have to lose the more sizes you lose. I have about 150 lbs to lose...and I have lost almost 30 lbs but only have came down 1 size.

Sunday, July 1, 2007, 6:53 PM

Plus-sized clothing sizes are generally 25-30 lbs of loss to change a size, whereas for regular-sized clothing it's normally around 15 lbs. Don't know why, but, that was in a previous thread somewhere too.

So yes, if you're a bigger size, it takes a larger loss to change sizes.

And as for the tall girls, just think how much more you get to eat than us shorties, w/o gaining, or with still losing! I'm 5'1", and if I eat over 1300 cals a day, I will gain. At 1300 cals, I don't lose. It's pretty annoying!!

Friday, July 6, 2007, 12:28 PM

5'10"

This is for the 5'10" poster. I am the same height and here is how my sizes are working. I am very pear shaped so my skirt size is always bigger than my pants, which are bigger than my top. I drop a size about every 10 pounds.

195 pds - size 16 pants, size 18 skirt, size 12 top (all very tight)

178 pds (current weight) - right in between size 12 and 14 pants, 10 or 12 top

165 pds (lowest weight before I fell off the wagon 2 months ago) - size 12 pants are consistently too large but some size 10 pants are too small, size 6 or 8 top

Let me know what you're wearing!!

Friday, July 6, 2007, 12:43 PM

I'm 5'7 and my starting weight was 177, and I wore a 14 bottom / XL top but a lot of my clothes were too tight and shopping was very difficult so I was probably close to a 16 but in denial. I have now lost 9 pounds and I still wear many of the same clothes but they fit noticably looser. When I shop, 14's still fit but there is room, and L shirts fit me now. I think that's because I lost weight in my breasts and arms but my waist has not changed so far. But I have only been changing my eating habits, I don't exercise regularly. I am going to start working out regularly next week and hopefully that will change the shape of my body. I do think it depends on your height, how your weight is distributed on your body, and if you exercise.

Also, keep in mind that sizes are not all equal at different stores. I love stores like Ann Taylor Loft and Banana Republic because their clothes are cut more generously. A Large shirt at Banana Republic is COMPLETELY different than a Large at Forever 21! And a 14 at Lane Bryant is much bigger than a 14 at Ann Taylor Loft. Stores cater to what they think their main demographic is and there is no standard across the board. All that to say don't worry too much about the number on your clothes but worry more about the number on the scale or the measuring tape!

Friday, July 6, 2007, 2:12 PM

So, if you drop from a size 14 to a size 10, have you lost two clothing sizes? I've never understood that.

I'm a shorty - under 5' tall. I've lost 45 pounds so far and gone from a size 22 to a size 14.

Friday, July 6, 2007, 4:04 PM

if you go from a 14 to a 10, you have lost 2 sizes. You've lost the size 14 and the size 12. Sizes always skip a number. Different retailers will use odd or even numbers- so a 1 is comparable to a 2, a 3 to a 4, 9 to 10, etc., etc..

Friday, July 6, 2007, 8:18 PM

I'm 5'9", and I've lost 31 pounds. I have 70 pounds left to lose. I've only dropped one size. I know it's because I'm tall and I have a lot more to lose. My sizes will go down eventually.

Thursday, July 12, 2007, 4:59 PM

5'3". For bottoms: at 100, I fit best in 00 to 0. At 110, I fit perfectly into a 2. When I weighed 118, I wore a 3 and at 125 I was barely able to squeeze into a 5.

Thursday, July 12, 2007, 10:48 PM

Boo hoo. What a tragedy to squeeze into a 5.

Thursday, July 12, 2007, 11:14 PM

At 5'10":
169, size 12 (long)

Thursday, July 12, 2007, 11:15 PM

I didn't mean that it was a tragedy. I meant by "squeezing" that 5 was a snug fit and 6 was too loose.

Thursday, July 12, 2007, 11:57 PM

Think about the person's height. I'm 5'1", and when I started losing weight, I wore a 5/6 pants, sometimes a 7/8. I weighed almost 130 lbs, which is a lot to weigh at 5'1". Now I'm pretty solidly a size 2, and I'm by no means skinny. I'm also naturally curvy, with big hips (proportionally to my height, my hips are big even in a size 2!)

So someone who's 5'3" might be heavy in a size 5, and might not be "skinny" in a 0.

Don't be so fast to judge!!

Friday, July 13, 2007, 11:47 AM

It also depends what size you are to start with. In the larger sizes it takes up to 20 pounds or more to see a difference in size but in smaller sizes it is usually 10 lbs. That's just how they make the clothes.

Friday, July 13, 2007, 1:37 PM

Yeah, I was once waiting for a changing room and girl stepped out of one of the rooms to ask for the clothes in a different size: a 2 for the top and 4 for the bottom, she said. I was surprised because she needed such small sizes because she looked very fluffy.

Friday, July 13, 2007, 4:22 PM

It also really depends on what clothing you like. For instance, I truly hate everything bulky and always go for the tighter items (I mean, not super tight, but fitting well and in no way loose). So I can visualize a situation that the poster above describes: a rather fluffier girl choosing smaller sizes than you'd expect.

It also depends if your weight is more muscle or flubby fat/skin. The more muscle, the less inches, the smaller size, the better fit. All that secret cycle around and around...

Friday, July 13, 2007, 8:42 PM

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