Here is a question for you – what size do you think a man a bit under six feet tall and around 200 pounds would wear? And the answer is… SMALL. This was at Eddie Bauer and among a vast stack of winter clothes and shirts. It fits me fine.
I won’t bore you with statistics that are easily obtainable everywhere on the Internet about how Americans are getting larger, but this is the most overt sign that I have seen yet.
Dan at his new fighting trim size would probably be an extra small from the waist line perspective, at least.
Cross posted at LITGM
I’ve noticed the same thing. It’s not just women’s clothing sizes that are being redefined.
Bauer has run big for years. 15 years ago I bought some L shirts from them that fit me even though I am XXL.
Sizing in general is pretty whacked now. I am a waist 34 in some pants, but need a 35 or 36 in other sizes. It depends on the cut of the pants for me as my legs are pretty hefty for my weight from biking and kickboxing.
Shirts are the same way and seem to be even more randomly sized. I have everything from smalls to larges now in my closet.
I think this is partly a function of factories in Bangladesh or whever these things are made just assigning random tags to random clothes.
Dan: shrewd, about the Bangladesh labeling!
I thought so, too – also, what is considered size 8 in South Asia (probably in proportion of one such female to 100,000) is barely size 4 here. Otherwise how to explain the clothes of same brand name but “made in Vietnam” vs “made in Romania” differ by 2 full sizes?
I’ve neither read nor heard of any change to standard U.S. sizes. Medium is expressed as a chest of 38 to 40 inches, with a standard drop of six inches at the waist. Large, 42-44 chest, six inch drop to the waist.
An medium shirt will have a 15 to 15-1/2 inch neck. Large, 16 to 16-1/2 inch neck. In terms of sleeve length, 32-33 inches for a medium, 34-35 inches for a large.
So, pants? Well, if your chest is 36-40, with a standard six inch drop, your waistband will be 30-32 inches for medium, 34-36 for large.
If you’ve never heard of portly sizes, well, good for you. But, please, no offense is meant. It simply means that for some men, gravity has affected your weight distribution, meaning that you’ll need clothing construction that benefits a more generous girth. And, lastly, when you’re looking at trousers, it’s important to remember that the rise will assure you of comfort, or discomfort.
Best rule of thumb? Find a competent clothing man. An haberdash.
Merry Christmas!
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Thanks for the clarification on the sizes. As far as my neck, it is around 17 inches and I can still fit into a small from Eddie Bauer, which apparently has their own definition of small, medium and large.
But agreed if you go to a standard custom shop guy the sizes haven’t changed and they actually measure you, to boot.
you can’t even go by exact measurements anymore, I have always bought 32in waist Levis. I just bought 2 pair and received 2 pair for Christmas, despite gaining a few pounds since I last bought them, I need a belt or my pants literally fall off. I am probably a “30 inch” waist now.