Hi guys,
I was trying to take measurements this morning and I am having trouble with my waist.
I know it is meant to be the smallest part of your mid section but mine seems to be really high, like nearly under my boobs :/
I don't know if this is just because of how big I am or if it would sill be in the same spot if I had less stomach fat..
I do not have enough posts to upload a picture but have changed my profile picture to a more unflattering one to give you guys an idea of what I am talking about, sorry about the gross fat exposed photo lol but it's the only way you can really see the waist area.
Thanks everyone
I see what you mean about your "waist" (or the smallest part) appearing high. Perhaps you can try this...your waist will be above your hip bone, but below your rib cage. Perhaps you can feel out your waist! I suspect the smallest part in your picture is not below your rib cage (meaning the smallest part likely isn't your waist).
He military used to call it at 1 inch above the navel, but I know for me and others like me, with the fat apron pulling the navel down that may not be accurate. Another method is wherever your "fold point" is when bending to the side. I measure where the waist of my pants settles, which is about an inch below my navel.
One other thing to consider is why you care. For example, if you need to measure your waist because you're ordering a skirt, then treat your waist as wherever you want the top of the skirt to be. If you're just measuring to track your inch losses, then it doesn't much matter...pick a point in between your bust and your hips...as long as you consistently measure the same spot, you will properly track your losses.
Actually you might just have a high waist! Your shape is actually similar to mine and I often have some issue with clothes because I have a high waist
I've heard of different ways to measure, but I tend to follow the "smallest part of your abdomen" rule, since it's the easiest way for me to measure.
So sorry to deliver the "bad" news that losing weight may not really change your shape! Best thing to do is learn to dress in clothes that work with your shape (and flaunt it!)
I never heard of a high waist...I have been confused by the same thing. When I measure my 'waist' I measure at the belly button, but the narrowest part on me is about the bottom of my rib cage.
This also confused me when dealing with the apple/pear/hourglass analogies. I always considered myself an apple because my stomach is larger than anything else (no boobs/hips/butt), but the smallest part of my torso is actually quite dramatically smaller than everything else, so does that make me an hourglass?
When my belly was bigger than my hips, I found the top of hip bones and measured there. That ended up being just above my belly button. Now that I've lost some weight, I can actually see where my waist is and the funny thing is that it is right where I was measuring before.
Well I'm just as confused as ever lol
Hopefully once I lose a bit of weight it might become more obvious where it really is.
I only really wanted to know so I could keep track of inches lost so I guess like others have said it doesn't matter if its the right spot or not just keep measuring the same area, so I will just stick with that theory.
Thanks guys
To measure your waist circumference, use a tape measure. Start at the top of the hip bone, then bring it all the way around -- level with your navel. Make sure it's not too tight and that it is parallel with the floor. Don't hold your breath while measuring it!
Last edited by Garnet2727; 07-06-2013 at 09:14 AM.
I'm still lost, too. I don't like that webMD definition of waist bc that makes my waist several inches bigger than I thought. I also have never heard of a waist being at the hipbone. I have heard that it's an inch above the navel or where you bend to the side, which are approx the same place on me, I think. But the top of my hipbone is not where I bend. My guess is that webMD is probably technically right but it just doesn't jive with my gut.
I agree that it doesn't matter where you measure if you're just keeping track to compare over time or if its for fitting clothes, but I was measuring bc I want to know how far I have to go to get to a "healthy" waist measurement, which is supposed to be less than half your height. I think for that purpose it does matter what your actual waist measures.
Can't find waist..
