Sounds like you are built a bit closer to me...

I have the thighs and hip thing going with the smaller waist... A huge variance between the bust/band measurements too though so if I dress wrong I look a lot bigger in the waist. I love curvy fit clothing because it will be fitted everywhere from waist - thighs, and then will loosen up but my hips will keep it up still when it is loose.

I started 8/13/2008. These milestones stand out.

I lost 20 lbs the first two weeks - 350

I lost 60 lbs the first 3 months (11/15/2008, I was in a wedding) - 308

I lost 99 lbs the first 6 months (Valentine's Day 2009) - 271

After that it gets a bit fuzzy, but I got to ~225 by Thanksgiving 2009.

In 2010, I crashed and burned, and gained back up to 275 (slowly though). Then in May 2011 I turned it all around and by September 2011 dropped back down to 225ish.

I hovered between 225-235 until July of this year. Size 16w pants, 14 top.

August 1st I went on the Stillman diet and today I weigh 213, and I can wear 14w pants (some straight 14s but they are tight in the butt and loose in the waist) and I don't have any 12 tops to try on, but the 14s are floating. I can wear a size medium t shirt.

I am still PLENTY fat - technically obese - and a lot of flab but it's getting better. I originally set my goal weight at 170 which is less than I weighed in college, and a lot less than high school, but when I get there I will probably push it down to 150. I'm not in a hurry, I'll get there. I do know I will NEVER weigh over 300 lbs again...and once I get to below 200 I hope to stay there forever.

Hope that answers your question.

DC hound what progress you made and are making again!
I started a UK size 28 ...OK I squeezed myself into a 26 and hoped for the best! I was also in a men's 3xl from Asda.
I can now wear a 22 with room and am an xl in t shirts.
At what point is it sensible to buy new clothes? I desperately need a new bra and a new pair of jeans but is it money wasted as I plan to continue until I weigh under 200lbs. I have a very limited income and am not the best seamstress on the block!
At 196 (14 stone) I would still be classed as overweight but I figure that as long as I can hold under 200 that would be a good barrier.

Buy a new bra as soon as you need one! A well-fitting bra will literally take 2 sizes off you. No joke.

This is excellent advice!!!

Cuter w Curves - Where do you normally shop at? I've realized that I love shirts that stop just below my hips because they make them look a lot smaller!! I've been trying to discover what clothes make me look smaller with my build.

DCHound - Ah that is so amazing and I know this gets used a lot on here but it really inspires me. I'm trying to lose as much weight as I can before New Years. I know how it is to have to start over and this time I feel really good about myself and what I'm doing. Plus, I've finally discovered that a lot of my problems come from my PCOS so now that I'm taking medicine for that it's been much easier. I do want to ask you what you were doing when you lost the 60lbs? Were you following a certain diet? Or were just eating better? And what about exercise? I've been exercising 3 to 4 days a week doing cardio on the elliptical. I have a certain amount of carbs I eat every meal (directed by my doctor) and this week I've been trying to eat fewer calories like 1500.

mountain walker - I know how you feel I don't want to buy any new clothes because I feel like it is a waste. You should get a new bra though. I just got two new ones myself

No exercise whatsoever, I literally did not lift a finger other than my normal day.

I went on what I called a very restricted version of Atkins induction but since then I've learned it's commonly called a meat-and-eggs fast. From 8/14/08 until 11/15/08, my entire diet consisted of:

water
club soda
decaf coffee, black
steak broiled in butter
chicken, skin on, baked in butter
bacon
boiled or scrambled eggs, scrambled in bacon grease
about every 2 weeks I would go to Popeye's and have fried chicken, dark meat, mild

That's it. No carbs other than the ones present in eggs and fried chicken. My daily carb intake was less than 2, or less than 10 if you count 1 gram of carb per cup of decaf (Atkins said the decaf might make your pancreas think it was a carb, so to be careful I did track my decaf intake and limited it to less than 8 cups a day. Hey, I love black coffee. )

Different things work for different people. I have a lot of respect, and some envy, for people who can count calories, eat anything as long as they're accountable for the calories, and lose. I also have respect and envy for people who can do Atkins OWL which adds back carbs slowly, and still lose. I can do neither. I can maintain on Atkins induction (<20 grams of carb a day) but I can't lose pounds or inches. I recently went over to Stillman, no carbs very low fat almost all protein, and I'm losing again. It's a pretty harsh diet but it's worth it because I've been stuck at 225 for over a year.

Stillman says you can lose 5 lbs a week on his diet. I can't lose that fast but I can lose. And I definitely know how to maintain.

I do miss vegetables though. And I literally haven't had a piece, or even a bite, of fruit since 2010. Do not do a diet like this unless NOTHING ELSE works. It's hard. It's not fun. But neither was being 370 lbs.

Edited to add: I do exercise now though. I rebound twice a day every day, I hike with my dog 3-5 miles every few days, I lift HEAVY weights in the gym every few days (35 lb bicep curls, for example), I bike sometimes, I swim sometimes. I only do things I like, and I don't really try to hit any set level. I just do what feels good. Exercise has never helped me lose weight but the lifting has definitely improved my shape.

WOW!! I have so much respect for you right now. I'm pretty sure I'd die trying to follow the diet you followed. I struggle enough as it is and I'm allotted 150 Carbs a day.

No fruit!! Ahhh I really would fall off the wagon. I love me a good strawberry.

I think that is amazing that you've been able to stick it out so long. Seriously, that is a huge feat!! You are one strong lady.

Thanks. I did fall off the wagon in 2010 but got back on in 2011. By fell off the wagon, I mean I went up to maybe 30 grams of carb a day. Super low for your average person, super high for me. It's really not that hard once you get used to it. I have people I know in real life tell me everyday - "I can't understand how you eat this way - don't you miss _____ (carby food)?". But if they knew how much better it feels for me to eat this way, they might understand it a little better. Eating carbs hurts my joints for one thing - one slip up and my knees immediately start hurting, etc.

I do NOT recommend this for anyone who doesn't need it, but, it works for me.

It takes me about 20-25 lbs to drop a size. I've been told it takes less as you get smaller. I've been as small as 225 and it was still about 20 lbs between sizes

ETA- at 225 I still mostly wore size 18 pants but started seeing a lot more variety in my sizes. I was starting to fit into more stores with different levels of vanity sizing. I had multiple size 14 dresses, mostly size 16 tops, 1 pair of 16 pants and the rest 18s. But I started wearing 18s in the 240s.

I had this hit home this week. I started at a tight ( thank you stretchy fabric) size 26 and 65lbs later I thought a size 22 would be a sure thing. Well I was wrong. Jeans fitted OK but non-stretchy trousers VERY snug. Rather disappointed but I think in reality I was a size 28 easily especially around my stomach which seems to shrink a WHOLE lot slower than the rest of me!!!
SIGH!!

ShiningStar05 I learned something a long time ago... Embrace my waist. I have one. *grin*

So for my "nicer" clothing I shop at https://sexyplusclothing.com/ (she's local to me but has an online store as well), or http://www.igigi.com/ - I make sure I go with their shape guide. It is REALLY important to do this.

If I wear something that will show my waist through the clothing I can go with longer shirts, but if not then I have to have it fitted. Because I am so busty it literally makes me look like I have no waist if I don't do that.

Additionelle and Penningtons in Canada carry a jeans/pants type called Curvy which has a waist that is narrower, and fuller hips and thighs... Basically this means the 24 jean has a 22 waist. Very handy I tell you!

The other thing I do is I will buy clothing, and take it to a local tailor. An example is my winter coat. I bought one that fit my bust... a 3xl. I took it to him. The waist needed to lose 9 inches... He stopped at 7 because any more would have changed the coat shape too much. The hips he took off 4 inches. See if you can find a tailor who will do things like this for a reasonable price. I got the coat on sale... and spent 20$ adjusting it. I still got it for less then half of what it would have been.

When I was 225, I lost a size every ten pounds until 175. Then I lost a size every five pounds.

Now that I'm over 300, it really depends. I've noticed 30-40 pounds between sizes. When I was 275 a few years ago, it was 20 pounds between sizes.

So, yes, for thinner girls, it'll be about 10 pounds per size. For heavier women, though, it increases exponentially. If you think about it, we're still losing a lot of weight from all over our body: back fat, arm jiggle, calves, face, neck, breasts, and so on. Once you're under 200, you're really only losing it from your face, waist, hips, and thighs because those other, smaller areas have already tightened up.

Example: I only need to lose an inch or two off my forearms, but I have to lose about 17 inches off my waist. That's a huge difference. Once I'm under 200, though, my arms will be in shape, but my waist will still be reducing.

I started at a comfortable size 22 at 294. I am a lot shorter than you and at around 240 I was able to fit in size 18's. At 230, they were already getting looser. And by 220, I could not wear 18's anymore. 210-220 16's fit comfortably. Now after 210, things are getting a lot easier when moving down sizes. I am 198 right now and 16's are getting big and size 14's are starting to fit. So it does get easier. It just takes some time! Believe me, I could not wait until the day I was a 16. It will come! Just stay patient, as hard as it may seem!

Im in the same boat. I lost just over 14lbs, and I want to magically fit into smaller clothing :/
My goal is also a size 18!
Good Luck everyone!