I've noticed I weird pattern in my waist/tummy measurements.

My actual waist (narrowest part is 31 inches)
My belly button is 36
The fattest part of my stomach (lower down) is 43 inches (mortifying!)

And yet I comfortably wear a size 10 (US size) up top. I wouldn't say I have a lot of muscle mass. Most 12s fall off me. None of my clothes are tight. I'm trying to get down to a six overall and plan to lose about 30-40 more lbs. My actual waist line seems to be going down measurement-wise, but not my belly button area or the "fattest" area of my stomach. I always thought my belly was the least of my worries (I'm a hips girl,) but these measurements have freaked me out! It's strange, my tummy is actually fairly flat from just above the belly-button, but below I have a little tummy that sticks out a bit, though not vastly. Surely in going from a 10 to a 6 I won't lose more than 6-8 inches, which means I'll end up with a tiny "natural" waist line, but a 35 inch belly at my biggest point.

I don't want to end up a thin girl who is still fat (if that makes sense.) But I don't think there's much I can do about it, other than hope that it comes off there next. Is it normal for the belly to be a lot bigger than the waist?

Are you sure you're measuring your belly and not your hips/butt?

Yeah, I was going to say, if you're measuring below your belly button, that's not your waist. It's your hips.

Jay

Yeah - hips. I have the same problem. My stomach can shrink to nothing, and I'll probably still be measuring about 40 down there because I'm quite hippy. Not fair, but what can ya do? But I know I'm still losing weight/inches because the other two places I measure (above and at the belly button) do go down.

My hips still measure 42 with major bones sticking out. Some of us are just built that way!

Yeah, my hip bones stick out in front but I still measure 41" at the hips due to a huge behind. Honestly from the front my hips look quite narrow/well proportioned. See me sideways and I'm w-i-d-e.

Kitty

That's funny! From front to back i'm pretty slim... from side to side... YIKES.