This is probably a super dumb question, but one I've been pondering nonetheless.

If two women are both the same height and same weight, will they wear the same size clothes and look about the same?

If two people are the same height and weight, could one look fat and the other look slim?

I guess what I'm getting at is this. Let's say I'm 5'8" and weigh 150 and my friend is the same height and weight. Can I look normal and she look like she needs to lose 30 lbs?

Am wondering because people of the same height often have different goal weights and I'm wondering if some people are just designed to weigh more, or whether some people just want to end up on the thinner end of normal.

Thoughts?

I used to have my goal weight set at 145. I recently gained 30lbs to an all time high of 270 and was overwhelmed at the thought of losing 125lbs. Overwhelmed for me usually = quit, so adjusted my goal to something that felt more realistic.

My lowest adult weight that I maintained for any length of time was 175lbs. I think once I get to this weight, I might re-evaluate and go lower.

I think weight is such an individual thing. I work with a girl who is my same height and weighs 130 lbs. To me she looks really skinny. I don't think I'd like to be that skinny (okay, maybe I'd try it for a day or two!). 270 is definitely too big. 175 sounds just right to me. I'd be in regular sizes, be in the overweight category for BMI and would be most like a heck of a lot more healthy.

It depends on body type and whether or not you exercise.

In a nut shell, yes it's possible for 2 people to be the same height/weight and one look like they need to loose weight. One person may have more muscle than the other, so the one with more fat will look... well, fat. That's why it's so important for us to exercise during our weight loss journey.

Also, fat stores in different places. Someone with a big ole booty or gigantic tatas may have a higher goal weight to accomidate. Or they could just have one idea of what they want to be. Not everyone wants to be slim - a lot of women like the idea of, and prefer, having a little meat on their bones.

people can totally be the same height & weight and look way, way different. frame size & weight distribution are definitely factors - i always look larger than my actual weight because i have a very small frame, i'm not naturally curvy at ALL, and i put on weight all in my mid-section. when i was thinner, i knew a few people who were the same height as me and weighed as much as thirty pounds MORE and still looked smaller than i did!

People have different body types, some are more muscular or more developed than others, weight distribution could be totally different, and length of arms/legs/torso can vary as well. When it comes to weight there's no single number that's the right weight for everyone, it really just depends on each individual person.

I think the body type deal is the answer, but it is interesting, isn't it? For example, I think that I look much larger than women of similar heights who are hippier and bustier than I am, but with a smaller waist. For some reason, the apple shape like I have looks fatter to me than an hourglass shape. I feel like I see 180 or 170 as a goal weight for women my height around 3FC and I know that when I used to be 170/180 I still was fat, but yet I see pictures of women at that height/weight and they look great. I don't have a small frame, though, so who the heck knows.

I have a friend who is the same height as me and I weigh more than she does, yet I don't look as heavy. It's about fat distribution. I'm lucky in that mine is pretty evenly distributed. I hate my big fat thighs, but am grateful that all my weight hasn't settled in my midsection. But it can definitely make a difference in appearance.

As far as picking a goal, I think it's very random. I picked my goal simply because it's 10 pounds within a healthy weight according to the BMI. Some women pick a goal because it's where they were pre-baby, or on their wedding day or in high school. Some pick it because it's a nice even number to lose, like 100 for me. I really think it's just random.

I have "hourglass-extreme" figure. Cup size GG so there is a lot of weight up top. While my BMI is still obese, my waist qualifies me for "normal" woman sizing. Regardless of my weight, the sizes in my closet range widely.

I think body shape is a major factor in this. I'm a sort of apple/inverted triangle and I carry the majority of my excess weight from the belly/waist and up, so I've also got heavy shoulders and even my face is a quite full. I see photos on here of women who weigh more than me, sometimes significantly more, and their faces are much thinner than mine. When I was (relatively) thinner, I still didn't have much of a defined waistline. Big boobs, but not much booty.

Not that I know from personal experience, but I suspect that once I can get my midsection to be more straight up and down vs. rounder/apple, I may well look pretty slim for my actual weight. But I do think one of the pitfalls of this shape is that it's hard to hide any extra weight. Pear shapes can often wear cute tank tops and flowy skirts or strappy sundresses which keep the focus on their attractive and smaller upper body and don't emphasize a bigger lower body. Apples and women with extra weight in the upper body just tend to look a bit more shapeless, and IMO, larger. But I do think at some point, I'm going to totally rock some skinny jeans and a snug sweater or T shirt!

There are many factors but also the amount of muscle can factor in on why someone would weigh more but be smaller than another person. We see it all the time here at 3FC where someone will say they wear certain sizes while another person who weighs more will wear the same exact sizing.

It is one reason that I highly advocate that women lift weights as they lose weight You lose muscle when you lose weight but you can minimize muscle loss by lifting weights.

I have two sisters. I'm the youngest. My oldest sister and I have similar body types....we carry most of our weight in our hips, bottom, and thighs. My middle sister carries more around her waist. My middle sister can weigh more than me but her jean size is smaller! Years ago we were both size 12 and I weighed 20 pounds less than her...it takes that much work on me for the pounds just to have smaller jeans and shorts! She has the added pain of finding shirts not to cling to her mid-section while I have the added pain of trying to find jeans not too tight for my butt!

Yeah, it makes sense...

I remember back when I was in college, many moons ago, my sports team had to weigh in and post our weights on a chart.

At my height, 5'8" there were four or five girls, and the weight range was 120-165. I was on the high end with a couple of other girls...

BUT, I always "thought" I would look best if I weighed 120, like the other girl, who did not look skinny, just lean....myself, the lowest weight I've ever maintained is 145-150 and I looked totally normal at that weight, but I used to think I should be thinner.

Then later, I thought that was ridiculous and I couldn't imagine weighing less than 145-150. But I could not fit into a size 12 unless I weighed 150 or below, so before I got obese, when my BMI was normal, I always wore a 14.

Totaly agree. The other thing i noticed is I have looked different at the same weight at different points in my life. If i am on my way up the scale @ say 230 I look fatter than I did comming down the scale to 230. Likely because of the difference in muscle weight.

Well, one thing I've noticed is that I look "thinner" at higher weights now because there are a lot more other obese people around now than twenty years ago, and also, more middle-aged ladies are overweight-- so my extra fifty pounds is less noticeable than my former extra fifteen or twenty.