Weight a Minute: Go Up a Size Without Gaining an Ounce!

by Tristi Pinkston | More from this Blogger

09 Oct 2008 12:00 PM

Wow, that sounds like fun! Let's all go up a size in our clothing without gaining any weight.

That's exactly what has happened with many major clothing retailers.

They have taken the sizes and shifted them a little bit. Where 18-20W used to be 1X, it's now 2X. Where 22-24W used to be 2X, it's now 3X. Where 26-28W used to be 3X, it's now 4X. That's right-I'm now a whole X bigger without lifting a finger.

It's humiliating enough to be a plus-sized woman without having this extra pressure. It's really hard to walk into the store and find something to try on in my size, especially now-many stores only carry up to 3X. Yes, that's right-thanks to this new sizing technique, I once was acceptable in most stores and now I'm not. I have crossed the great divide from 3X to 4X, and many stores will not be able to serve me now. Again, my weight hasn't changed; I'm just suddenly too big to clothe any more.

I wish I knew the reasoning behind this. It's got to be confusing to more shoppers than just me-we head in, grab something in our size, and find it doesn't fit? Where's the sense in that? I have to think, too, that it's curtailing sales. If you went shopping to discover you'd gone up a whole size, wouldn't you suddenly lose your appetite for shopping?

And while I'm on a rant, I'd like to address this whole "morbidly obese" thing. I've always hated that expression-it makes being heavy sound like it's illegal or immoral. I would like to start a movement toward coining a new politically correct phrase. I like "person of unhealthy weight." I think that's accurate and to the point without sounding like the person in question should be in jail.

Oh, and have I mentioned that I really hate bathroom stalls that are so tiny, you can't even turn around in them? And how about ...

Related Blogs:

Morbid Obesity and Weight Loss Surgery

Personally, It's About Darn Time -- Milan is Barring Ultra-Skinny Models

The Doctor Said I Have Lost Enough Weight

Click here for more articles by Tristi Pinkston.

Learn more about Tristi Pinkston

I've been a blogger for Families.com since August of 2006.

View Full Profile | More from this Blogger

serenitysmom (166) 09 Oct 2008 08:55 PM

Truthfully, clothing sizes had shifted quite a bit since 1950s in the other direction. What is now a size 2 used to be a size 6 or 8. What you're seeing might be a bit of a market correction. I'm not myself a small person and I understand why it's disconcerting.

Tristi Pinkston (10839) 09 Oct 2008 09:10 PM

Hmmm . . . it might be a correction, but I don't like it. :) How about we do a color scheme instead of a number? Like, all the 1X sizes could be marked with red tags and the 2Xs could be blue. I could walk in and look for lavender or green tags and never have to face the number at all. :)