Y’know what’s nice? When retailers list a few common size details about their models and the garments they’re wearing in pictures. Height, weight, size of the shirt or jacket, that kind of thing. Y’know what’s long overdue? Giving you guys similar information when it comes to shots of me (the Joe guy) wearing things you might want to invest in.
This site isn’t intended to be about me, but knowing some measurements of the guy who’s wearing the thing you’re thinking about buying is valuable. Good news is that the guy you’re stuck with, yours truly, is pretty much right in the middle when it comes to height, weight, etc… This would be how it all breaks down, and therefor, measures up.
(NOTE: These measurements have been updated as of 3/2014, and once again on 3/2015. Seems as though things have been pretty consistent after that. Just know that if you’re reading an old post, they won’t match up to the sizing advice given at that time.)
The above are all tape measure figures. Many times (read: most) retail goods are off in terms of being true to size. Here’s what I normally wear off the rack:
Common Off The Rack Commercial Sizes
Suit Jackets/Blazers: 40R. Rarely a 38R (maybe if it’s a traditional fit)
Pants: 32 or 33 waist. 30 inseam, or a 32 hemmed up a bit.
Dress Shirts: 15.5, 32/33. (But a 15.75″ / 33.5″ sleeve at ratio/clothing is ideal)
Non neck & sleeve shirts: Usually medium. Sometimes large.
And now you know. Above “David” photo credit
We have very similar builds Joe except I’m about 159lbs with a 40 inch chest and 15 flat inch neck. I’m always struggling between buying a medium or small but tend towards smalls. Do you generally not have that problem?
Thanks Joe. What’s your height?
How did you calculate your body fat?
Hey Joe,
I asked, she replied, “the statue is being generous”…
(sorry)
I have the problem. I also am almost identical to Joe in measurements. I find that casual smalls usually fit me best but may be too tight after a wash. Dress shirt smalls are too tight in the neck. Dress shirt mediums are too long in the sleeves but fit everywhere else. If the dress shirt actually goes by sizes (i.e. 15.5, 32), I often find them to be inconsistent and frustrating.
If I was either a little bigger or just a tad smaller life would be much easier.
no offense, but 13.5% body fat seems really low for those measurements…
err, 13%
Yeah, uh, no offense intended here either, but with those measurements, you’ve got a body fat reading of about 20%. Here’s the formula:
Body Fat FormulaFactor 1 (Total body weight x 1.082) + 94.42Factor 2 Waist measurement x 4.15Lean Body Mass Factor 1 – Factor 2Body Fat Weight Total bodyweight – Lean Body MassBody Fat Percentage (Body Fat Weight x 100) / total bodyweight
Measuring Body fat % from a formula based on body size isn’t the best method, since muscle mass and fat mass have different densities (not to mention the variations in bone structure). I would agree that it seems low, but Joe has talked many times about how he likes to work out and has larger-than-average-thighs (where some of the largest muscles in the body are). I would trust Joe’s given % before I trusted a formula that “calculated” it.
Agreed, I’m sure Joe’s done his research as he’s told us time and time again that he’s been meaning to get this up for a while. Also, formula-based BF% and BMI aren’t ideal because they don’t take into account muscle vs. fat, as Jason said. Some of the most fit professional athletes are considered “obese” in terms of their BMI.
Ha! Well played. Tell her I said hi 🙂
Thought I was forgetting something. 5’9 1/2″
I use one of those body fat scales (which probably isn’t all that accurate) but I’m somewhere between 12 – 14 every day depending on what I’m doing. I have a friend who’s a personal trainer and I asked her that % reading. She said she thinks it’s about right for me.
I haven’t been pinched with the calipers in awhile, (probably will around Labor Day), but I’ve been keeping track with one of those body fat scales. Granted, those are never accurate:
http://www.consumerreports.org/health/healthy-living/home-medical-supplies/why-cr-doesnt-test-body-fat-scales/overview/body-fat-scales.htm
But, I seem to consistently be between 12 – 14%. I have a friend who is a personal trainer who will probably do the entire caliper thing for me in the not too distant future, but I asked her about those readings and she said she thinks they’re pretty accurate for me.
This one gave me 14.7:
http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/body-fat-percentage-calculator
BMI is crazy. I’m borderline overweight according to BMI. Which, I’m pretty confident that I’m not.
If your waist is a 34″, how are you able to comfortably wear 31″-32″ pants? For me, I generally have to go up an inch or so in the waist for most pants…although I know my hindparts are a little more than the average.
Commercial sizes are never true to size: http://www.esquire.com/blogs/mens-fashion/pants-size-chart-090710 Plus, I have an abnormally large trunk and not so big hips. Like most, I don’t wear my pants on my true waist but instead they ride a little lower on my hips. For example, I got a new pair of Bonobos the other day, size 32 waist, and they’re almost falling off me. Don’t know why. Probably shoulda sent them back with their return policy, but they’re an odd color so they’re just going to be a loose breezy pair anyway for me.
I’m almost always a medium because my torso is strangely long (and wide). So if I were to go small, the shirts always ride up in the back. One weekend in particular, I was wearing an old size small t-shirt while doing yard work, and all the bending over left me with an unfortunate tramp-stamp looking red sunburn. I’ve been sticking with medium ever since.
My neck is a bit on the thick side as well, so an Express 1MX medium has little chance of comfortably buttoning at the top. Side note: Have you ever noticed that our sized stuff is always on the mannequins? That’s fun. Asking a sales associate to undress a mannequin so you can get something in your size.
Stupid vanity sizes. I find it frustrating as all hell that manufacturers can’t make sizes a true numbered measurement.
I’m not calling anybody wrong here, but the constant drone of “BMI is BS” I hear both online and off has really gotten me thinking. Is BMI really that far off, or have we just grown so accustomed to seeing overweight people that our idea of normal is skewed? I understand that BMI may be way off for someone like Ahnold, but for an average Joe…? Speaking from experience, I put on a lot of weight in college, but couldn’t believe it when my BMI said I was obese. I’m 5’7″, and was about 200lbs. Don’t get me wrong, I knew I was overweight, but obese? I had a 36″ waist, only one chin, didn’t ride the scooters at Walmart. But there it was: obese. And I was about 50lbs over my target weight, which is a lot (more than you realize until you try to lug 50lbs around). It probably took me a couple years to get over the denial (i.e. BMI is wrong), and I’m just now finally losing the weight, 8 years after I crossed the line to obese.
Just something to think about. Is BMI really that far off for an average guy, or have we a a society just gotten so far overweight that we don’t even remember what normal looks like?
BMI doesn’t account for inherent differences in build across different body types (mesomorph, ectomorph, endomorph, etc.).
For example, I’m 30, 6’4″, 210-215lbs – in terms of bone structure, a classic ectomorph. But according to my BMI of 25.8, I’m overweight, and should be somewhere between 150-180lbs. When I was 24 and 6’4″/165lbs, people really thought I was malnourished. Now I’ve got weight in the right places and look/feel great.
I think BMI is probably more accurate for women. For men, the biggest variable is vanity muscle mass. Looking at the immigration papers of my great grandfather and his brothers, they were all 5’7″ – 5′-10″, weighed 140-155, and they were carpenters! That’s what many tradesmen weighed 100 years ago.
Of course a lot of people are overweight these days, but it’s also true that a lot of guys in our age range lift weights and consume protein for the purpose of gaining muscle mass. BMI can’t tell if the 35 pounds over “ideal” is from hitting the gym or stuffing you face with potato chips.
BMI is fine for statistical analysis, since it should be a fair
representation of people with “normal” builds. It isn’t a good resource
for determining if you are or are not overweight at the individual
level, however.
I am 5 foot 7 with broad shoulders and a fair amount of muscle (42
inch chest with a 33-34 inch waist). BMI considered me overweight up
until recently, about the same time my abs were beginning to show.
I still have probably 5-6 pounds of fat that I want to lose, and at that
point I’ll have a 9-10″ drop from chest to waist. I’m no body builder
or anything, I just work out a bit and have a naturally broad chest. BMI is not an accurate measurement for me.
(As you might guess, this results in me spending a fair amount of time reading about slim fitting shirts. anyone know a shirt with a 9″ drop? :P)
My dimensions are similar to Joe’s, but my body layout is weird because I have a “short torso”, but long-ish arms and legs.
My pants are 32/32, but because of my short torso, when I wear pants, they are practically up to my belly button. It is hard to shop because I need to look for pants that low-rise. At work, I can’t properly tuck in shirts because I look like an old man with my pants hiked up. Long story short, at least for work pants, I am better off just getting them custom made.
With regard to shirts and jackets, I always feel like they look too long on me. I like to wear shirts un-tucked sometimes, but it just looks silly when they go past my groin. I really need to look into have a tailor shorten my shirts. That said, I still need shirts sleeves that are 34/35, because of my longish arms.
Btw, I agree with a prior commenter that shirt collars seem to always be small, especially nowadays with trimmer cut shirts. Companies really need to give at least 1/3 of an inch to them.
Moral of the story is I probably need to just suck it up and get more custom clothes, which is annoying (and $$$).
Vanity sizing is the main reason that as soon as I find pants/shirts, whatever that fits me from a single brand, I shop at it till the rest of my life. Manufacturers can f**k off with the vanity sizing. I’m not going to invest an ounce of energy trying to figure out how their sizing might be off, even if I like the clothes.
BMI is pretty much useless and I am not sure why it is even used. I am about 1/2″ taller than Joe (when I wake up in the morning) and I weigh between 172 – 4lbs after a couple of rest days. However my body fat (calculated by calipers and bio-impedence) is 12.7.
I’m 5′ 11″ and have long legs. However, a 30″ inseam is appropriate for me. 32″ if I’m going to cuff them.
The problem with the every-man is I’m actually a little taller than average, yet everyone seems to buy 34″ inseams, even if they’re 5′ 6″. I know “fast-fashion” places like Zara and H&M only have 34″ inseams. At Zara, the clerk reminded me to get the pants tailored, and even suggested a tailor. H&M clerks don’t know anything.
The statue is of a person who is in a high-stress situation and is thus in a retracted state to protect little David from battle damage.
BMI is very useful for epidemiological, or population based, health measurements. Obviously there is always the example of the 5’5 240 lb bodybuilder who has a BMI in the obese range. It is popular because it is very easy to learn how to calculate and very cheap because all you need is a scale and a ruler to measure your height.
To the poster below, “Ryan Edmonds”, at a height of 6’4″, your “healthy” BMI wt range is ~165 lbs. to ~210 lbs. At 215, you are barely into the overweight BMI category.
I believe BMI can be used to analyze an individual’s health, but certainly not by itself. BMI + wt + body fat % + waist circumference + some fitness testing = a much more complete picture.
I would just like to remind everyone that when you report your waist measurement it needs to be from measuring tape or something similar. Not your pant size. I wear 30×30 or 31×30 (29×30 in some old navy stuff), but my waist is 34 inches. This is the vanity sizing that people above are complaining about.
Joe, 2 comments:
1. I’m 5’9, and find that the short version of suits/jackets general fits me just as good and sometimes better than a regular length. Are you sure you’re a regular at 5’9.5 ?
2. You’re missing a very important measurement: Shoulders
I never said I was always a regular: “38R, 39R, 40S, or 40R” I have a long torso, so sometimes a short works, sometimes it looks too cropped. But yes, I’m quite sure those sizes fit me, depending on the brand.
Shoulders: 18.5″
Blood type: A-
BMI was originally intended for measuring obesity in large populations of people, not for assessing individual fitness and is misused when evaluating individuals. (People with a higher BMI are more likely to be overweight, but that’s not necessarily the case.) When you look at the stats and say that the average BMI in North Carolina has gone from 27 to 32 (just made those numbers up) in the past 20 years, that’s useful. But if the only thing you know about a person is that their BMI is 27, that doesn’t tell you very much.
Hey Joe, someone mentioned you have large thighs? I don’t suppose you could toss your thigh measurements on the photo? I have quite large thighs myself and nearly identical measurements everywhere else (Except 1/4″ taller), and even though my waist in pants is usually 31, I need to size up to 32-34 just to fit the tree trunks and rear.
so how are you purchasing a 32 inseam? I’m 6″0 and usually cannot go past a 30
“30 or 32 inseam” Depends on the brand. Sometimes a 30 comes up short and I have no break. Or, I’m full on showing ankle. I like a little break. Not a ton of break. But I don’t like to do the flood/high waters thing either. I’m a tweener for sure, and often have to buy 32s and have them brought up by my tailor. Even jeans.
The smallest part of my waist measures about 30.25 in., and I always struggle what waist size to get. Usually I try a 28 or 29, but sometimes I have to make due with a 30 because a lot of brands don’t carry my size.
OMG, thank you. We have the same measurements, pretty much. well done.
I have the exact same measuremnts although my chest is a 41 and my thighs are very thick making pant shopping impossible.