With the political season over with for a little while, one can almost breath a bit easier without the smell of B.S. filling the air. But for those of you who love the smell of B.S. dont worry, there is still plenty to be found.
I was speaking with a good friend the other day, and I must admit I had to let out a bit of a chuckle. He came across the horrible realization that our pants lie to us, or more accurately that we are caught in the midst of a battle for market share.
I must say, a lot of things elude me. I’ve never particularly understood shoe sizes. Neck ties confused me for a while. And well, womens sizes just baffled me more. How can someone be a size 0 or 1? I just dont seem to understand. Ahh, yes, there was just one more reason I enjoy being a guy. We’re plain and simple. Take a tape measure and figure out how many inches and BAM there you go, pants size. That makes sense to me! It’s nice that as guys our stuff makes sense. Even going to the Mens Warehouse. It’s something nice about having your measurements taken. It makes sense. They write them down and go to town.
In late 2009 the needle came to a screeching halt on that record for me. I found out my trusted friend was a liar. I started working out and really paying attention to my health. I ordered P90X and part of the program was to take my measurements. I was 38s and 40s at that point in time. 38s & 40s you ask? I should have asked also. A person shouldnt be in 2 different pant sizes should they?
I took my waist measurements and found I was a 46″ waist! WTH?? 46″ waist? No. No, no no. My pants say 38. And this other pair says 40. Wait. Are my pants liars? Could it be they are not telling me the truth? That somehow an inch to Levis is different than an inch to Nautica? What was going on here?
The answer is plain and simple, and even though some people might suspect it, who really wants to admit it? Clothing manufacturers use size as a marketing tool. Slowly over time we’ve gotten further and further away from the truth. It’s followed along with our nation getting plumper and plumper as well. Face it, if you go in to the store and try on 2 pairs of jeans. 1 says you are a 36 and the other pair a 40, which one are you going to buy? The one that says you are a 36. And who actually takes measurements anymore anyway? If someone ever was to ask me I would have told them I was an X (X stands for the smallest jeans I could fit in, not what my waist actually was).
The sad thing is, a lot of people rest easy in this. They think, well, I’m not in too bad of shape, I still fit in 38s. I wouldnt go as far to say that the clothing industry is helping to kill us, but I would say they are doing us no favors whatsoever in helping us. With 2/3 the population either obese or overweight, we dont need companies pandering to us and trying to make us feel good about ourselves. It’s time for some ugly truth. It’s time for a dose of reality to get us moving along in the right direction.
When I found out that I was a 46 I took action, and thankfully I can say that I’m a 32 now. Which ironically would be a 30 or 28 in pants? Ah who the heck even knows.
Grab a tape a measure your waist. Get on it today. And if you’re not liking what you find, sign up for a free account at Beachbody. It’s time to make a change, and I dont just mean changing to a different manufacturer. If you are wanting to do that though, Old Navy seems to have the biggest spread, with about a 5″ difference in what the consider waistline!
