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weight loss and suit size

post #1 of 10
10/16/11 at 10:50am
Thread Starter 
Recently I have made it a point to lose some weight. So I started being more strict about what I was eating and increased my workouts to be longer and include some weight lifting. I've lost 10-15 pounds thus far but have another 20 pounds to go.

I'd noticed that some of my suit jackets were fitting a bit loose so I took a couple of them over to my tailor yesterday for alterations. While pinning them up we found that it is not only around the middle that needed to be taken in but also the shoulders. It appears that I have actually gone down from a 42S to a 40S. Has anyone else had this issue too? Do you think if I drop the other 20 pounds I might end up at a 38S? I don't want to spend a bunch of money altering jackets or buying new ones to find that I'm at a new size again.
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post #2 of 10
10/16/11 at 11:42am
I am a 42R and about 195 pounds which fits perfectly. When I was lighter by 20 pounds I wore a 40R, and believe when I weighed 30 pounds lighter I was still a 40 so I wouldn't worry too much about losing shoulder size more than you already have. That said, the waist will obviously keep going down a lot.
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post #3 of 10
10/16/11 at 11:42am
As Tom Jones would say... it's not unusual.

were your 42's sort of big in the chest and shoulders to begin with?
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post #4 of 10
10/16/11 at 1:45pm
That happens a lot. I lost about 30lbs and went from a 44L to a 42L. With the suits in question, I got the shoulders altered. Thankfully, the shoulders turned out quite well.

If I had more funds at the time, I would have just disposed of the 44Ls and replaced them with 42Ls. Mainly because shoulders are such a touchy area and it doesn't take much to ruin them (and therefore ruin an entire jacket).
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post #5 of 10
10/16/11 at 4:39pm
first off, congratulations on your weightless. And sorry about the effect on your wardrobe. It is the fear that that will happen to me, and my incessant love of food and drink, that prevents me from doing the same. I would recommend trying the alterations on an item of clothing that you could not wear without the alteration--i.e. you have nothing to lose if it goes wrong. If it goes well, do it on the rest of your wardrobe. If not, buy anew, and sell of your old stuff to defray cost.
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post #6 of 10
10/16/11 at 4:42pm
Since I arrived at sf this past March, teh manorexia has taken me from 42S to 38S. My hat size continues to spiral downward as well.
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post #7 of 10
10/16/11 at 4:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ddonicht View Post

Recently I have made it a point to lose some weight. So I started being more strict about what I was eating and increased my workouts to be longer and include some weight lifting. I've lost 10-15 pounds thus far but have another 20 pounds to go.
I'd noticed that some of my suit jackets were fitting a bit loose so I took a couple of them over to my tailor yesterday for alterations. While pinning them up we found that it is not only around the middle that needed to be taken in but also the shoulders. It appears that I have actually gone down from a 42S to a 40S. Has anyone else had this issue too? Do you think if I drop the other 20 pounds I might end up at a 38S? I don't want to spend a bunch of money altering jackets or buying new ones to find that I'm at a new size again.

I would put your health above any article of clothing, regardless of the price. If you can be healthier going down 20 lbs and sustain it...I would do it in a heart beat.

About 3 years ago, I went down from 220 lbs to about 145 lbs, and now I'm been stable at about 155 lbs. In addition to clothes fitting me looser, I also went down .5 size in my shoes. I had to start my wardrobe completely new, and it was worth it to be healthier.
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post #8 of 10
10/16/11 at 5:05pm
Thread Starter 
Yes, but Tom Jones would also say "sex bomb" and "black Betty". Neither of which are appropriate in this case. biggrin.gif

I agree completely that it is better to replace the wardrobe and have the extra weight off. I was just wondering if I should hold off doing alterations until I lost the rest but that doesn't sound like it will be too much of an issue at least with the shoulders. It is a given that the waist will continue to drop although I doubt I'll ever get back to the 27" waist I had when my wife and I first started dating. The 42's weren't that big but they weren't tight either. I checked using some shirts that I'd had made (mybestcustomshirt.com) and while the points of the shoulders used to be right on, they also hang down now. I guess I'm just surprised that losing this amount of weight has made such a difference in my shoulders.
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post #9 of 10
10/17/11 at 5:52am
Quote:
Originally Posted by bkstone View Post

Congratulations on your weight loss, and yes you can expect the size to drop.
5086.gif

+1.

The questions to consider are:

1. How quickly did it take to drop the 10-15 lbs?
2. Do you anticipate dropping another 20 lbs at the same rate?
3. How often do you wear your suits?
4. Is your tailor competent enough to take in the shoulders, and how much would he charge for each suit (presumably you would also have to have the pants taken in a bit as well). In general this can get quite expensive, and therefore may be best to purchase a few suits based on how they fit you NOW, which leads to...
5. How attached are you to these suits - were they very expensive or do they carry sentimental value?

Also keep in mind, if you decide to have your current suits altered down to a 40S, after dropping another 20 lbs it is highly likely they canNOT be re-cut properly to a 38S.
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post #10 of 10
10/17/11 at 9:03am
In my case I went from 46L to 44L. Jacket and pants had to be altered but not a lot.

Even better was my Alden shell LHS that was so tight I couldn't stand it for more than a few minutes. Now it is a perfect fit!!
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