To be royally pissed off with retailers who don't stock size 16 work-out gear!

[Vagabond]

I am hardly obese but find it impossible to find anything that is flattering or looks nice. I'm just trying to get fit! That's supposed to be good? Right?

I went into Sweaty Betty only to be told that all their size 16s had sold out. Hello! Message to retailers - size 16 is the average size of British women. Where is the stuff that I WANT! So pissed off and humiliated. The sales assistant was great and apologised but still....

All I can say is thank goodness I didn't try on the size 14 she suggested! No need to heap on the humiliation, my dear

Stays on sofa, munches crisps in abject defeat

Whether 16 is fat or not also depends on your height.
There's a lot of 16 bashing going on in this thread.

I just got some Nike 3/4 length workout trousers and 2 vests from JD Sports, all cost about £25 in total. Job done.

If you're broad of back and big of boob then an Enell might suit, Smellslikecatspee

Well done DiaisMavis on getting down in size. But you hit the nail on the head about waiting to get down to a size 12 to by the posh stuff. Why isn't the posh stuff available in bigger sizes? Bangs unfair drum!

And to "theleanandhungrytype" - I wish I could be lean. Glad I'm not hungry though as hunger makes me unreasonably bad-tempered! I know the quote about how feeling thin is better than any food blah blah but as I don't exist in a supermodel world, and I'm very tall ....I just get hungry! And I want to look good. Do I really have to wait til the holy grail of size 12 to DESERVE something that makes me feel in the right state of mind to get out and try something that intimidates me?

Can we please keep the sweeping statements to ourselves. My BMI is 22.5 and my bottom half is a 16. My hip bones stick out further than my tummy. I am not fat. I wear cheap gym wear to zumba.

Everyone in my mixed Body Pump class is in tatty, old, mismatched gear but when we're moving our weights in sync to great music we look like a corps de ballet. Trust me, the only thing people are interested in is getting a sweat on, not whether you've got Sweaty Betty on.

I am waiting so I can't get fat again or the posh stuff will be a waste of £ .

Vagabond it seems like you're creating a bit of a mental block about how your sportswear should be. Can you not think of it as an extension of your trainers - that it's there to do a certain job and you need to make sure it's as suitable for that job as possible. Some of the people in my gym seem to wear what looks like very expensive, branded clothing that gets very heavy with sweat as it doesn't wick and they end up looking very uncomfortable. Making sure your kit is right for the job is, to me, more important.

When I was a sixteen I didn't want to buy anything expensive so I got myself down to Decathlon and bought some reasonably priced stuff that looked decent enough to tide me over. I turned out to be such good kit that I still buy from there now I'm a size 8-10. When it comes down to it a sports bra and pair of trainers are where to spend the money, and the rest is stuff you will sweat in and will spend more time in the washing machine than on your back.

Surely fat people need to exercise too! I have had similar problem. I am fat and would like some running gear. No luck though!

All seems to stop at size 16 - I need [gasp] size 18.

Sainsburys go up to size 22, have a really good range of sportswear, and have 25% off all clothes until monday. :)

YANBU. I had the same problem at our local running shop when I was size 14, they only had one top that fitted. An old t shirt isn't great for exercising as it feels uncomfortable when sweaty - cold and sticky. Nothing wrong with wanting to buy nice gym gear - lasts for ages so you might as well buy good stuff, that makes you feel good.

Try buying your gear online.

i agree with rhonda. the aim is to work your butt off sweat lots and lose the weight, personally i think gymwear whatever the price tag looks unflattering. its meant to be practical thats all. trust me once you start working out you feel better immediately. within a few weeks or less the weight will stat dropping off and you wont give two hoots even if u arent in sweat betty.

ive never heard of sweaty betty. all i know is if im overweight i dont want to spend stupid money on gym clothes because i don't intend on remaining that size. i ge the cheapest stuff i can find. call me a cheapskate but pop in to a sport n soccer aka sports direct there are a lot of brandz in there and some of the designs are feminine too, not all for blokes.save your money for a new wardrobe of everyday clothing. rather than gym clothes.

Ynbu. why shouldn't you wear nice gear to the gym if you want?Sweaty Betty are missing a trick. TK Maxx can be good for exercise stuff

Another vote for TK Maxx- I love Pineapple Studios, Nike and Elle brands and TK Maxx always has them in lots of sizes.

New look go up to size 28 !

You really do need a sports bra.

With clothes over the TOP of it, but you do want one.

YABU to be pissed off at a shop "not stocking" your size when in fact they do stock it and they've just sold out

I think they have sold out or,

they are selling stock obtained at remarkable low prices, that may have been produced in countries were a size 16 may be difficult to find even if it is only because the population is not that tall.

I know people who are involved in the textile business and most of the stock they find is normally in the smaller side of the size range.

YABU. There's a difference between not stocking something and not having it stock because it's sold out!

Yanbu, but think how I feel, at 5ft 10 and size 18 I am a little overweight, but you try finding longer length joggers in a size 18! They seem to be akin to rocking horse shit from my experience! I'm sick to death of wearing half mast trousers with a 2 inch gap at the ankle. Same for the tops, hoodies are too short and the pockets generally sit about 2 inches below my boobs making them look saggy. Sleeves are also too short, so the general look is that my clothes are too small, even though they are plenty big enough at the waist and back. I've taken to wearing size 20 as they are far too big and tend to sit on my hip meaning they are long enough, and the back is huge meaning it hangs down my arms a bit giving me the right length sleeve. I did find a pair of really long length trackie bottoms in the market the other day and bought 3 pairs. They were seconds, probably because they were too long!

Roger, the joggers in the fatty porker section in new look are long, i'm a long legged 5ft 10 too and they fit fine.

Failing that just wear cropped short thingys.

Oooo thanks apocalypse, I will go and have a look. Sadly I have never been able to do cropped look, having spent my formative teenageQAF28472 years being horribly self conscious about my trousers being too short (mainly because i did get laughed at at school and called all sorts of names by the smaller perfectly proportioned girls ) I can't bring myself to wear cropped stuff now. Sad I know but I can't get rid of the feeling that everyone is laughing because my trousers are too short. That and feeling like a look a bit butch if I wear men's stuff, despite the fact that with mahoosive norks I couldn't look like a bloke if I tried, it is still in the back of my mind!

there you go:
plenty in size 16 www.sportsdirect.com/ladies/ladies-fitness

And while yes you can work out in a random t-shirt, actual sportswear is much more comfortable. It's not just for people who are already in shape.

gah sorry www.sportsdirect.com/ladies/ladies-fitness