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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think that a size 12-14 is not "Extra Large"?

91 replies

Shoppingwithmother · 21/08/2017 19:13

I have been thinking about trying something new exercise-wise when the school holidays finish and was thinking about Crossfit.

Just for background, I am way too fat - about a size 20, but have a lot of gym experience of all kinds of exercise, so would not be daunted by these classes - I liked the sound of it.

On the website they say it is "the ideal exercise programme for anyone, regardless of age or experience." So far so good...

I happen to look at the linked "Boxshop.me" merchandise website and was looking at the T-shirts. To be clear, I in no way expected them to have one to fit me currently. BUT..

This is their sizing chart:

S =size 6, M = size 8-10, L = size 10-12, XL = 12-14, XXL = 14-16

Due to my big boobs even at my thinnest and fittest (and I have been very fit) I would not fit in a top below size 16. So however hard I worked there, I would never be anything less than XXL in their opinion?

AIBU to find this a bit depressing for somewhere that purports to be for anyone to come and get fit and for it to put me off going?

OP posts:
LoyaltyAndLobster · 21/08/2017 19:46

I would also say that a size 12 is basically a large (sorry if I've offended anyone)

BarbaraofSevillle · 21/08/2017 19:47

As an illustration of meaningless sizing. I have two pairs of mountain biking shorts, same brand, similar style, bought within a few weeks of each other, only one pair is short, size medium and one pair is 3/4 length, size large. I can fit in the medium shorts, but the large 3/4 length ones are too small Hmm.

Original poster
Shoppingwithmother · 21/08/2017 19:48

That's encouraging Gwenneh, I think I would like it, as I do really like hard workouts and being told what to do!

Those box jumps look really hard though -are they?

OP posts:
TaraCarter · 21/08/2017 19:49

American sizing. I bet you a tenner that they have their stock mass-imported from the US, and it's all printed/labelled with US sizes. I don't think they've even realised that sizes need to be translated between countries. If they had, they'd have given approximate to fit bust/hip measurements in cm/inches for each size.

BarbaraofSevillle · 21/08/2017 19:49

Lobster That's not particularly helpful when a size 12 can be quite slim for a tallish woman and is slimmer than the average woman in the UK.

Making size 12 large would make size 18 XXL, or do you expect people that size not to exercise or wear clothes?

gwenneh · 21/08/2017 19:51

Box jumps are just plain evil.

I started by doing them modified, as step ups to a low step and focusing on planting through the foot -- working on feeling really firmly rooted (which is more difficult than it sounds). From there I started small jumps and was progressing to bigger ones when a sports injury sidelined me, so I'm back to square one!

They're evil and effective all in one!

Original poster
Shoppingwithmother · 21/08/2017 19:51

Actually an 18 would be XXXL!

OP posts:
Wdigin2this · 21/08/2017 19:51

I'm 12-14, and I certainly don't consider myself to be L or XL.

lljkk · 21/08/2017 19:52

Taking it a bit personal, maybe?
I'm a women's large in most things, even though BMI = 21-ish.
I have broad shoulders. My frame is larger than most. That's fine.

PoorYorick · 21/08/2017 19:53

I was clothes shopping recently for the first time in a long time and I bought six items of clothing, and I still have absolutely no fucking idea what size I am. No fucking idea.

On a related note, when oh when are those fucking skinny jeans going to die already? Even bootcut and straight jeans are just hideous skinnies that cling to my parsnip legs and have maybe a couple of inches flare at the ankle. They look like shit on me, they look like shit on 98% of the population, they've looked like shit for the last four years. Why won't they just fucking die? They're like some sort of hideous sartorial Hydra.

Original poster
Shoppingwithmother · 21/08/2017 19:54

I suspected as much, Gwenneh, of all the exercises I saw in my extensive(!) research, that was the one that filled me with the most dread - especially with respect to both my knees and my boobs!

OP posts:
gwenneh · 21/08/2017 19:57

I highly suggest the Victoria's Secret Knockout double bras -- they have an underwired bra under a zip front sports bra.

I use them for the gym, sports, and horseback riding -- nothing harnesses it all in quite as effectively!

lljkk · 21/08/2017 19:57

Skinny jeans suit more people than boxy boot cut or flares, though

LoyaltyAndLobster · 21/08/2017 19:59

Barbara

to think that a size 12-14 is not "Extra Large"?

I may not be being helpful but I was answering the question.

PencilsInSpace · 21/08/2017 19:59

I've got clothes in my wardrobe with labels saying size 10, 12 and 14, couple of 16s, small, medium, large, extra large and one or two XXL. They all fit.

It's all total bollox, it's not remotely useful and causes severe body angst for lots of women. We should move to sizing women's clothes by actual measurements, that way we'd all know where we are.

MorrisZapp · 21/08/2017 19:59

Yup. I'm a size 14 and some trendier brands don't manufacture womens clothes big enough for me.

Another annoying thing is Tkmaxx, where they have billions of tiny jeans, quite a few slim person ones, and three pairs to fit a size 14, all with mad embellishments and slashed at both knees. Same for their gym gear, looks like a kids department.

MadamPince · 21/08/2017 20:01

Eurgh, I hate that sort of thing. Sports brands are really bad for this, but hipster brands, too.

I wanted one of those selfish mother jumpers and the only larger thing they have is a 'boyfriend sweater' - I asked them a out catering for plus sizes and was pointed at that, in a size XXL. Only it has a review from a lady wearing a size 16-18 complaining that it's too small for her, so what chance do my size 22-24 hips have? Hmm

Nuttynoo · 21/08/2017 20:02

It's usually made in China by manufacturers who also sell the same stuff with a different brand to a whole variety of other countries. In China and India, for some reason a 6 is considered small and 10-12 a large even though most of the women you meet are at least a 10. I think it's because in those countries, sports fashion is aimed at younger people.

TaraCarter · 21/08/2017 20:04

Why do sports clothing companies do this? I am a 12-14 in ordinary clothes. I have to buy XL in gym wear. It is absolutely crap

There is an excellent set of shouty blogs on fashion design and sizing, which I will link, but basically, it boils down to:

as a clothes retailer, you try to collect data about the size and shape of your average customer. You call that size Medium or size 12. You then size up and down in both directions from your Medium. Finally, you put the finished range on sale. The average patron of sportswear lines is a bit smaller than the average bear, so a size 12 in sportswear is smaller than a size 12 in high street fashionwear.

fashion-incubator.com/the_myth_of_vanity_sizing/

BarbaraofSevillle · 21/08/2017 20:08

I've got clothes in my wardrobe with labels saying size 10, 12 and 14, couple of 16s, small, medium, large, extra large and one or two XXL. They all fit

Most women are probably the same. Men don't have to put up with this do they? 95%+ of DPs clothes are all the same size. He buys things without trying them on and they fit. Imagine that?

Apologies for generalising but men complain about women spending hours shopping and trying things on, but when sizing and cut/shape is so all over the place, what chance do we have?

I would love to be able to pick something up and be anywhere near confident that it would fit without having to try it on.

Brainwashed · 21/08/2017 20:09

Don't let some clothes sizing put you off going to crossfit. It is amazing...best thing I've ever done. Don't mind box jumps....but wall balls are truly awful 😉

gwenneh · 21/08/2017 20:10

Wall balls are the best! Don't listen to that! ^^ :D

Birdsgottafly · 21/08/2017 20:13

""I was clothes shopping recently for the first time in a long time and I bought six items of clothing, and I still have absolutely no fucking idea what size I am. No fucking idea""

So do you pick up size 8-16 in everything you like Confused

As long as a retailer puts the correct sizing in inches/cms in a size chart, it shouldn't matter what size you are buying. I find that there are a few shops that still don't tell the truth, though.

Ideally we should all be looking in the mirror, naked and concentrating on how much body fat we are carrying and being honest about our activity levels, nothing else matters.

MaisyPops · 21/08/2017 20:14

Aren't crossfit sizes US? Maybe I've got that wrong.

In Uk sizes, I would say
XS - 6
S - 8-10
M - 12-14
L - 16-18
XL - 20+

Either way active clothing is typically designed for a more athletic shape. That's why when I first started exercising I was buying my shorts in the junior section (because i was thin but not athletic), but once I'd gained more muscle I was able to buy them in the women's.
Different brands also fit slightly differently as well. You've just got to find a make that suits your shape and ignore the sizes.

cantkeepawayforever · 21/08/2017 20:18

Men's sizing isn't great, though.

DS is unusually tall and slim (26-28"waist, 36" inside leg). Essentially made out of sticks of bamboo.

M&S, say, don't make anything that fits him at all - a 'slim fit' shirt in there absolutely drowns him..

Next is slightly better, but not much. Slim fit there = extra relaxed and baggy in shirts, legs on trousers not long enough.

Topshop / Burton are actually pretty good. Slim stretch fit, extra long trousers actually look on him like regular trousers look on other people. Small or Medium T shirts / shirts that are slim fit look fine.

He had to buy a Large jacket in Superdry, because the medium was too tight (also far too short in the arms, tbh, but it was the tight-fitting torso that made us laugh)...