Do you think a women's size 16 is fat?

[LegencyMonsters]

Met a friend for coffee today and we got onto the topic of weight.

I mentioned that I used to be a size 16 and said I’m glad I’m not that size anymore as I was fat. She disagreed, saying a size 16 isn’t fat and pointed out that it’s actually the average size for women in the UK. I replied that while it may be the average, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s not fat.

Would you consider a size 16 to be fat or not?

AIBU - YES - of course!
YANBU - NO - Not fat at all!

5ft 3 here and size 16, I’m quite muscular as I lift weights regularly but I am definitely overweight. 2.5 - 3st overweight in fact.

I'm 6ft tall and well built. Large chest and lift weights. I'm a 16. Nobody would say I look fat. But if you were much smaller than me then yes you could look fat at a 16

Size 16 is pretty large!

And I think that sizing in many popular high street brands is very generous. I'm a pretty standard size 12, but tops in Primark S or XS sizes are loose on me.

I'm 5'8", with a broad frame, and size 16 is definitely fat on me.
I'd suggest most people at size 16 are fat, but I don't think fat is a 'bad' word; others do.

I’m a 16 as of the tail end of last year. I was a 14 for a few years before that. I’m 5ft 7”, am overweight and yes, I look fat. But I still have a skinny face (am lovely🤣) so as long as people talk to me at close range, they might not notice!

I’m 5’10 and when I was size 14 I looked fat so at 16 I would have looked massive. I’m now an 8-10 and look and feel at my best. 16 may not be obese but it’s big

There are very, very few people who aren't "fat" at a size 16. I've been a 16 (for most of my life actually) and I'm all the things people suggest would make me not fat at a 16 - tall, big boned, hourglass shape etc but I can assure you, I'm fat at a 16.

I did have a lovely lady once tell me that you'd never realise I was fat in isolation because I carried my weight so well. She then went on to say that you realised how big I actually was when you stood me next to a slim person. Lovely!

Then we also have the issue of modern "vanity" sizing as PPs have mentioned. I'm currently a UK modern 8-10 (shout out to GLP1s - I'll love you forever) but wear a lot of vintage designer clothes from the late 80s and early 90s. In those, I'm a 12. Very occasionally a 10 on the top but only if it's cut to be a bit oversized. So modern sizing is at least one full dress size smaller than 80s/90s. Probably more in truth.

I think it's just about how a size 16 on a tall person doesn't look like they're fat. I'm a tall woman and when I went from my normal size 8/10 to a size 14 post menopause,I was definitely fat,but everyone who knew I was trying to lose weight said,"you're crazy, you're not overweight"

I'm 5'6 and was definitely fat at a size 16, I weighed 14.9st. Apple shaped so all weight up top, plus very large boobs.

Now 9.12st BMI 22.4 but still a 12/14 on top because of the boobs. God i hate them, they barely shrunk at all!

I'm 5'4 and was a size 16 when I was fat. Maybe your friend thought she was being kind or is a size 16 herself and doesn't want to admit to being overweight.

Yes.

I'm a 16/18 and I'm fat. Even if a 16 is muscly/proportionate and looks good, it's still overweight and very likely to have a fat madriff, which is very unhealthy. The body positivity movement has veered into dangerous ground IMO. My teen DD had a school friend who was a large 16 and the school nurse had told her she was overweight. The girls mother (also overweight) was horrified, saying a 16 for a teen girl was a "normal, healthy size". It really isn't.

Yes

At a size 16 I was 211lb with a BMI of 34 so I was classed as obese.
I looked fat and felt unfit and unwell.

I'm just under 6'.Size 8/10 was my normal size at around 11 stone. Post menopause I quickly gained 2 stone and was a size 14,I was fat! Not obese fat obviously but definitely overweight.

I felt fat as a sz 16. But I also thought I was fat as a sz 10 🤯 I'm now a sz14 and feel great, but it takes a lot of effort to fight with my brain and societal programming

My 20 year old self would have thought 16 is on the larger side. Now that I’m in my 40s and have had three babies I feel it’s very much average size !

It completely depends on height and muscularity. I remember a colleague insisting to me that size 16 was definitely fat many years ago and her refusing to believe me when I said I was a 16 because at that point I was quite slim.
If you're tall and have big boobs, then 16 is very normal.

I'm 5ft 6 and 16 stone, I consider myself overweight (I don't like the term fat, even though it means pretty much the same thing!)
I hold my weight around my tummy and hips though - if it was more evenly distributed around my body I might think differently....

Because you would be that size or bigger without them.

It really depends where you are shopping!
I'm 5ft 8 and, having been skinny my whole adult life, I now have to squeeze into a size 12 in M&S. I probably need a 14 there (but I'm convinced I will lose the 'baby' weight). So not far off a size 16 really!!
In other shops, 10 is a squeeze and I probably need a 12.
I don't think anyone would think of me as fat, but I know I feel horrible at 10stone, because I'm carrying it all on my tummy.
I have been 11 stone as a teenager, and was called fat a lot then. But I was comfortably wearing a size 12 - I'm actually certain clothes are getting smaller!

I was morbidly obese at size 16, obese at a size 12, BMI 22.5 at a size 6.

Because I had a very hourglass figure - wide hips and big tits. Waist was a size 10/12

That’s a weird thing to say 🤣

I’m 5’7 and a size 16 and I am fat!