Help me identify my body type
I'm a guy with a height of 5'4 1/2".
My body measurement is 34 29 34. My legs are pretty thin.
What kind of body do I have?
What outfit will suit me the best?
95 Replies
It's a human body
I'd recommend wearing clothes
(don't worry about dressing for your body type it's bad advice)
I don't know why people on this Discord/subreddit have such a knee-jerk opposition to dressing for one's body type.
Why is it bad advice?
Are you trying to be a jerk?
Wat. This is a super lighthearted joke
OP, how you want to dress depends on what look you are want. For instance, if you want to look taller, wear vertical lines, monochromatic outfits, and avoid horizontal lines.
Fair enough, but it is like telling somebody trying to learn more about fashion to "wear clothes" is about as unhelpful as one can get.
That's why I followed the lighthearted joke with actual advice??
I'm on my way to something and don't have time to give an in depth response, but I'll give you an answer in a few hours if someone else doesn't answer you in the meantime
this is just patently untrue tho.
maybe if you only ever appear in photos with no other ppl around, but no amount of vertical lines will make a short person look tall when you're around other people. And that's fine.
You can certainly mess with your silhouette by changing the proportions of your fit e.g. high waisted trousers + tucked/crop top to emphasize leg length, but doing that at 5'1" won't make you look 6'1" (even if everything is covered in vertical lines)
Studies have actually shown people's perception of other's height can be amnioulated by dress.
I never once said anything remotely along the lines that wearing vertical lines will make somebody look a foot taller. It can draw attention away from one's short height. That's one of the main points of style; try to draw attention to one's favourite features and away from their least favourite ones.
"if you want to look taller, wear vertical lines,"
Anyway, I'm 5'1 and couldnt give a shit about vertical or hirozontal lines.
Wear clothes. They wont make you turn from 5'4 > 6'1.
There are videos online about this sure.
But at the end of the day it hardly makes a difference.
Theres a difference between putting on clothes that fit, and building a wardrobe based on "body types."
To your point: drawing attention away from a person's least favorite features might be a goal for some people, sure, but that's not a universal. Plenty of people put shit on because they love it and they want to express themselves. Finding clothes that fit is a part of that, but it's not the entire process nor is it the end goal.
The original question is getting pushback because it's a wrong-headed way of thinking about wearing clothes if your goal is dressing for any reason further than "I need to wear clothes."
I'd be interested in seeing those
Ok? Then don't wear them. I don't see what your point is.
I also never said they would make you seven inches taller.
@Billu what body measurements are 34 29 34.?
I've never come across that before
Is it like WxHxL type of thing lol?
Tbh I don’t like it when ppl give advice on how to look taller at the end of the day your height is still the same
Then don't take the advice.
I mean if you’re new to fashion just look at some inspo on Pinterest and the subreddit has some too
Why is it wrong-headed?
For real I never understood how people say this so confidently like just buy correct size of clothes and you’re dressing proportions. Some will talk about the rule of thirds and wearing pants at the waist I’ve seen some reasons being to make shorter legs look longer and some people saying they wear high waisted trousers because they have long legs and are dressing to their proportions but I just think it’s because high waisted trousers and rule of thirds is trendy not because of proportions
Nah
what would you say is dressing to ones body type?
It depends on what look one is trying to achieve.
I don't get how people understand how certain clothes don't harmonize with others but don't extrapolate that to the wearer.
In any case, I like high-waisted trousers because they look better with blazers; lower-rise ones create the dreaded shirt triangle.
I mean I just think its about buying the correct size sometimes I think a brand can make something thats too long for me and does not fit like how it does on the model and I would have to looks someplace else I guess that would be dressing for proportions but I dont think its something too complex and I think most ppl do it without knowing
afraid I dont know what shirt triangle is tbh
New here, my opinion is there are soo many individual factors to consider that body type isn't as black and white as you think..a lot of things affect your body type: posture, muscle size, bone structure, height, age, etc. I'm not an expert, but that would be an answer for a tailor who knows how to adjust accordingly, or DIY through lots of your own searching and practice
gotta push back on 'rule of thirds' being just a trend - it's a concept lifted from photography and art composition which has existed for decades in fashion (90s armani comes to mind). i would argue it's resurgence is a byproduct of the 90s era of style coming back into focus and a greater awareness of how proportion can be used
yh I agree but I think the rule of thirds where the bottom part is 2/3 and the top is 1/3 is trendy it used to be those long t shirts right
trendy in the sense that more people are wearing it, yes
it never really went away; even when longline t-shirts + skinny jeans were a fad it's not like people stopped wearing higher rise pants (usually in the context of suiting)
i am not carrion but the way the original question is framed ignores equally valid considerations like occasion or formality or functional constraints (weather, job uniform requirements) or personal taste. even if one figures out the ideal broad form of dressing for their body type then they still have to come up with however many outfits to meet all the other needs; it puts the cart before the horse.
to that end i have questions of @Billu:
- what do you currently like to wear? (the more descriptive the better, pictures help)
- for what kinds of things would you need clothes (for school, for work, for working out, for formal stuff, for hiking, etc.)
- who are some people or what are some images of people with cool fits that you enjoy?
and also with regard to measurements @Cozzie - 5'1 / 154cm + 'BULKING' and @Yodaguru are both right; the measurements given are kinda vague and also measurements in general are not a full indicator of 'body type'. for purposes of this, you'd need your pants size and chest measurement - use this as a guide as most clothing manufacturers are using it for their size charts https://www.wikihow.com/Take-Clothing-Measurements
for most clothes you'll just need your chest, waist and inseam (and height, but you know this already). i am spitballing that your inseam is 34" waist x 29" inseam and chest is 34"; if that is right great, if not measure again.
if you need a suit or blazer or other 'formal' clothing i would strongly encourage starting another thread because there's other factors at play there
but seriously, figure this stuff out first
Dressing to your body is dumb bc your body is the like least limiting factor in achieving a look or vibe you want. Approach clothes from the perspective of clothes
fashion itself is cool because it gives people the opportunity to reshape your body and proportions
if you want to look taller, idk, wear some heels?
i think whatever psychological effects caused by vertical lines or whatever comes secondary to actually changing how your body appears
yes
Wear what you like. Body type is some BS that men’s youtubers push because their channels feed off insecurities
my shoulders are yuge but if my coat has structured shoulders and i pinch it in at the waist it's fine because that look doesn't imply having big shoulders
it's just a fit with big shoulders
i dont think body type is BS but I do think its an unhealthy approach to getting dressed
Citations please.
i think body type is a useful tool to help understand that people's bodies aren't variations on a single, ideal standard, though taking your body type (which itself is an extrapolation of your body measurements) and trying to extrapolate it back into what kind of clothing you should be wearing is misguided
the most useful thing wrt body type and clothing is to look at images of people with similar proportions and literally just copy what they do
it's simply a shortcut for experimentation. looking okay now through replication and experimenting later once u get a baseline of comfort is valid to me
i got my start by copying people on r/malefashion since some of its (previous) posters had stereotypically masculine features similar to mine and were able to transform them into assets useful for androgyny
i.e. wearing heeled shoes and pants that cover up the heels is literally a cheat code to gain a few inches of height
whatever if ur below avg. height like i am once u take them off u already demonstrated that u turn a look
Comments like this are so weird to attach to “body type”. Literally anyone can wear vertical stripes, monochrome, and avoid horizontal lines to create various silhouettes. This advice is independent of my height and build
It's just boring lmao
Mfs in bodybuilding be like I got high rep genetics I need to only do high reps
It's a inherently self limiting mindset
I'm back home now and can type out a more thoughtful answer. There's been some good conversation here but I want to say my piece too. "What kind of outfit will suit my body type the best?" is a silly question for a few reasons.
1) There are so many different outfits and styles that can be pulled off on any body type. Look at #waywt and #waywt-highlights , there are tons of people who come in tons of different shapes who are pulling off different types of clothing styles. Workwear, ivy, prep, avante-garde, western, darkwear... it works on everyone! So "what outfit will suit me best" is such a strange question and handles approaching fashion completely backwards. Nobody should feel limited to only certain types of clothing because of their body. Instead, finding a style that you like FIRST and then finding articles of clothing that suit that style and fit your body is a better approach.
2) The hyperfixation on body type is a vestige of decade-old MFA advice that tended to be overly prescriptive and not inclusive to different body shapes. Reddit used to love talking about dressing a certain way for a certain body type, but a lot of it was really bad advice rooted in just putting other people down. MFA mods had to start making/enforcing rules on unsolicited fitness/body advice because certain kinds of people just looove to be jerks. That same kind of advice still prevails today - not really on MFA, but definitely in the "red pill / incel" flavors of online men's fashion advice. There are influencers out there who try to make their viewers feel bad about themselves so they'll be convinced they need to "fix" things about themselves and continue consuming their content. That's why this discord server pushes back hard against this sort of rhetoric
tl;dr although the individual pieces of clothing should fit your body, saying "you should or shouldn't wear X style because of your body shape" is bad advice.
I never said people can't wear vertical stripes, Jesus christ.
As opposed to "just wear this piece because it's arbitrarily in style"?
I didn’t say that’s what you said. I said it’s not relevant to “dressing to your body type”
On the flip side, what else would it mean to “dress to your body type”?
I’d much rather give someone trendy advice than basically body shame them yeah
The OP was asking for advice based on their body shape, it's no shaming.
I don't think it's a knee jerk reaction, it's actually pretty thoughtful. The idea of dressing your body type is past now, I think. And that's a good thing, it means anyone can do what they want in this space. You're no longer judged by your physical self, you're judged on the quality of the thought and execution.
We want to as close as possible be on an even playing field, isn't that something that we should want?
but seriously figure this stuff out first
I think part of the reason also that there's a rejection of this idea, is that body type based styling for the most part feels like an outside in approach to fashion, as in you're limiting yourself by appealing to the gaze of others as opposed to what you, yourself, want to dress in. A lot of people in here see clothing as an extension of self expression rather than just something you put on your body- the idea of doing self expression for someone else is obviously at odds. So there's also a clash there in terms of school of thought.
Even playing field for what? Is fashion some kind of competition?
Well, no. But even the playing field in the sense of anyone can do anything.
Yeah, but the OP wants to dress for their body type. Wanting to dress in a way that complements your favourite features is as legitimate a way of self-expression as anything else IMO.
Wanting to dress in a way that complements your favourite featuresi don't think this is really what they want to do—posts like this are generally steeped in negativity surrounding people's own bodies instead of the opposite that's the whole point of pushing against this sorta rhetoric okay y'all these reacts are so funny LOL
Yeah, absolutely fair. I think people are trying to bring up an awareness of it not being a limiting factor, and that it's rooted in unhealthy thinking about yourself.
There is no reason to think that. The OP said no such thing.
i have a 13 year old white boy with curly hair behind me saying "facts" after every sentence i say
ong
21
fr fr
do yo thing 21 do yo thing
when you stop talking truth I'll stop being your 13 yr old white boy
Yeah but that's impossible.
similarly, they said no such thing about complementing their favorite feature.
if carrion has 1 fan i'm one of them. if carrion has 0 fans i'm dead
elaborate?
No, but assuming they are coming at this from a place of insecurity is the most uncharitable interpretation possible
is it?
is there any other possible interpretation of your suggestion that one of the "main" purposes of fashion is to draw attention away from least favorite body features?
could you define insecurity for us?
what do people want when they ask a community of strangers to define their body type? whats your take?
i want internet strangers to tell me my dick is big so i can proudly wear the tightest pants imaginable
I wear wide pants because I'm insecure about my narrow, feminine waist
ultimately dressing in a way that "flatters your body" is just as subjective and arbitrary as "dressing for trends". Flattering to who? in what way? I get the desire for an easy answer that just solves dressing once and for all but the truth is there is no objective cheat code for these things
It depends on what look one is going for.
yes, the answer to all of these questions is: it depends
Maybe don't outright dismiss them or call them an incel.
whoa
i dont recall calling anyone an incel
that was a deflection and not an answer though.
GSH did.
I think GSH is pointing that the framing of this discussion has unfortunately been co-opted by incel adjacent schools of thought.
i think it would be constructive to answer the question instead of continuing the deflection
and like with anything incel adjacent, weaponised to do as much harm to the individual as possible
could be the fact some people here have been in the community for almost a decade and have seen hundreds of self-proclaimed free thinkers
and again, unfortunately having quite a lot of young impressionable people in here, it's dilligent to point that out when it comes up
there's no intention to be as uncharitable as possible, but there is a necessity to point out ideas that are antiquated and will ultimately hurt you
What a bad faith interpretation of my answer to your question
Every comment from have an A1 day seems to have been designed to make sure I don’t in fact have an A1 day
I don’t believe you are actually reading and processing any of the things people are saying to you
If you want to have a discussion, go for it, if you just want to argue endlessly, go elsewhere
People actually accused me of saying certain people cannot wear vertical lines, which I did not say.
Actually no one has accused you of anything except me
as one of the key spokespeople for the short, i formally bestow upon the talls, the right to wear vertical lines
please do not use this illusory magic for evil
putting on vertical lines to be 7' (and finally have value)
you might not know this but I'm 6'1 and I posted a fit in a striped shirt just today
Nah, llbeansandrice did.
Carrion said "but doing that at 5'1" won't make you look 6'1" , which is not at all what I said.
diving into the logs to druge up everything mildly aggressive said in the past 15 eons
"Anyway, I'm 5'1 and couldn't give a shit about vertical or horizontal lines."
Again, I never said anybody should give a shit
In response to "nobody accused you of anything".
those arent accusations, it does seem like you are taking disagreement personally
might be worth taking a step back, this is not constructive at all
:zach:
unless i'm saying it in which i can verify that every disagreement i voice is a direct attack on your character
sorry not sorry
@Billu tl;dr
- wear what you want to wear, there is no 'should' involved
- your body shape is one of several factors to determine what you want to wear (including occassion, climate, and cost)
- if you don't actually know what you want to wear answer these questions first THEN try to worry about fit
I imagije they want advice on what shapes or fit could be best for their body e.g. slim fit, baggy fit, etc. I also said it depends on what look he is going for.
We're trying to free them from that idea that X garment looks good on Y body most often/optimally
Because that's not the truth
There's simply too many garments, variations, cuts, colours, patterns and more to have a 1:1 ratio
it also ignores the questions of 'what does he actually like wearing?' or 'what does he need to wear'? (the question of body type hits differently when talking about suiting vs casual wear)
tl;dr https://discord.com/channels/1116793467654381685/1211324235897638963/1211397893223743659
Yeah none of these comments are accusations, they are just people expressing opinions different from your own on the topic
I’m accusing you of not reading well, that’s why I’m saying “you didn’t” and “you don’t”
And not just stating ideas
It's weird that you accuse me of such since every reply to my comment has misinterpreted what I said. I never once said that anybody can't wear anything, nor did I say wearing stripes would magically increase somebody's height by a foot.
My point was that you are taking general comments as personal. But this thread is wildly off topic and is clearly going no where useful, I encourage the original user to make a new thread if they have further questions about clothing.