Trousers for racing snakes

[hellymedic]

David is now what Boris would call a 'chiselled whippet' and tried to buy trousers at M&S today.

The few trousers marked 30" waist were too big so he ordered some 28" and asked for a 31" inner leg.
Looking at the receipt, it states 29" leg which will almost definitely be too short.
(I will phone M&S tomorrow to attempt to sort this mix-up; he has paid for a pair.)
The M&S website doesn't even list anything below a 30" waist!

David is slim but not skeletal; he needs new trousers. Where should we shop?

[Snakehips]

Where should we shop?

TK Maxx

[vorsprung]

I find there is a problem for cyclist with a more normal waist / inside leg (I'm 34" / 34")

The thighs are often too narrow!

Clothing is mostly for fatties

Lycra might be mocked and considered unsuitable for the over 40s but at least it fits!

[hellymedic]

Thanks. Amazon seem to have some too.
David's disillusioned; having fought the flab, he now can't seem to get clothed. We feel the world is full of blobbies.

[Biggsy]

Where should we shop?

McDonald's and Gregg's.

TK Maxx

Plenty of trouser snakes there.

This is one of my most useful posts ever, isn't it?

[marcusjb]

I have given up trying to find 28 inch waist stuff these days and make do with 30 and a belt.  Some jeans are available 28inch waist, 30 leg - but I have to be careful as my huge thighs of pure power  don't fit in some jeans

Even finding small underwear is a challenge - GAP seems to work on that front.  Suppose I should check out their trousers as well now I am thinking about it!

I suppose that it will only become harder as the general population becomes larger.  Maybe there's a niche market opportunity for someone - much like the big and tall shops, but for skinny runts.

[uphillbothways]

It depends on what you're after, but youth-oriented brands tend to be good options for skinny guys - Topman, H&M, Uniqlo etc. They all offer a full range in sizes down to 28" waist and 34" chest and are true to size. You need to be a bit wary of cheap and nasty polyester blends, but you can find some really nice pieces.

[hellymedic]

Where should we shop?

McDonald's and Gregg's.

TK Maxx

Plenty of trouser snakes there.

This is one of my most useful posts ever, isn't it?

Dunno
I have an eccentric friend, who goes round with a megaphone. He described a class of 16-year-old boys as 'fuelled by anger and testosterone' whilst entertaining striking teachers last week...

[hellymedic]

Thanks everyone.
David is 49 and fairly conventional in his choice of clothing.
I think his waist was 29" when last measured so it would appear that M&S are guilty of 'vanity sizing' for men and women.
(When I were a lass, a Size 12 fitted a 24" waist; now it's 29"! This does mean I now wear a Size 12, something I could not do after I was about 17...)

Vanity sizing is dishonest and offends me.

[L CC]

No2Son manages to find clothes that fit and he weighs less than 55kg @ 5'8".
No1Son is the same height but has some muscles and also has no problem. I'd be surprised if either of them had a waist as big as 30".

I surmise the issue is that you're shopping for middle aged men clothes, and they're designed for the size of the average middle aged  man.

[mrcharly-YHT]

Next do stuff for skinny youth.

[Cudzoziemiec]

David is now what Boris would call a 'chiselled whippet' and tried to buy trousers at M&S today.

The few trousers marked 30" waist were too big so he ordered some 28" and asked for a 31" inner leg.
(I will phone M&S tomorrow to attempt to sort this mix-up; he has paid for a pair.)
Looking at the receipt, it states 29" leg which will almost definitely be too short. The M&S website doesn't even list anything below a 30" waist!

David is slim but not skeletal; he needs new trousers. Where should we shop?

I did a search for 'chiselled whippet'. I do not know if I have uncovered the secrets of either Helly's or Boris's mind, but...

[hellymedic]

I find there is a problem for cyclist with a more normal waist / inside leg (I'm 34" / 34")

The thighs are often too narrow!

Clothing is mostly for fatties

Lycra might be mocked and considered unsuitable for the over 40s but at least it fits!

So true!
David went off in search of trousers today and FAILED to find any at Brent Cross Torture Chamber. He did not attempt to go to 'Brent South Shopping Park' on the other side of the flyover as it's a horrible trip on a bicycle.
If the waist was correct either
1) The thighs were too narrow. Sometimes the calves were too.
2) The 'rise' (distance from crotch to waist) was too short.

David is resigned to wearing my hand-me-down Ron Hill Bikesters and Tracksters.

There are branches of both TK Maxx and Next at Brent South but that will be for another day.

David has worked hard on getting 'lean'. Trouble is most other Brits aren't.

[Valiant]

Try Jacamo, they have a wide range of sizes.

[hellymedic]

'Fraid Jacamo only have Craghoppers in size 30 and nothing smaller.

[Biggsy]

Sounds like David is small-boned as well as slim.  I'm thin, but I take 34" trousers.

Isn't it worth getting trousers altered?

[hellymedic]

Finding someone to alter trousers may be awkward.
David is indeed small-boned; his wrists are only slightly broader than my average female wrists and his feet less than a size longer.

It seems fit is getting worse over the years. He has some ancient 32"s that fit much better wrt to rise & thighs than anything he tried today.

[Jakob]

Try Uniqlo.
http://www.uniqlo.com/uk/store/goods/078970

[bobb]

IMHO, M&S lie about their sizes - a 30" waist there is everyone elses 32" and a size 12 is a 14, if you get my drift. Something to do with pandering to the ego of the ever-expanding middle classes 

Can't beat going into a shop and just trying something on. Next (ptui) do a range decent of trouser lengths, I can usually find something that fits there.

It's not just M&S, they're all at it. I've always bought 30" or 32" waist trousers and the last pair I bought (a 32" pair of jeans from Next) are absolutely enormous! I can slide them off without actually undoing them!

It's only a minor inconvenience really - for cycling specific stuff I just get size small for pretty much everything now. Years ago I'd always get medium or even large and I haven't changed shape. I suppose they're just adjusting to the changing size of the general population. Or doing it to make people feel better as you say...

[Cudzoziemiec]

The rise is surely a matter of fashion rather than sizing, and it makes sense to vary small/medium/large according to population, but if you're giving a specific measurement it should at least be approximately accurate.

[bobb]

The rise is surely a matter of fashion rather than sizing, and it makes sense to vary small/medium/large according to population, but if you're giving a specific measurement it should at least be approximately accurate.

I suppose so. If you take medium to be "normal" or rather the most common size, then making medium larger to keep up with people getting larger kind of makes sense.

However, not everyone is getting larger! And should we not be defining medium as a healthy average? If you did it by population size, in some parts of the world, medium would be fucking enormous!! That's not healthy is it? Telling people who are overweight that they're normal sized?

I don't actually give a shit btw, but it is interesting...

[hellymedic]

Problem seems to be that most non-cycling gear is not stretchy and that even 'thin' people are quite blobby and have poorly-developed muscles, unlike David. Thanks everyone!
I'll keep searching though David has all but given up the search for trousers that fit.

[Biggsy]

Dry cleaners sometimes have over-qualified people who can do good alterations.  I knew such a person, although I think she's retired now.

[Ewan Houzami]

I was looking in M&S for a suit last year, and told an assistant that although the 30" trousers were an OK fit at the time, I could easily drop 2" from my waist as I was a good ten pounds overweight, and I'd be best off buying a 28". She looked a bit shocked and said they were boys' trousers  Funnily enough I was back there last week trying on jackets again, and my old size of 36" regular is now too long in the sleeve and the back, and I'm now better off in a 36" short. So their patterns are changing over the years - chests are getting smaller vs height and waists are getting larger. It can even be worth having a root around in Primark: sme of their trousers and jackets in wool blends are not bad value (and are usually available in 28" waist), and appear to be the same quality i.e., using identical fabrics, linings and cuts as value online 'traditional tailors' like Brook Taverner, but at half their permanently discounted prices.  I used get a lot of stuff in size S from Uniqlo, but I rarely bother these days as the quality has taken a nosedive in the last 3-4 years. And good luck with finding anything smaller than a 30" in TK Maxx!

To add to Biggsy's suggestion, look for a waistband that is split at the back as it's a lot easier to adjust. (Mum used to teach fashion and dressmaking, so I picked a lot of this stuff up. I even had a go at making a shirt once from a pattern)

[hellymedic]

I know that M&S have been getting more generous for a given size. My BiL found this out to his cost and embarrassment. He's just a couple of years younger than me and has gained weight round the middle over the last 25 years, like many of us. He has always retaken a Size x jacket and M&S size x has always fitted him. When the oldest of his 4 four sons married recently, he wanted a 'posh' jacket from a Posh Tailor and found he could not do up jackets in size x.
Posh Tailor extracted a tape measure, which revealed the Sad Truth.
I might as my sister where she clothes her sons. Sons #2 (21) and #3 (18) are lean and have a similar build to David. They are rather young but don't seem to wear high fashion.