Men Style

Reader: 



My question is about sizing a suit properly.  I am about 6 feet tall
and weigh about 185-190 pounds and I just finished playing college
football.  I am not really muscular but
in order to get the proper fit in the chest I have to go with a suit with pants that are much too big in the waist.  I
understand I need to get the suit altered, but they can only take-in the waist
so much right?





Thanks SB!

SB:



Hey. Thanks for reading.



Like alot of my friends, you have an athletic build which makes it hard to fit suits. Unfortunately for guys like you, the standard suit comes with a 6 or 7 inch "drop", meaning the waist measurement of the pants is 6 or 7 inches smaller than the chest measurement of the jacket (i.e. suit size 40, waist size 33 or 34). Since we are all human and rarely fit this standard mold, this makes it difficult for many guys to buy suits off-the-rack. 



Unless you are ready to make the jump to custom, you need to buy suit separates rather than suits. Think of it as a matching jacket and pants sold separately of which you can choose any size. Get the jacket in whatever size fits you in the shoulders and chest, then you can easily have the sides taken-in and the sleeves lengthened/shortened at your local tailoring shop (or have it done at the store when you buy the jacket). Get the pants in whatever size fits your waist best, the less taking-in/letting-out the better.



Hope this helps,

SB