Why don't men have a short leg problem? - YouLookFab Forum

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Why don't men have a short leg problem?

Carol

(website)

Veteran

I never see high-rise pants for men, or articles talking about short legs. And come to think of it, I've never seen a man where I've said, "gee, his legs are short."

Yet women can have glaringly obvious short legs, that must be remedied by heels, high-rise pants, etc.

There must be some anatomical difference--perhaps the hips of women make this problem more obvious. Yet I've just never seen this issue addressed in men's clothing.

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14 replies

Latest reply was from Echo

Joy

Veteran

They do, and it is very obvious. It runs in my family.

Anonymous

They do- my dad's legs are the same as mine and he's 5 inches taller! But their pants are sized by waist and leg length- so easier for them.
As far as rises, I'm sure they have body variations like we do- though maybe not as extreme.

rachylou

Veteran

What suntiger said about men’s sizing. With suits, at least in the old days, they’d be on the rack unhemmed and they’d hem to the man’s length when bought.

Peri

Veteran

Because men's bodies are never scrutinized and held up to the standards that women's bodies are subjected to at all times. Instead they are allowed all their differences in clothing that is sold by waist size and inseam length and are never judged lacking for whatever the numbers say.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

What Suntiger said -- there is a lot of variation in men as well as women. And what Rachy said.

You don't see advice columns for how to "remedy" it because, basically, patriarchy. Men are not conditioned to think of themselves as objects for viewing by others. Many men do worry about being short (if they are short) but possibly don't worry about the relative length of their legs as much because "long legs" are not coveted signs of sexual attractiveness in men. Overall height is associated with power and virility to some degree so they want that.

Jules

Veteran

Typical proportions have men longer in the torso and shorter in the legs, relative to women, I believe. Of course there is all kinds of variation. I do agree with all above comments but I think if you look at men judged to be attractive there are idealized proportions, but legs aren’t a focal area (same reason a lot of guys are said to skip leg day at the gym, I imagine).

kkards

Veteran

Hmmmm- I see a lot of articles about stuff like this for men. Just look at Reddit male fashion advice which has 5.6m members. Look at YouTube men’s fashion. Not to mention the whole store called Untuckit. Which was created so men could wear there shirts untucked and look good
https://www.untuckit.com/pages/about-us

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Helena

Veteran

What Suz said!

Also, men's pants come in measured sizes (34 waist, 36 length, etc.) whereas women's pants come in marketing (extra long, petite, etc.) Which is basically just an example of what Suz said

Zaeobi

(website)

Veteran

Haha MrZ definitely has short legs - it's a constant complaint in fighting sports , actually (since a long torso leaves you more easily exposed to blows).

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Carol, I dress men for a living too! Men can definately have short legs and long torsos. And exactly what Jules said

Sloper

Veteran

What Peri said. And Suz.

I live in Southern California - a beautiful mix of many ethnicities. All kinds of body proportions - men and women.

Echo

Veteran

I'm team Peri and Suz.

Although some men are said to wear lifts in their shoes...

Style Fan

Veteran

Men can have short legs and a long torso. As others have said, it is not seen as a "problem" that needs to be corrected.

Echo

Veteran

Oh, and just as an aside, my Dh is 6'8" and wears a 36" inseam. While that is longer than is often offered in stores, it isn't what most people would expect it to be. Many men that height wear a 38" inseam or longer.

My first son is 6'5" and comfortably wears a 34" inseam with no high-water look, and my second son is 6'3" and is often comfortable in a 32" inseam. Men definitely DO have shorter than average or longer than average legs just like women, but they buy their pants accordingly and never think twice about it. They see nothing to "correct."