So typical sizing for women's mtbiking?

I went to a women's mtbiking apparel & accessories website. It felt like a different world to me..and I don't mtbike.

But anyway, I looked at the site's sizing chart:
XS
waist 28-31
hip 40
inseam 13.5

I just buy alot of clothing according to xs (or if I'm really lucky xxs) or size 0, 2.

But I don't recall size xs for hip as 40! I thought it was alot less than that. Or is that just mtbiking clothing sizing?? I continue to be amazed by maybe my own cluelessness.

I believe my hip is 34 ..though I haven't measured it in last 18 months. Since there were some guy's clothing, maybe that's for guys??

Those measurements sound like they might be for an extra small male!
I am about the same size as you Shooting Star and I know my hips are about 36 inches, give or take. Sizing has become so "vanity" prone, that I can only wear xxsmall petite sized tops now; so I am limited to Banana Republic and Athleta.
Yesterday I wore a sweater that is about 8 years old. It's a petite x small and fits perfectly. Now that same size in that brand would be huge on me.
Cycling clothes, however, I consistently wear xsmall women's sizes.

Could it be that the measurements are in centimeters, and that's a REAL XS? The inseam is a clue.

I've said it before, I'm more or less the same size as I was 25 years ago when I wore size 10 or 12. Now I'm a 2 or 4. :rolleyes: More worrying is that 15 years ago when buying an event T-shirt, I could often squeeze into a youth XL - now, a youth M is usually baggy on me. But 40" hips for an XS just doesn't sound right. I'll bet it's 40 cm.

Men will typically have narrower hips than women for the same waist size, not wider, so that can't be it. But men do not wear capris that I have ever seen. If those are men's bottoms, it's got to be metric.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OakLeaf

Could it be that the measurements are in centimeters, and that's a REAL XS? The inseam is a clue.

I've said it before, I'm more or less the same size as I was 25 years ago when I wore size 10 or 12. Now I'm a 2 or 4. :rolleyes: More worrying is that 15 years ago when buying an event T-shirt, I could often squeeze into a youth XL - now, a youth M is usually baggy on me. But 40" hips for an XS just doesn't sound right. I'll bet it's 40 cm.

Men will typically have narrower hips than women for the same waist size, not wider, so that can't be it. But men do not wear capris that I have ever seen. If those are men's bottoms, it's got to be metric.

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But that would be <16", so metric doesn't explain it, either. 13.5 inseam sounds like seat tube length...the whole chart looks nonsensical. The waist and hip look like what I think of when I think of a L or a generous M.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by zoom-zoom

But that would be <16", so metric doesn't explain it, either.

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It would if the XS was meant for youth... a lot of gear in the motorcycle world doesn't have separate youth sizes, and there's a lot of crossover between off-road two-wheeled sports, in gear and manufacturers as well as ridership... Boys don't change shape as they grow into men, nearly as much as girls do as we grow into women.

The inseam might make sense for shorts...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OakLeaf

It would if the XS was meant for youth... a lot of gear in the motorcycle world doesn't have separate youth sizes, and there's a lot of crossover between off-road two-wheeled sports, in gear and manufacturers as well as ridership... Boys don't change shape as they grow into men, nearly as much as girls do as we grow into women.

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But 16" hips?! Only a toddler would have hips that small. And that makes the waist only about 12" around. I'm thinking that chart has some typos. A 13.5cm inseam would be in-utero.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Aromig

The inseam might make sense for shorts...

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I was thinking skin-tight stuff, but I googled men's baggy shorts, and 12" on size Medium is the longest inseam I could find. At 13.5" they'd still be capris, i.e., below the knee. And I still say men don't wear capris.

13.5" doesn't sound like a ridiculous inseam for freeride shorts. Is the extra hip room to allow for padding?

A 28 - 31 inch waist and a 40 inch hip seems an appropriate ratio. I would not expect it to be for an XS, however.

But my 28 inch waist and 38 inch hips are currently covered by a pair of size 4 jeans from J Jill. Vanity sizing! :p

Veronica

I wonder if those could be actual garment measurements rather than the body measurements that the clothing is meant to fit. Also, mtb clothing typically fits more loosely than road cycling clothing. I have seen women's free ride shorts with 13.5" inseams. Those measurements don't sound overly large for an XS if they refer to the garment size rather than the body size.

Let's have a look at this. Link please?