The average size of an American woman has historically been reported as a size 14.
Seventy percent of women in the United States are a size 14 or above, and that's technically 'plus-size,' so you're taking your biggest category of people and telling them, 'You're not really worthy.
What should your waist measurement be? For men, a waist circumference below 94cm (37in) is 'low risk', 94–102cm (37-40in) is 'high risk' and more than 102cm (40in) is 'very high'. For women, below 80cm (31.5in) is low risk, 80–88cm (31.5-34.6in) is high risk and more than 88cm (34.6in) is very high.
According to PLUS Model magazine, "In the fashion industry, plus size is identified as sizes 18 and over, or sizes 1X-6X and extended size as 7X and up".
Is 5'3 short for a woman in the US? Yes. Average height for women in the US is 5 foot 5 to 5 foot 6. Men average height or median height is 5 foot 10.
US size 12–14 is usually considered “Large” and some brands do start “plus sizes” at 12.
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, short stature means an estimated final height below 5 feet 3 inches for boys or 4 feet 11 inches for girls. The average height in the United States is 5 feet 8 inches for men and 5 feet 4 inches for women.
In fact, women care more about dating taller men than men care about dating shorter women. A study on women and men's height preferences found that women are most satisfied when their partner was 8 inches (21cm) taller.
This is what might politely be called the chubby category, with body mass indexes (a measure of weight for height) of 25 to 30. A woman, for instance, who is 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs between 146 and 175 pounds.
Thick is used more exclusively to sexualize women, referring to full-figured breasts, bottoms, and thighs.
A size 6 is slim. Average (depending on which source you reference) is between 12-16.
For adolescents and teenage girls, ages 13 to 19, the average waist size is 32.6 inches . This is the equivalent of a medium or large pant size, or about a size 12.
Runway models must have precise measurements so they're able to fit the clothes that designers are going to be showing to their clients. Their measurements are usually no greater than 34 inches around the bust, 23 inches around the waist, and 34 inches around the hips.
As an average, a Medium is likely to be a around a size 12. Generally a Small will be an AU 8-10 and a Large an AU 14-16. An Extra Small is likely to be a size 6, with an Extra Large likely to be a size 18.
Generally, yes, most people I know around a 14 I'd consider overweight but that doesn't mean I don't also think they're beautiful. Of course it's overweight. But then most people are these days, so it's normal. Under/healthy/overweight are factual categories based on weight and height, not dress size.
Some departments may designate a size 12 as plus-size while others use a size 14. But according to Modeling Wisdom, plus-size models often fall into the range of sizes 8 to 12. Sometimes, even a size 6 can be considered. This consideration has ultimately raised some eyebrows.