I know...silly question. I want to measure my hips but I dont know where I should be measuring! Ive googled this before and have found lots of different answers. There is no way my hips are smaller than my waist by 7 inches!
While we are on the topic....Where shoud one measure the waist as well?



Ive been doing around the belly button for the waist and around the middle of my bum for the hips.

major bump! I always have the same issue!

There are technically two different waist measurements. Your "natural waist" is the smallest part of your waist. Mine is just below my ribcage. Your "waist" is around your bellybutton. I take both measurements.

For your hips, just measure around the widest part. Around your bum is probably too low. Your hips sit just below your waist.

I measure right about where my pants hit. The "muffin top" area is what I consider my hips because its the largest area before getting to my butt. And its totally possible to have a 7" difference in your waist to hips. That just means you're blessed to be curvy. Think Jessica Rabbit.

And I measure at the smallest part of my "hour glass" for my waist

When I measure the hip bones the measuring tape lines up right around my belly button tho ???

No! I mean my hips are 7 inches smaller than my stomach! Which means I look lika freaking apple on toothpicks!

Your belly button is where your waist is. Your hips are below that. Here's other posts asking the same thing:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/270248-where-is-my-waist-measuring-help-needed-plz

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/547644-where-to-measure-waist

Thanks but again...Im still finding different answers :( Even google images for "measuring your hips" shows photos of right around the middle of the bum :S

A seamstress will measure your 'waist' as the smallest point - normally it's above your navel. Your 'hips' are taken at the widest part, around mid bum. That's how they make clothing so that is how I count my measurements. I really don't think it matters THAT much as long as you measure the same place every time.

Very true... Id meaure the biggest part of my stomach. But I just want to figure out what my hip to waist ratio is!

Turn sideways to the mirror and put the tape around where the biggest part of your bum is. That's where you measure your hips.
Your waist is the smallest point around your midsection.

I do "waist", smallest part of my stomach, "navel", right at belly button (this changes more than my waist), and "hips", about mid butt.

That's because the person you quoted is wrong. Your waist is not around your belly button unless that coincidentally happens to be the smallest measurement around your midsection. And your hip measurement DOES need to be taken lower down.
By the way I guess my explanation of where the waist is only works if you have a noticeable waist - if someone is more "rounded" and don't really have a cinch in your waist, I guess you'd just pick a specific place to measure and then use that same spot to keep measuring so you can see your progress.

According to this website...Im a Diamond body shapre. They make it sound like a pretty shape..But it really isnt :(

http://www.shopyourshape.com/body-shapes.html

You're kind of ignoring all the answers that say the waist is your smallest part under your bust and hips are the largest part around you backside... which is what I think the right answer is. Perhaps spend a little more time listening to the advice given and a little less time googling body types that are only going to depress you? Anyway, the important part is how these measurements CHANGE over time because of a move to a healthier lifestyle. Pick some places to measure and stick with them. Don't measure more than once a week - preferably, once a month. That's way more important.

Because Im more so interested on where I should be measuring my hips. I measure everywhere to see how the progress is. Im just trying to figure out my waist to hip ratio.

When my lower belly pouch was huge I used to measure my hips aligned with the extra pounds in the pouch. It wasn't my true hip line but it was the widest part of my body. Just a bit higher than the widest part of my hips, but the meeasurement was more accurate. I used to take meaurements of the widest part of the hips as well, and that's the measurement i stick to now that the lower belly pouch has a more reasonable shape and size.

The same goes for my waist,i take two measurements. One, where the true waist is, right where the ribcage ends (if you want to locate the exact place, turn sideways and find the natural crease, it tells you where the waist is). I use this measurement for the hips to waist ratio, and other body fat calculations.
And the other waist mesasurement is at belly button level. My waist is wider here, but it's what i take into account if i need the measurement to buy pants online. Because no brand makes pants with such a high waist as in the 80's anymore.

Still, the official formula always is, measure the waist at its narrowest point and the hips at its widest. :)

Well if your waist measures larger than your hips then your waist to hip ratio is definitely somewhere above 1.. Is there a reason you need to know the exact ratio?