# Keeping Pants Up



## clothingconnoisseur (Oct 9, 2005)

I don't know why but I seem to have a very hard time keeping my pants up. It is easy when I wear a suit - I just wear braces and that solves the problem. 

However, when I wear a belt it always seems that my pants are falling down and my shirt coming out. I am overweight but my pants are the right size - 42 and close comfortably so I don't think that is it. Also, I have had this problem as long as I can remember - even in the good old days of having a 36 waist.

Unfortunately, I can't wear braces with everything. They would look quite out of place with chinos and I think, with anything other than a suit or tuxedo. Does anyone know of a solution to this problem?


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## Canadian (Jan 17, 2008)

Find some comical braces. Wear them under a sweater vest, so only your intimates know about them. I have bright red braces and I wear them with everything from tails through to jeans.

I wear a 40 waist and find the best solution is to have many belts which allow for flexibility if you are intent on not wearing braces. You can find casual web belts at any workwear shop.

Tom


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## Flanderian (Apr 30, 2008)

clothingconnoisseur said:


> I don't know why but I seem to have a very hard time keeping my pants up. It is easy when I wear a suit - I just wear braces and that solves the problem.
> 
> However, when I wear a belt it always seems that my pants are falling down and my shirt coming out. I am overweight but my pants are the right size - 42 and close comfortably so I don't think that is it. Also, I have had this problem as long as I can remember - even in the good old days of having a 36 waist.
> 
> Unfortunately, I can't wear braces with everything. They would look quite out of place with chinos and I think, with anything other than a suit or tuxedo. Does anyone know of a solution to this problem?


Everyone has this issue to some degree, and we Gentlemen of Girth, to a greater one. Which would be easier to cinch, a potato or a dumbbell? Well, we sir, are no dumbbells! (Ya just gotta keep pullin' up . . . . sigh!)


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## Sober (Jul 31, 2012)

I have exactly the same problem. I also find braces very convenient when wearing a suit, in particular if I know I won't be taking my jacket off. Braces are also perfect (I'd even say mandatory) for three piece suits and of course dinner jackets. In less formal attire, I only dare to use braces (this time, the crocodile style ones are ok) under a sweater vest, as Canadian suggests. Otherwise, I think the only solution would be to get trousers with adjusters o Daks tops (see for instance the link below), but you won't get then in very informal trousers. I share your pain....
https://thesuitsofjamesbond.com/?tag=trousers
*


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## Oldsarge (Feb 20, 2011)

MTM or bespoke trousers can be purchased with a sticky, rubbery band around the inside of the waistband. I don't know anyone who makes casual trousers that way, darn it.


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## arkirshner (May 10, 2005)

Oldsarge said:


> MTM or bespoke trousers can be purchased with a sticky, rubbery band around the inside of the waistband. I don't know anyone who makes casual trousers that way, darn it.


Believe it or not, JAB Signature and Signature Gold pants have this band.


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## Belfaborac (Aug 20, 2011)

Eddie Bauer chinos also have (or had) a rubber band inside the waist band. A nifty feature which I seem to remember worked tolerably well, but sadly about the only good thing about them. In any case, this is surely something most any seamstress or tailoring shop can do post-purchase?


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## drlivingston (Jun 21, 2012)

Invest in shirts that are size appropriate. Ralph Lauren makes wonderfully long shirts for portly people. Sizes like 1-6X Big and 2L-4L Tall are your best friends.


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## paul winston (Jun 3, 2006)

Although there is no picture , the probability is that you need a trouser with a shorter rise. If an individual is middle heavy , trousers must be cut to be worn below the belly if the individual is not going to wear braces. Snug-tex in the waistband should keep your shirt from pulling out.


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## phyrpowr (Aug 30, 2009)

paul winston said:


> Although there is no picture , the probability is that you need a trouser with a shorter rise. If an individual is middle heavy , trousers must be cut to be worn below the belly if the individual is not going to wear braces. Snug-tex in the waistband should keep your shirt from pulling out.


Alas, correct. Our waist is also the middle of our "love handles", and nothing is going to stay there. I find that my..."core organ insulation" pushes the trou down at every opportunity.


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## Orsini (Apr 24, 2007)

It's all true.


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## Flanderian (Apr 30, 2008)

paul winston said:


> If an individual is middle heavy , trousers must be cut to be worn below the belly


Only with great trepidation do I take issue with your store of accumulated wisdom, as I know how little I know by comparison. But this advice could result in some men fastening their trousers about their knees. :icon_smile_big:

Men built low with short legs would not find this advice feasible. And even if a man is long-legged and huge of belly, I personally would much rather see him fasten his pants around his waste, even at the cost of having to tug them up occasionally.


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## Leighton (Nov 16, 2009)

Flanderian said:


> Everyone has this issue to some degree, and we Gentlemen of Girth, to a greater one. Which would be easier to cinch, a potato or a dumbbell? Well, we sir, are no dumbbells! (Ya just gotta keep pullin' up . . . . sigh!)


Speak for yourself...

Kidding! I'm skinny and I have to pull pants up occasionally. Most of the time I don't though.


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## WouldaShoulda (Aug 5, 2009)

If pants are at one's waist, they will stay up better.

If they are at your hips, they are already half way down!!


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## Bassist (Jul 3, 2012)

Wouldn't pants below the waist tend to accentuate the belly? 

Joe


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## JBierly (Jul 4, 2012)

Bassist said:


> Wouldn't pants below the waist tend to accentuate the belly?
> 
> Joe


Yes - but they don't slide down.


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## clothingconnoisseur (Oct 9, 2005)

Thanks for the great advice! I am going to try the rubber insert on the waistband - this sounds like a good solution


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## L-feld (Dec 3, 2011)

The best solution I have found is three-fold:

(1) Snug-tex, rubber-waistband liners and the like are infinitely useful. Also, the stickybelt works well, even though I find it uncomfortable.

(2) Shirts with long tails that button all the way to the bottom. Most shirts only have 7 buttons; look for shirts with at least 8. If the shirt is buttoned below the belt, it will not move around and spread out as much and will stay tucked.

(3) High rise trousers, especially if you are more pear-shaped (as opposed to a barrel body). You want your trousers to sit just above your belly, where your body begins to narrow (i.e. the top of the pear.)

Here's a diagram. The white circles are shirt buttons. The black circle is your belly button.


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## godan (Feb 10, 2010)

Oldsarge said:


> MTM or bespoke trousers can be purchased with a sticky, rubbery band around the inside of the waistband. I don't know anyone who makes casual trousers that way, darn it.


5.11 Tactical, easy to find on the web, makes pants with their "Gripper"waistband. Their orientation is toward military/law enforcement, but a careful look through the site will probably turn up something acceptable for civilian wear. I have worn their uniform and SWAT pants for years in the mountains because of the many, secure pockets, moisture wicking material and profound resistance to abrasion.


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## Howard (Dec 7, 2004)

You could try for a tighter belt.


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## Gurdon (Feb 7, 2005)

*Yes, but*



JBierly said:


> Yes - but they don't slide down.


They can, depending on body shape. I'm still working on a practical solution for casual pants, such as Levi's, worn at the hips. Meanwhile I just wear long shirts and keep my pants up.

Gurdon


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