Shoe size and weight loss

Does anyone know if it's possible for your feet to get smaller when you lose weight? I'm a 36yo female and recently lost 35 lbs (with more to go) and when I was trying on shoes recently, I noticed that shoes a half-size smaller fit me better than my usual size. I'm not sure if this is because shoes are now running bigger or if my feet are actually smaller now.

So I decided to check out my older shoes when I went home. Shoes that used to fit are now a bit too big. Very weird. I definitely feel like my feet have shrunk a little bit.

Has anyone heard of this happening? Has it happened to you?

My feet shrank too.  EVERYTHING has shrunk. Nothing has been exempt.

My shoe size hasn't changed since I was 17, but my weight has been anywhere from 145 to 270.

I hope my feet shrink! My mom lost around 50 pounds and her shoe size went down 1 or 2 sizes, but she always had a problem with water retention and her feet would swell up, so I don't know if it's the same for everyone. Congrats on the 35 pounds!

my shoes are looser now, yep!

yep.. sure enough!! I lost a whole size, with a 30 lb weight loss

I've lost about 8-10lbs, and my shoes are definately loose.  Unfortunately, when my 5s get to big I have to head to the children's department, not the place to look for sexy heels.  Everything seems to have Barbie or Dora on it. But I'll take the shoe issue if it means I'm losing!

I used to be really vain about my small feet -then the universe laughed and bam!  My feet grew a size when I had my son.  The universe laughed again when I gained 50 lbs and my feet grew another size.  Thats too bad too - I loved having a small size because I could by great shoes at a huge discount because no one ever bought the small sizes  lol

Different people store fat in different areas of the body.  I suppose feet aren't exempt from that.  I'm fairly sure my shoe size isn't going to go down as I lose weight though.  They're pretty bony -- no fat stored there.

After losing 50 pounds, my shoe size went from a 9 to a 7.5 :)

Thanks for the replies everyone. It's nice to hear that other people have had this happen, too. I thought I was losing it (well, turns out I actually was! LOL).

I've always had chubby sort-of wide feet (def not bony) so I guess it makes sense that I'd lose weight there, too. Time to add some shoes to the bag of things that no longer fit.

Me too - it's been fun having an excuse to buy new shoes! Mine have only gone down half a size. from a 10 to a 9.5 (sometimes a 9) after losing 100 lbs. I hope they don't shrink any more or I will have to give up all my pretty new shoes! Though I don't think they will, I was a size 9 back when I was a healthy weight, so I can't see why they'd end up smaller when I get back there.

Losing 50 pounds dropped my shoe size 1/2.  

Original Post by gwenniejo7:

Does anyone know if it's possible for your feet to get smaller when you lose weight? I'm a 36yo female and recently lost 35 lbs (with more to go) and when I was trying on shoes recently, I noticed that shoes a half-size smaller fit me better than my usual size. I'm not sure if this is because shoes are now running bigger or if my feet are actually smaller now.

So I decided to check out my older shoes when I went home. Shoes that used to fit are now a bit too big. Very weird. I definitely feel like my feet have shrunk a little bit.

Has anyone heard of this happening? Has it happened to you?

Well of course!!  When you lose weight, you lose it everywhere.  Completely logical.

I recently lost 10pds...with 35lbs to go...and in the summer time my feet are always swollen up to a size 9 i normally wear a  8.5 or 8 (in the winter). Now I am fitting my 8.5 loose, hopefully i don't have to ditch my shoe collection. But i do know I store fat in my feet. Congrats on your weight loss... and all your new shoes!

I used to wear a 9.5 and now I wear an 8. I also grew 1/2 an inch during my weight loss. Doctor explained it to me:

Less weight on the arch = a smaller foot (you have more of an arch + less fat to widen it)

Less weight on the arch = a taller you. I had 175 pounds come off of me, so I ended up a half inch taller. Woo! ;)

RE: x17star17x

I am 5 '2... SO i need to be taller... I normally wear  3-4 inch shoes everyday... they are comfortable... as comfortable as they get for heels... But you are right... my fat is in the arch of my foot.

Me too.  I have lost 70 lbs, 4 clothing sizes, and 1/2 shoe size, from a 7 to a 6.5.  The shoe thing is disappointing, it is the one thing I thought was supposed to fit at any size ... and now I can't wear some of my favorites!!  I did try some of those gel insoles to take up room in some of my shoes and they made some of them wearable again, but it didn't work w every pair/style.

I thought I was going crazy when my shoes went from a 7 to a 5.5! At least I'm not the only one with magical shrinking feet, lol!