Petite body type, shape, or petite size is a common word used mainly in the clothing and fashion industry to define body sizes smaller than 5ft 4inch (163 cm). Petite body frames have different shapes and sizes same as other normal body types.

The only major difference between normal body types and petite body is size. Sometimes you may see a petite top and normal bottom or vice versa in a body structure. In such cases, you can mix normal size items of clothing in your wardrobe.

According to a report published by the Center for Disease Control and prevention in 2018, the average height of American women from age 20 and above is 5ft 4” tall. Also it’s not only the height that puts your body in a petite size. If you are below the 5’ 4” mark and have regular fitting issues with your sleeves, hems, and tops, there are high chances of you having a petite body.

How Many Types Of Petite Body Shapes Are There?

When you hear petite body types the first question which comes to your mind is why you need to categorize body shapes at all? Well, every petite women’s body shape is unique and beautiful. But it’s not possible to create a fitting dress for every unique body. Thus in the fashion industry people came up with the idea of finding common features and body frames.

There are multiple theories and methods to represent petite body types. Some use letters like type A, type H, type V, and type X, while others use shapes and fruit analogy like rectangle, Inverted triangle, spoon, hourglass, apple, pear, strawberry, etc. The base idea is the same for every method. Measurement of bust, waist, and hips is used to identify different body shapes.

The bust, waist, and hip (BWH) ratio works differently for Petites. A 5ft 2inch woman having a 36-24-36 BWH ratio will be different in appearance than a 5ft 8inch tall woman with the same ratio. The petite woman will look curvier than the 5ft 8inch woman. And the taller woman will look thinner than her shorter counterparts.

The moral of the story is the general idea of fashion styling doesn’t always work that well for a petite body.

There are five most common body types. Sometimes same body type is referred to as multiple names due to different analogies.

Rectangle

It is also called straight or banana body shape.

Triangle

It has a similar type named inverted triangle.

Round

This body type is also referred to as oval shape.

Diamond

Undefined waistline, narrow shoulders, and small busts are some of the characteristics of a diamond body type.

Hourglass

It has two types, top hourglass, and bottom hourglass. The bottom hourglass sometimes is also referred to as pear body type.

There are at least 9 body types based on shape analogy which we will list out more in the future.

Petite Body Type Calculator

On a basic level, the shape of your body depends on three things, your bust, waist, and hips.

Petite Body type based on metabolism

Classification of the petite body is done based on multiple parameters. Based on metabolism there are three body type

• Ectomorph
• Mesomorph
• Endomorph

Not everyone should be interested in these things, but if fitness interests you and you plan to change your body type and shape it’s vital information.

I was shocked and happy at the same time when I found out that I can change my body shape with a proper diet and exercise. According to Penn Medicine genetics, lifestyle, gender, and age hold the key to your body shape.

You can’t change genetics, gender, and age but you certainly can control your lifestyle and diet. In even simpler words you can’t change your bone structure but you can control the fat around different parts of the body ultimately changing your body shape.

Ectomorphic Body

An ectomorphic body is typically skinny. Ectomorphs have a lean build, small muscle belly, and long limbs. They have narrow shoulders and hips in comparison to their height. They also have smaller muscles in comparison to bone length.

The natural fast metabolism makes it hard to gain weight. Ectomorphs burn calories faster than other body types. No matter what they eat it affects their body shapeless. It is the most desired body type by models and athletes.

Mesomorphic Body

A mesomorphic body is an athlete’s body. It’s considered the most ideal body or somatotype. Mesomorphs have a medium bone structure where their shoulders are wider than their hips. They have efficient metabolism which makes both gaining and losing mass easy.

Along with wider shoulders, they also have longer limbs and a flat ribcage. They have a muscular body and a modest amount of body fat. They don’t have to control their eating habits much as well. Changing body shapes is easiest for them.

Endomorphic Body

An endomorphic body is usually a curvy body. Endomorphs have broad shoulders, short limbs, and narrow hips. They have medium to large bone structures with a larger midsection. The naturally slow metabolism makes it easy for them to gain mass and hard to lose it.

They have a higher fat percentage in their body because instead of building muscles this somatotype stores the fat. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have strong muscles. Actually, they have strong muscles in their arms and legs.