If you’re still having trouble finding your waist, slightly bend your body to one side. The crease that forms where you bend is your natural waistline.
You can also use dental floss or yarn if you don’t have any string. Don’t suck in your stomach, since that won’t be your true waist measurement.
If you don’t have a pair of scissors, you can use a dark permanent to mark the spot where the two ends of the string touch.
Make sure the string is completely straight when you line it up next to the ruler. If it’s not, your measurement will be slightly smaller than your waist really is.
For example, if you used 4 dollar bills around your waist, multiply that by 6. 14. You’ll get 24. 36 inches (61. 9 cm) for your waist circumference. If you’re taping the dollar bills around your waist and the last one is overlapping the first dollar, you may need to fold it in half or in thirds. As a reference, a dollar bill is 3. 125 inches (7. 94 cm) folded in half, and 1. 25 inches (3. 2 cm) folded in thirds. [7] X Research source
Make sure you’re using standard printer paper. If you’re using the above measurements and the paper is too long or thin, your waist measurement will come out inaccurate. If you get around your waist and the last piece of paper is too long, fold it in half or in thirds lengthwise to finish the measurement. Printer paper divided in half is 4. 25 inches (10. 8 cm) and 2. 83 inches (7. 2 cm) divided into thirds. Add this number to your final calculation to get your waist measurement.
If you used a piece of string to measure your waist and don’t have a ruler, you can use your hand measurements to measure the string. All you’ll need to do is mark increments on it while you move your hand down the length of the string. Keep in mind that these measurements are not exact, and can vary if you are particularly tall or short. You may need to check the measurements on your hands first before finding your waist circumference.
