The waistband of high-rise trousers typically sits on your natural waist.  Meanwhile, the area of your body that lies between the top of your hip bones and the bottom of your ribs is your “natural” waist (as opposed to an adjustable waistline).  

You can feel the difference in size between your hip bones and your ribs as well as the inch or two of soft tissue that lies between, if you place your hands on your own body right now.

Everything Old is New Again

The high-rise trousers trend was a thing as recently as 2015 or just a year prior to the historical 2016 Presidential Election. Senior citizens favor high-waited fashion by default as well. So why is it a trend in 2024?

• A Fitting Summer 2024 Trend: Occasionally, people discuss how high rise relates to the navel, but this isn’t always useful because everyone’s waist and navel have a different relationship. Regardless, people young and old love well-designed trousers that fit well on a high waistline.

• Perfect for Most Formalwear: The purpose of clothing is to accentuate your best features. You don’t have to be the fittest guy to look amazing in a well-tailored outfit! One such item is a pair of high-waist pants.

• The Classic Accent is a Universal Fit: The classic high-rise accent helps you stand out from the other guys wearing menswear in the formalwear arena. It’s a great fit and even seniors go for high-rise fashion because of how good anyone looks in a suit.

• The 2020s is the New Roaring Twenties: High-rise pants, also known as high-waisted trousers, were common from the 1920s to the 1950s. For the record, rise is defined as the distance from the top of the pant to the crotch seam.  Also, 2024 is open to an evergreen type of trend.

• The Effect and Appeal of High Rise: The widest part of your body and the precise location where your body appears to be halved—your belly button—is where these pants sit on your “natural” waist. They can even be made to be higher, though (with certain limits).

• Appear Taller and Get Longer Legs: Your legs will naturally appear longer because your “visual legs” begin higher up on your body with the high-rise. Also, these pants look great on people with shorter legs or who are shorter in stature.

Factors to Consider

Your natural waist is the slimmest part of the body for most people. It is the smallest your waist can get, which is one reason pants nicely fits at this height. There is some room for error—about one or two inches—in the natural waist.

However, because pants cannot be lower without passing over those hip bones or higher without touching the ribs, it is a more precise pants line than most other positions.