How Trump’s Hack to ‘Conceal his Weight’ in Suits Actually Backfires, According to Expert

A menswear expert recently commented on the excessively padded Donald Trump’s attires. Furthermore, the expert revealed the reason behind Trump’s overly cushioned shoulders . On August 13, Derek Guy—a Menswear writer and editor at Put This On—shared his thoughts on the ‘rectangular physique’ of the former president.

At first, Guy shared on his X account, “Lots of people asking me to comment on this photo, so I will explain why Trump wears these shoulder pads.” He followed it up with another post, “I was surprised because Trump’s tailoring is done in a way to conceal his weight . His shoulders are relatively narrow compared to his waist, which gives his body a somewhat rectangular shape.”

In addition, he elaborated , “As I’ve mentioned many times, the platonic male silhouette in classic Western aesthetic is a shoulder line that’s broader than the waist, which creates a V-shaped figure. Since Trump doesn’t naturally have this silhouette, his suits have an extended shoulder.” But there is a limit to how far the shoulder can be extended before it begins to collapse. As such, the menswear expert added in another post , “Think of what would happen if you extended the shoulder line on a t-shirt or dress shirt—it would just flop on you. This is why an extended shoulder needs a bit of structure, as you see here.”

Additionally, the expert said that a substantially padded shoulder might provide the illusion of a stronger, more commanding, and more formal silhouette. Next, he shifted his attention to the negative aspects of Trump’s outfits and added , “The downside of a heavily padded, extended shoulder is that artifice is revealed when you sit like this. Not much you can do about this. Padded coats look great when you’re standing still, but they can look artificial when you move or sit when your shoulders pitched forward.” He paired this post with a photo showing the former president with rather artificial-looking shoulders and obvious padding.

Another point the expert made was about how Trump might do better with a ‘softer shoulder.’ The expert claimed , “To me, Trump would benefit from a softer shoulder, partly because his natural shoulders are narrow but square. The more padding you add to this, the squarer the shoulder line. IMO, heavy padding is best for people with very sloped shoulders, not square ones.”

Nevertheless, the social media naysayers had some amusing things to say in response to the post. One user joked , “Trump has always had pear-shaped body. Very soft to pudgy build. His build reminds of all my great aunts.” Another amusing remark read , “I refuse to believe that Trump’s suits are tailored. His shit always looks off the rack.” One more snarky comment from a critic stated , “Ah so that explains it maybe the tailoring is on purpose. I was just saying why his hands seemed so tiny in a gif a friend sent. I’m like I know he can afford a tailor.”