i read the reviews and ordered the bigger size... and yes, they were tight. so i tried to stretch out the elastic in the waist by placing in at my knees and stretching outwards.. it worked and they feel much better... i really like them, but the only pet peeve i have got is that the leg bottoms are very wide and are loose, so i have to pull them up higher so they don't look weird... so, if you are looking for tights that go all the way down to your ankles.. you better keep looking!