Ladies who lift and work in an office environment!

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sammyliftsandeats
sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello,

I work in a business casual office environment and I like to wear button-up shirts to work with trousers. However, they do not like me very much as I find them restricting across the back.

I typically wear a size small, as it fits in the front (I have a small chest). But when it stretches across the back, that's when I feel it stretched and uncomfortable when I reach for items. My issue with going up to a larger size is then it becomes way too big up front and looks a bit frumpy.

My back isn't even BIG - it's just wider than the lower part of my torso.

Does anyone have any suggestions of where to find shirts perhaps made out of a softer/stretchier material?

Thanks!
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Replies

  • fbchick51
    fbchick51 Posts: 240 Member
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    Truth be told.. the only solution I ever found that really worked was to by the larger shirt and have it tailored to fit the front (wide shoulders, big biceps, small boobs). I also preferred blouses made from rayon as even the big size seems to hang well on my frame. Another option that worked well was to wear a nice cami under the smaller blouse and leave the buttons undone till under my chest.

    Thankfully, I now work from home so my wardrobe is mainly T-shirts and yoga pants.
  • happysherri
    happysherri Posts: 1,360 Member
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    I have problems with my shoulders with some tops - snug, since I've been lifting. I have to go up sizes in certain shirts. Good luck
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    shirts with no sleeves.
    I go up in sizes and have them tailored down if I have to- or deal with shirts that look big on the waist.

    I don't honestly care.

    And stretchy blouses. That's a win- Penny's usually has good ones for not to expensive.
  • need2belean
    need2belean Posts: 353 Member
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    Great post Sammy as I also have this issue.
  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
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    JoRocka wrote: »
    shirts with no sleeves.
    I go up in sizes and have them tailored down if I have to- or deal with shirts that look big on the waist.

    I don't honestly care.

    And stretchy blouses. That's a win- Penny's usually has good ones for not to expensive.

    Shirts with no sleeves may be a good idea...especially with the warmer weather coming up.

    I'm going to keep an eye out for stretchy blouses...I don't see many around but maybe I'm looking at the wrong stores.

    Thanks!
  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
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    fbchick51 wrote: »
    Truth be told.. the only solution I ever found that really worked was to by the larger shirt and have it tailored to fit the front (wide shoulders, big biceps, small boobs). I also preferred blouses made from rayon as even the big size seems to hang well on my frame. Another option that worked well was to wear a nice cami under the smaller blouse and leave the buttons undone till under my chest.

    Thankfully, I now work from home so my wardrobe is mainly T-shirts and yoga pants.
    alheise12 wrote: »
    I second the nice cami under the smaller blouse and buttons undone (tastefully!!!!)

    That is my current fix! I think maybe when the weather gets warmer, I may get into wearing dresses and other things so this won't be much of an issue anymore.
  • need2belean
    need2belean Posts: 353 Member
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    sammyliftsandeats wrote: »
    JoRocka wrote: »
    shirts with no sleeves.
    I go up in sizes and have them tailored down if I have to- or deal with shirts that look big on the waist.

    I don't honestly care.

    And stretchy blouses. That's a win- Penny's usually has good ones for not to expensive.

    Shirts with no sleeves may be a good idea...especially with the warmer weather coming up.

    I'm going to keep an eye out for stretchy blouses...I don't see many around but maybe I'm looking at the wrong stores.

    Thanks!

    Let me know if you find em. I only have 1 stretchy blouse and it is a lint/dog hair magnent. If I'm going to be in meetings that day, I can't wear it. It sucks. No amount of lint rollers will fix it.
  • ItsSlimpossible12
    ItsSlimpossible12 Posts: 127 Member
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    sammyliftsandeats wrote: »
    fbchick51 wrote: »
    Truth be told.. the only solution I ever found that really worked was to by the larger shirt and have it tailored to fit the front (wide shoulders, big biceps, small boobs). I also preferred blouses made from rayon as even the big size seems to hang well on my frame. Another option that worked well was to wear a nice cami under the smaller blouse and leave the buttons undone till under my chest.

    Thankfully, I now work from home so my wardrobe is mainly T-shirts and yoga pants.
    alheise12 wrote: »
    I second the nice cami under the smaller blouse and buttons undone (tastefully!!!!)

    That is my current fix! I think maybe when the weather gets warmer, I may get into wearing dresses and other things so this won't be much of an issue anymore.

    Once the warm weather rolls around I become a dress at the office wearer for sure. HIGHLY recommend dresses for comfort!!
  • kzooyogi
    kzooyogi Posts: 121 Member
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    I buy almost any cute t-shirt dress that I can. The Julia dress by Lularoe is a go-to (I'm wearing it right now) because it's cotton, stretchy, and can be dressed both up and down. As far as shirts in the winter - my coping strategy with the tightness in the back is just to coexist as best I can. I feel for you!
  • Kimo159
    Kimo159 Posts: 508 Member
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    I can't do button up shirts, at all. First it was because my boobs were too big, now they shrunk but my back is too wide. I wear flowy blouses and sweaters. In the summer I'll rock dresses or skirt and blouse pairings. I've had a lot of luck with banana republic for office clothes that look and fit well, they have some stretchier button up shirts as well so you might be lucky to find one there that works for you.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    sammyliftsandeats wrote: »
    JoRocka wrote: »
    shirts with no sleeves.
    I go up in sizes and have them tailored down if I have to- or deal with shirts that look big on the waist.

    I don't honestly care.

    And stretchy blouses. That's a win- Penny's usually has good ones for not to expensive.

    Shirts with no sleeves may be a good idea...especially with the warmer weather coming up.

    I'm going to keep an eye out for stretchy blouses...I don't see many around but maybe I'm looking at the wrong stores.

    Thanks!

    I have some jersey type blouses that look really nice- and I think they all came from Penny's- I don't know if I have any pictures of them- If I remember I'll see if I can take a picture tonight?

    Yeah stretch fabric is the fabric of my life- not cotton.
  • fitmom4lifemfp
    fitmom4lifemfp Posts: 1,575 Member
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    I just don't wear close-fitting tops anymore. I do my cardio on my lunch hour. Sometimes that is just a brisk walk, but sometimes it's 150 floors on the stepmill. Whether I take a shower or not, it's damn hard to cool back down before I get back to work. I wear skirts with loose sleeveless tops, or sleeveless dresses, once the weather turns warm (and it is here now).
  • tulips_and_tea
    tulips_and_tea Posts: 5,714 Member
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    I 2nd the JC Penny blouses / tops. Something like this is what I wear a lot. They go with skirts and pants.
    http://www.jcpenney.com/worthington-short-sleeve-scoop-neck-t-shirt-petites/prod.jump?ppId=pp5007810257&catId=SearchResults&searchTerm=worthingn&N=4294965755

    Hope I did the link correctly. If not, just go to their site and search "Worthington" tops.
  • BruinsGal_91
    BruinsGal_91 Posts: 1,400 Member
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    kzooyogi wrote: »
    I buy almost any cute t-shirt dress that I can. The Julia dress by Lularoe is a go-to (I'm wearing it right now) because it's cotton, stretchy, and can be dressed both up and down. As far as shirts in the winter - my coping strategy with the tightness in the back is just to coexist as best I can. I feel for you!

    I like that Julia dress! Uniqlo is my go-to for stretchy cotton dresses - they have sleeveless and t-shirt styles, and some of the have the built-in bras too.
  • Mouse_Potato
    Mouse_Potato Posts: 1,495 Member
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    Knits. Always. I live in a hot climate, so I wear short-sleeved stretchy tops pretty much year round. I can't really do button down blouses anymore because deltoids and lats. :disappointed:
  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
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    BZAH10 wrote: »
    I 2nd the JC Penny blouses / tops. Something like this is what I wear a lot. They go with skirts and pants.
    http://www.jcpenney.com/worthington-short-sleeve-scoop-neck-t-shirt-petites/prod.jump?ppId=pp5007810257&catId=SearchResults&searchTerm=worthingn&N=4294965755

    Hope I did the link correctly. If not, just go to their site and search "Worthington" tops.

    We don't have JC Penny in Canada BUT I am going across the border this weekend so I will have to take a look at the stores that we don't have.

    Thanks!
  • MJFSH
    MJFSH Posts: 7,252 Member
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    I don't wear shirts, usually sweater tops with skirts or dresses with or without sleeves
    Summer time is usually sleeveless dresses and tops with skirts
    Usually anything non stretchy is too tight on my arms.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    MJFSH wrote: »
    I don't wear shirts, usually sweater tops with skirts or dresses with or without sleeves
    Summer time is usually sleeveless dresses and tops with skirts
    Usually anything non stretchy is too tight on my arms.

    You could have just stopped there.
  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
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    Bespoke.

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