Question for those who yo-yoed before finding their current success

slbbw

My head is in the game. I am ready to make this go around my final one. I am terrified of getting rid of my larger clothes. They are all in boxes and not in the closet for the most part. But the idea of getting rid of them makes me nervous. This is not the first time I thought this was for good. I have a plan now and I am better prepared. So how long in maintenance were you when you final got rid of the old stuff. Or were you so committed you did it along the way?

JeromeBarry1

Even success is always a little bit of a yo-yo. Success is in keeping your head about it.

AustinRuadhain

I have ditched larger clothes a couple of times along the way. Now that I am at my goal weight, I am getting rid of too-large clothes again. I find it freeing!

movgrl1

I hold on to a couple of pieces to do comparison photos, but otherwise I donate along the way.

auburngirl06

I lost 50 pounds for the second time in 2011. I gave all my clothes away along the way that time. The first time I held onto them “just in case” and knowing they were there and available aided in letting one size get a little tight. I thought well this sucks but hey at least I do have some clothes in the closet. I had a baby and couple years after that big loss and kind of wished I had maybe one size up still available during post baby. But I will say it made me work hard to get back down and keep it off. This go round I wanted to finally lose the last 10-15 pounds and I’m basically there and just this weekend gave away all my size 8 shorts and pants. I think you have to make a plan on what you are going to do should your new skinny clothes start to get tight. I wrote myself a letter many years ago to read when I started to let myself slip back to old habits and found myself starting to gain some weight. It’s more than just the weight and the clothes. The way I feel now, strong, proud and capable of trying any new workout or staring a running goal- I want to remember. It’s kind of corny but it works for me. I can go back and read about how good I felt finishing that race or completing a new program and say to myself, get your head back in the game. You want this 😀

spiriteagle99

I still have some of them, after 5 or so years of maintenance. We've been getting some bags of old clothes together, and hopefully I'll do a good cleanout soon. I'm cheap so the idea of tossing perfectly good clothes is hard for me. I'll wear baggy clothes.

Years ago it was getting rid of my skinny clothes that motivated me to lose weight. I had tossed all the pants I thought I'd never wear again and was really depressed about having given up on ever being thin. Just to be contrary, that caused me to get serious for the first time in several years. I dropped 35 pounds. Over the next few years I gained most of that back, but I knew that I could lose weight if I really wanted to, so when I was ready, I did. I ended up losing 55 pounds.

lalalacroix

I've been giving my too big clothes to charity as I go. It gives me a sense of freedom every time I add another piece to the pile. The amount of clothes in my closet keeps shrinking as I keep shrinking.

I'm never, ever going back to my former size. I don't need that fat clothes anymore.

Sharon_C

I did it along the way because I was running out of room to store them!

MadisonMolly2017

auburngirl06 wrote: »

I lost 50 pounds for the second time in 2011. I gave all my clothes away along the way that time. The first time I held onto them “just in case” and knowing they were there and available aided in letting one size get a little tight. I thought well this sucks but hey at least I do have some clothes in the closet. I had a baby and couple years after that big loss and kind of wished I had maybe one size up still available during post baby. But I will say it made me work hard to get back down and keep it off. This go round I wanted to finally lose the last 10-15 pounds and I’m basically there and just this weekend gave away all my size 8 shorts and pants. I think you have to make a plan on what you are going to do should your new skinny clothes start to get tight. I wrote myself a letter many years ago to read when I started to let myself slip back to old habits and found myself starting to gain some weight. It’s more than just the weight and the clothes. The way I feel now, strong, proud and capable of trying any new workout or staring a running goal- I want to remember. It’s kind of corny but it works for me. I can go back and read about how good I felt finishing that race or completing a new program and say to myself, get your head back in the game. You want this 😀

@auburngirl06 Thank you for this idea! I’m going to write that letter tonight!

Best to you!
Maddie

elisa123gal

I've been maintaining for a year now. The work I do now is trying to keep my regains smaller.

A KEY thing I've done to not regain too much? .. I DONATED ALL MY BIGGER CLOTHES!!! When my clothes get tight.. I have no choice but to buckle down..and I will never buy bigger sizes again. This has worked great for me..
Your big clothes in those boxes if your "get out of jail free card". the old subconscious ...I can eat all I want again and I'll have something to wear when I get fat again..safety net.

If you are serous about not ever regaining again.. in the car.. go to Goodwill... it will feel weird.. and drop them off in the spirt they will help someone else who needs them.

Now you'll be forced to be current ..fashionable.. and thin.

BattyKnitter

I'm donating as I go, if I ever need bigger clothes again these will be too old/out of style or they are cheap to replace basics anyways so no point keeping anything. At my highest weight I bought really cheap/crappy clothes.

I am however keeping a few quality pieces that I am hoping I'll be able to have taken in. I am also keeping a nice outfit that is good for interviews should I ever gain weight again and need interview clothes. It has happened before, I was unemployed (big reason for the weight gain) and having no money to buy interview clothes sucked.

sgriska

I've culled along the way, and need to do another weeding through now that I'm at maintenance. I know this time it's for good, because the new normal of maintenance feels completely habitual for the first time ever and these new tools (MFP and Fitbit) are making a huge difference in actual lifestyle change rather than the old "I can't wait til I can go back to eating like a 'normal person'" delusion that riddled my previous attempts. My life, from here on out, IS a diet. The only difference between maintenance and losing is the numbers involved, and to keep the chronic living hell of morbid obesity at bay, this is what it is.

I think the mindset is the key. If you have that firmly changed, then it really doesn't matter when you get rid of your clothes, but sooner or later you'll want less crap you don't wear in your closet and you'll clear it out. At least, that's usually my motivation for doing so.

carolintally

Donate as you go. That way you can buy new clothes for your interim sizes, which is really motivating. I found nice clothes at my local Goodwill and consignment stores, plus the hunt for those "finds" was fun and also motivating. When the interim sizes got too big, they went back to Goodwill or were resold at the consignment shop. (My husband claimed I was "renting" clothes.) I liked the tangible sense of progression and even the sustainability aspect to this clothes churn. After six months on maintenance, I began to put on more than the flexible three pound margin. The idea of not fitting into my last round of new clothes and having no backup clothes has really been the push to get my head back in the game.

pontious11349

Marie Kondo the *kitten* out your wardrobe

endermako

I had so much to lose that when i got to 40lbs down I donated my clothes and bought new ones.

slbbw

Thanks everyone. Baby steps. I'm going to do another pass of both my closet and my bins and if there is anything I don't love its gone. Anything that too big and not timeless will go. Anything 2 sizes up or more will go. I will see where that gets me and work from there.

roachita

I'm 55 and have yo yo'd most of my adult life. Funny thing is that I never gain it back in the same place, so the clothes don't fit right anyway. lol. Dump them!

roachita

pontious11349 wrote: »

Marie Kondo the *kitten* out your wardrobe

HAHAHAHAHA RIGHT??? Apparently Marie Kondo has inspired so much purging that Goodwill is overloaded with stuff! lol

whmscll

I kept my “fat” hiking pants and I’m glad I did, because they are expensive and when I regained some weight I had something to wear during my favorite form of cardio exercise. I also kept a couple of pairs of jeans and I’m also glad, because gaining only 10 pounds meant none of my “regular” clothes fit and at least I had aomething to wear that didn’t make me feel crappy about myself all the time as I began losing the weight again.

kimothyschma

I kept them for 1 year of maintenance. I do still have one pair of jeans in 1 size larger for bloated days, though.

jrwms714

I have kept only 1 pair of pants. They are at the back of my closet and I used to bring them out to try them on. They are a size 16 and I am a size 6 for the last almost 5 years. I haven't tried them on in years, but I know they're there and I know what is possible. I donated my "fat clothes" to Goodwill after a year in maintenance and when I was sure my head was in the game. I have never regretted it.