FASHIONISTAS ~ Using FASHION as motivation?
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seltzermint555 wrote: »I find that when I am in a slump (emotionally) and wear one of my best outfits and feel extra stylish, it lifts my mood and keeps me from comfort eating.
Even today at work, I am not dressed particularly stylish as it is casual Friday but I am wearing figure-hugging jeans and a cropped sweatshirt (as in, 0% belly showing but more body con than a big baggy sweatshirt) and I think that helped me to steer clear of the donuts a sales rep brought in.
Fashion has been a huge motivator for me in weight loss and sometimes I think I'm a little too fashion-obsessed for my age (41) but I believe I'm making up for the twenty years I lost wearing only plus size styles.
Growing up, I was never fashion conscious. Then I gained weight at the end of college and with nothing to choose from, I was... um... definitely NOT fashion conscious.
What resonates with me most in what you said @seltzermint555 is the making up for the years lost when I felt awkward af shopping with friends. I definitely feel that! I dress better now than I ever have in my entire life and I find it fun to see something and be reasonably sure it would fit / be flattering. (Well minus dresses, but dresses are the one thing I'm trying to battle into trying because I've been terrified of them for so long...).
So yeah... looking cute has become a HUGE motivator for me as well.4 -
Past time this thread was bumped! There are probably more of us "Fashion as motivation - if we were honest about admitting it!" out there who just don't know how to search for older conversations!
And it is SUMMER!!! Hot-weather clothes time!
I'll be honest, I LOVE that I can wear "fashionable" clothes now, such as a crop top and maxi skirt, or skinny jeans and a fitted top. And a bikini! Looking good in clothes was a major motivation for me! Tonight I'm putting on some short jean shorts, a cute leopard printed tank and enjoying happy hour on a patio, I wouldn't have worn that 33lb+ ago!7 -
rainbow198 wrote: »seltzermint555 wrote: »Fashion has been a huge motivator for me in weight loss and sometimes I think I'm a little too fashion-obsessed for my age (41) but I believe I'm making up for the twenty years I lost wearing only plus size styles.
Yes! I'm definitely making up for lost time. I often think about when I was younger shopping with my friends. I usually had to sit on the sidelines or shop alone in the plus-size section which had *way less* options as they do today.
Now it's my time to shine!
Aww! I posted this over a year and a half ago. Clothes is still a huge motivator for me. I love a pretty summer dress and nice heels. Bikini's, new colorful workout clothes, crop tops, skirts, figure hugging jeans...I love it all!
Feels really great and it definitely helps to keep me going in while maintaining my weight.10 -
I ACTUALLY bought summer dresses this year .... now that I am 3 months into maintenance. And am actively looking at sewing patterns, now that I have less fear of changing sizes and actually out-growing things between the time I cus them out and the time they are stitched up.
Altering clothes down can be tricky-to-impossible depending on your skill level (mine isn't super-high) and the seams in quesion. Enlarging is often right out of scope, even on simple thing.2 -
I'm not generally a fashionista, but sometimes I see people wearing cute workout clothes on the trail and feel like cute workout clothes would be a nice extra motivation to work out. But when I look in stores, either the workout clothes are super revealing (I don't want to have *more* places to forget to apply sunscreen), or they're just....blerch. What kind of athletic clothes do you fashionistas wear?0
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darklyndsea wrote: »I'm not generally a fashionista, but sometimes I see people wearing cute workout clothes on the trail and feel like cute workout clothes would be a nice extra motivation to work out. But when I look in stores, either the workout clothes are super revealing (I don't want to have *more* places to forget to apply sunscreen), or they're just....blerch. What kind of athletic clothes do you fashionistas wear?
I am NOT a fashionista, but I like the CALIA line by Carrie Underwood. I own one modest CALIA t-shirt that I picked up at a local sporting goods store (first time for that too). I would love to get some leggings, but I haven't crossed that bridge yet.
J.C. Penney used to have nice workout clothes, but the store near me closed.0 -
I have sooo many clothes in my closet that I would love to fit into again!! Can’t bare to throw them out. What a good motivator to go and visit them when that voice screaming “eat all the food” comes along!3
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I want clothes I LOVE not just sacks of fabric that can hold in and cover me. I have replaced all my clothes once already in this process with the cheapest stuff I could get, next round I will buy stuff I love. I figure if I adore my clothing I would mourn the loss if I gained weight so it will help keep me on track5
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Fashion a HUGE motivation factor for me. I've always loved clothes and always felt that I could never be trendy when I was overweight, and could never find anything that fit correctly. Now I have the opposite problem were 95% of what I try on fits great and I want to buy it all. LOL
At my highest weight, I was wearing XL shirts and L dresses to hide my stomach and hips, and I was barely fitting into size 16 jeans. Now my closet is full of XS dresses and shirts, and while I still struggle with jeans (thanks, Mom, for the booty!) I range from sizes 6-10 depending on the brand. It may sound superficial, but to me I feel special and just better knowing I'm wearing a smaller size. It really does help me make different choices.4 -
I held on to thousands of dollars worth of clothes from before I got fat. During my weight loss I would try on some of it periodically. Today it almost all fits and a lot of it is still in style. I am seriously set for pants, dresses and jackets for a long time. Shirts are a different story.
Fashion has been a giant motivator.6 -
The desire to look good in pretty clothes is essentially what drove all 17 stone of my weight loss. And what sends me to the gym.
I am so vain. I probably think this song is about me11 -
This is really more of a "NSV" type post but I thought about this thread last night when shopping. I ran into a department store with only about 20 minutes to shop, but I had a giftcard so I wanted to check out the clearance for any great finds. I picked up several tops and some jeans, then grabbed a pair of pj bottoms on my way out. Came home and tried them on in front of my husband while we chatted and loved every item. I couldn't help but think about 7-10+ years ago, how different shopping was for me. Only going to plus size stores, of course. But also, just being so unsure of how things would fit across my belly and hips. It's weird to eyeball M and L and know what works on me, to be sad that a cute top is only left in XS and XL...and have the lady at the checkout counter saying "those mauve jeans are adorable". I was shopping for baggy tops at Lane Bryant by the time I was 16, so I never thought I'd be in this position at 42, but I'm glad I am!6
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Even though I have a long way to go (100 lbs to lose), I work to be fashionable now so that I still feel good about myself at this size. Thank god for Eloquii and Universal Standard! Always gives me a little thrill when people (especially smaller size) ask me where I got a particular piece. I do have a Pinterest board that I keep for motivation, it certainly helps!7
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MidModJenn wrote: »Even though I have a long way to go (100 lbs to lose), I work to be fashionable now so that I still feel good about myself at this size. Thank god for Eloquii and Universal Standard! Always gives me a little thrill when people (especially smaller size) ask me where I got a particular piece. I do have a Pinterest board that I keep for motivation, it certainly helps!
I also love Pinterest for style/fashion ideas and inspiration!0 -
I’m not a fashionista, but I did buy a dress specifically for scaleless victories!4
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I've never really been a follower of fashion, even when I was young and slim, but now in my fifties I'm finding that I take much more of an interest in clothing and style than I ever did when I was bigger! I'm not too worried about whatever the latest trends are, but I like being able to choose clothes that actually fit well and look nice rather than, as someone else said, "sacks of fabric" just to cover everything up.
For someone who, for the past twenty years or more, has never been much interested beyond "do I like the colour?" and "does it cover my belly/butt?", I have an astonishing array of "age 40+" style blogs bookmarked...! Money is tight but I've found some nice stuff at the thrift store while losing weight, and I love going in and trying on styles and items that I would never have looked twice at when I was fat. It's fun to experiment and see what suits me now!
Plus I can wear higher heels again! I couldn't balance in them when I was obese, and now I can. Most of my "smart" shoes/sandals are now at least 3" heels...4 -
Fitting into clothes is a big motivation for me to stay on track. When I find myself getting lazy, I try on swim suits and book a trip somewhere where I have to wear one.1
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I like going back through stuff, I have a big pile of beautiful things that have been stashed away for about 15 years.
Never wanted to spend any actual money when I was at my heaviest, I didn't feel like it was worth it. It all looked awful anyway.
I do find though that there are some things I have kept because I loved them, and although I can get back into them they don't look the same. I need to get my head around that I am not the same shape, and not 23 any more!
And of course that clears space for beautiful clothes that suit my life now.2 -
littlegreenparrot1 wrote: »I like going back through stuff, I have a big pile of beautiful things that have been stashed away for about 15 years.
Never wanted to spend any actual money when I was at my heaviest, I didn't feel like it was worth it. It all looked awful anyway.
I do find though that there are some things I have kept because I loved them, and although I can get back into them they don't look the same. I need to get my head around that I am not the same shape, and not 23 any more!
And of course that clears space for beautiful clothes that suit my life now.
I had this issue too - things I loved or that I'd kept for sentimental reasons as much as anything else, and now they're just not flattering at all! I'll still keep the dress I wore on the first blind date with my husband of 30 years, but I'll never wear it again.2 -
I find looking at Pinterest motivating, too. I've settled on aiming to have a 'style' once I'm down to my goal weight- I'm going for Paris inspired- breton tops, blacks, navies, whites, all classic cuts- as a capsule wardrobe. I'm sick of looking like I've been dragged through a hedge backwards. I've already bought a few nearly new pieces off ebay and there's one dress in particular I can't wait to get into.3
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