Buy smaller clothes for motivation?
clafairy1984
Posts: 253 Member
Does buying clothes in a smaller size aid motivation for slimming it just make you feel bad?
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Replies
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It doesn't make me feel bad, per se, but I buy the slimmer clothes as a reward rather than a motivation. Feels good to celebrate a goal that way than the old way, i.e. nachos, enchiladas, and bottomless margaritas at our favorite Mexican joint.13
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It's motivating if I can fit into them when I buy them (reward).
Or do you mean buying smaller clothes in hopes of fitting into them later on, after losing weight? I have plenty of smaller clothes still in my wardrobe waiting for me to lose weight so I can fit into them again! Buying them specifically seems a bit strange. Even if it's a size you will be able to fit into later on, no guarantees that they will flatter/suit you. Being able to fit into older clothes after losing weight feels great though!12 -
If I already have then and fit into them at one point, sure. But you never know your body shape or how it will come off when you lose or if the style will suit you, so I would wait.14
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I've done it but never got into them so donated to Goodwill,I think I was shooting for a tiny size that I'll never be able to get to it maintain without it being very difficult! Lose some weight and treat yourself to a few things then and as you continue to get to your goal😁2
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I already have clothes at home that I no longer fit into so no need to buy anymore too small clothes LOL.
Sure I'd love to wear those clothes again, (especially a specific pair of shorts that I love) but it's not a huge motivator for me2 -
My sister does this all the time and she never gets into the size she buys. The clothes end up in her closet for months with the tags still on it. I tell her that is a waste of money but she says it is motivation for her. I haven't seen that motivation kick in yet at least not consistently.8
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I didn't buy any because I had boxes and boxes of several sizes of clothing.
But about every 10 pounds I would spend an hour trying on some of the old (some had new tags or were just worn once) clothes. I personally found it super motivational.9 -
I have a whole closet full of jeans that I've held onto for 20-25 years. I started last april at size 42 stretch waist and was busting out of them...now I am down to 35's ....it's great motivation for me.9
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I agree that better to wait to fit into clothes and buying as a reward, although as folks have mentioned, for me nothing is as fun as going shopping in my own closet and fitting back into all the smaller sizes I have.4
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Presumably you’re trying to lose weight for your health, for an appearance you prefer, or for some reason other than fitting into a specific size. If your goal is just a specific clothing size, I’d recommend reconsidering that. You don’t know what size or shape your body will be when you reach your goal weight. Even in maintenance, most bodies continue to change. Buying clothes you may never be able to wear is potentially a huge waste of money. Let something other than a clothing size be your goal.4
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I don't have to buy them, I was once a size 4-6 and still have a pair of jeans or two. They're motivation for me to fit into them again. Give it a try and give yourself time to get there, and it might work!5
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clafairy1984 wrote: »Does buying clothes in a smaller size aid motivation for slimming it just make you feel bad?
I’ve done that a couple times. Seen something I like a lot for dirt cheap, eventually I fit into them. It’s motivation for me.
I have a skort from Zara I found for $12 that’s tight on me, I have it sitting on my dresser for motivation and I use that to see where I am in my weight loss.5 -
I don't. I'm not losing weight so I can fit into a particular size, and I'm constantly adjusting and re-evaluating my goal as I go. It seems like a waste of money/closet space. I like buying myself new clothes as I go, though -- I deserve to feel fabulous NOW, not just 10 lbs from now.5
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I gave away all my smaller clothes a couple years ago, so I have no smaller clothes in my closet. I have lost 40 pounds, but have a long way to go. I have recently begun buying a few things on clearance, in one size smaller as motivation, but limit this to brands and styles that I already own in my current size so I know they will fit properly. I have a pair of denim leggings hanging on my closet door for motivation. However, I do not buy anything in my goal size as that is farther away and I am not sure how my body will look when I get there.2
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I did this a few times and it usually backfired, either the item didn't fit in the same way I expected (i.e., lost inches in one area but not another, for an awkward fit) or I bypassed the size. For example I had a goal dress in size 16 thinking that would be perfect and I actually skipped from a loose 18 down to a snug 14 and wound up at a size 10.
For some people it works well though! I think there are just a lot of variables for this. I'd prefer to wait and buy something that fits at that time.5 -
I don't but clothing items that are several sizes smaller than my current size but if I am in between sizes I opt for the size down that is snug and I know will fit me in a few lbs lost.8
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If it helps you, go for it but I have found that even if I hit the weight to fit into something I bought in a smaller size, it looks different on than I expected it to and that just frustrates me.6
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For me, yes. Shop assistant thought I was crazy when I bought size 44 jeans when the No. 52 didn't even close. To the left of our mirror are my old pants - size? Who knows. To the right are my new jeans - one day, one day sometimes around Easter next year I hope?5
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I don't need to buy smaller clothing - I only need to dig them out from the storage tote under my bed, or reach to the back of my closet.9
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I found a pretty curvy tight fitting dress at TJ Maxx for $14.99. I hung that thing sideways in my closet where it was the first thing you saw when you walked in and you had to reach around it to get to other clothes.
Every day I would look at that dress, talk to it, *kitten* at it, it was like my diet buddy. It didn’t have to back talk, it just had to hang there looking curvy.
Every once in a while I would try to get it on without splitting a seam. Astonishingly, about five months in, it fit. I have had pretty bad body dysmorphia and saw a fatty in the mirror. I simply couldn’t believe it. . I wore it to the quarterly fundraising cocktail party I volunteer with. That was also the night people really noticed my weight loss.
That was a red letter day
That “goal dress” was worth every nickel of $14.99. Don’t know if I’d gamble any more than that.27 -
I bought jeans and pants basically all the way down from my starting weight to a healthy BMI weight. That's seven jeans sizes LOL (waist 48 -> 36). In retrospect I wish I hadn't done that. The convenience factor of having clothes ready for me with each tranche of 18 lbs lost is outweighed by not getting the momentary thrill of actually ordering a new, smaller size when I'm ready for it.9
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I have been oddly reluctant to move to smaller sizes unless I was at risk of mooning the neighborhood (again). I have looked (according to my wife) at times ridiculous. In my defense the novelty of clothes being baggy on me is not something I have experienced in a long time. I was about to size up again when I started losing so I was in clothes that felt tight.
I think a good plan requires very little motivation but if it helps I would look at only getting the size you are about to be in. I do have some of those clothes because I am tired of rush ordering things I need to avoid that mooning thing I mentioned.2 -
I bought a pair of pants on clearance with a coupon! I could get into them, but they weren't decent. They are now in the box with my smaller size clothes waiting for a couple more pounds to come off. They are, however, a brand/style that always fits me.2
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I had lots of sizes in my closet, too. As I lost weight, it actually was motivating to try on those to remind myself that I was getting smaller.i wore some older favorite things, but mostly, I ended up needing smaller things. My husband teased me about shopping in my closet! ( I only bought new things I could wear, though!)1
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I have been oddly reluctant to move to smaller sizes unless I was at risk of mooning the neighborhood (again). I have looked (according to my wife) at times ridiculous. In my defense the novelty of clothes being baggy on me is not something I have experienced in a long time. I was about to size up again when I started losing so I was in clothes that felt tight.
I think a good plan requires very little motivation but if it helps I would look at only getting the size you are about to be in. I do have some of those clothes because I am tired of rush ordering things I need to avoid that mooning thing I mentioned.
I had to laugh at this, I kept yanking up my pants not wanting to buy new stuff and waste the old until I was smaller. By the time I went shopping I was down 2-3 sizes, no wonder my pants were so loose!
I personally am waiting to buy new clothes because there's no way to know if something will fit properly at the end goal. I just got to goal so it's time to start my wardrobe.3 -
Makes me feel awful and upset that I still look like jaba the hut . Lol I had to try on clothes with the kids today and thought I’d never survive those mean mirrors. 😑5
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I don't need to buy smaller clothing - I only need to dig them out from the storage tote under my bed, or reach to the back of my closet.
This!
But I've also made a discovery ... sometimes, when I lose weight, I'm a different shape.
I was slender for about 20 years between about 23 and 43. Since then I've gradually increased and decreased a few times. The most recent time I decreased, I was the same weight as I was the last time I wore the clothes I bought between 23 and 43 ............ but the clothes didn't fit well. My shape had changed.
So ... one of the difficulties with buying something in a smaller size is that you just don't know what your smaller shape is going to be.3 -
Ugh I’ve done this all the time! Luckily I’ve never gained that much weight so I know they will fit me. I recently bought a £10 skirt from H&M and it’s a UK size 8 so it’s tight. Right now I’m a size 10/12 so I know it will fit me. I definitely find it motivational. Recently I bought a dress on holiday that I didn’t fit into in August but I tried it on now and it fits! That’s how I know I’m losing serious body fat, even if the silly scale doesn’t move. Time to fit into that skirt now 😁😁1
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I bought a bikini about 1/3 of the way of reaching my goal.
It was pretty, in my favourite colours and on sale.
I hung it up in my closet where I saw it everyday. I would tell myself one day I will fit into that bikini and I visualized it.
6 months later not only did I comfortably fit into it, but it was a little too big. I still have that bikini and it's 3 sizes too big now.
Once in a while I slip into it to remind myself how far I've come. I've never been able to wear a bikini before.
I personally wouldn't buy more then that small item. Even after I reached my goal, a year or so later my body composition improved and I dropped another size smaller.
But that bikini was so worth the $25 I spent.11 -
My thinking is reverse. I just bought new trousers as a reward after seeing the very noticeable difference in the larger (now donated) ones in my closet.2
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