Should I buy new clothes while I'm still dropping weight? How would this potential new body look in my old clothes? Like many of you, I spent the first half of 2020 eating everything in site to cope with the pandemic and this new "I Am Legend" type of world were living in. By midyear I didn't like what I saw in the mirror, so I worked hard to drop nearly 20 pounds of fat and gain back my muscular frame from yesteryear. Though I was happy with my progress I was faced with a good problem throughout the process; should I shop for my current body, or the body that I would eventually have a few months down the line? As many of you have had your own weight loss triumphs you're faced with the same question. But before we dig in, congratulations! Whether you’re just starting, or you’re close to your weight loss goal, you deserve the accolades! Secondly, I'm here to help you through those answers. So let's get into it.
Focus On the Journey At Hand
The most important part about weight loss, muscle gaining, or toning up, is the journey. Constantly thinking about the end game can be motivating or exhausting. Instead looking at it as one huge goal, set milestones for yourself. By doing so, it helps you to keep going even when you feel like quitting. Setting milestones is like going on a road trip from NY to LA, but you plan on stopping in different cities along the way. Suddenly, it doesn’t seem like a long boring trip anymore, but an adventure with little rewards along the way. The same applies to your weight loss road trip/journey. If your overall timeframe is 6 months, set a milestone of what you’d like to accomplish monthly. This also ensures that you stay on track to hit your goal. And sure, the journey may seem like all business, but it’s not. Make it enjoyable, take snapshots along the way. Team up with your significant other or a friend and incorporate a cheat meal day, so you can have some reprieve from the rigors of training.
Purge Your Closet
Before you think about how to shop, you’ll need to take an inventory of your current wardrobe, so you have a strong foundation. As you go through your clothes, ask yourself some questions:
When was the last time I wore this and why?
Will I ever want to wear this again?
Is this good quality?
If you haven’t worn something in 12 months for no good reason, toss it. Within 12 months, you wouldv’e crossed all 4 seasons, which would eliminate weather as a reason for not wearing items in your wardrobe. Any poor quality clothing should also be tossed, including those containing fuzzballs beyond repair and any large holes or tears. And if you do have holes in your clothes, you may want to hit up Walmart and grab yourself a box of moth balls for the little critters, turning your gear in to a midnight snack.
Shop For Your Current Weight
Some may consider it a waist to purchase clothing now, if you plan on being a different size a few months down the line. Don’t look at it as foolish or even complacency with your current state. Look at it as motivation. If you’re bursting out of your current clothes now, then you probably don’t have the most positive perception of yourself. From late 2018 until March 2020, I had been carrying a resting weight of 205 pounds! Prior to then, I was at about 195. However, no one could tell because because I bought clothes for my new size. As much as I hated the way my clothes had fit at my higher weight, I still didn’t have the proper motivation to lose the weight yet. In the interim, I bought clothes and tailored them to fit my new undesired shape. Thankfully I had only gone up one suit size so whenever I would decide to lose weight, it wouldn’t be too much to alter my new threads in the future. Shopping for my current weight allowed me to still feel good about myself, until I could be motivated enough to drop the weight. You could do the same. Don’t be ashamed to get a few dope pieces at your current weight, if that means improving your mental and emotional well-being. It could be the difference between being stagnant and jumpstarting the best journey of your life!
Shop Light For Your New Size
While some may be motivated by purchasing clothes for their current size, others find it helpful to purchase clothes in their target size and look at it as a reminder of where they’d like to be. My reason for purchasing for my target size is slightly different. SALES! If you stumble on a great sale clears throat* like Century 21 Stores closing, and they only have something in my target size, I’ll get it. After all, I know that I’m not just losing weight, but I’m creating a lifestyle change for myself, which I pray would last throughout the years and only improve with time!
What Do I Do With My Old Clothes?
“So if I’m out here buying clothes so I can feel good in my current body, and buying clothes for my new body as motivation, what do I do with the clothes in my closet now?” I’m glad you asked! Assuming that you’ve purged the items that you haven’t worn in a year and will never wear again, you’re now left with you’re “A squad” of clothing in your closet. So keep them. They’ll come in handy. Once you start slimming down, you can have them altered to fit your new evolving shape. Take it to your tailor and get them tailored to your body. You might even be able to make that a milestone! As a fun mini motivator, take a picture of yourself at your starting weight wearing one of your current outfits, then take another picture of yourself wearing the same outfit, once you’ve lost some pounds and have had it altered. You’ll be amazed at the change. Another benefit of keeping your old clothes is that you may fluctuate in your weight at some point, and if/when you do, you don’t want to be left with tons of clothes in your new size, and none that fit the way that you want.
Treat Yourself
Have you had your eyes on a designer shirt or jeans? Get it! Once you hit your milestone that is. It’s great to have incentives and rewards for your hard work. Those Zara jeans that you’ve wanted but couldn’t fit because of their European sizes can now be a reward for hitting one of your targets. You’ve earned it, so enjoy it and wear it proudly. Treats can also be in the form of a special meal. If you’ve been drinking all of your meals through a straw, for the past month, perhaps you can spring for something that doesn’t taste like cardboard. After all, it takes great discipline to change eating habits. Or maybe you’ve always wanted to go bike riding, but thought you were too big, or just felt overly self-conscious. The perfect gift to yourself would be a nice bicycle to hit the streets with.
Enjoy and Maintain
As you approach your goal, enjoy your new found success and internalize all of the mental and physical training that you’ve endured!
As I’ve mentioned throughout my posts and blogs, being SUITABULL isn’t just about clothes, it’s about how you feel about yourself. So whether you’ve just started or you’re near your target like I am, I salute you. I’m proud to say that I’ve gone from 205 pounds to 187, which is 2 pounds away from my 185 pounds target weight. I’m proud for what I’ve accomplished so far and I’m proud of you too. Keep pushing and I’ll see you on the other side of your fitness journey. Stay Suitabull guys.
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