Big Clothes - Must turn the corner now!

[fly-high 84]

I am 4 months post op and down 40 plus pounds, 270 to 225 or so. Work out and run/walk hard twice a week since week 3.

Looking great as people tell me...

All my Clothes are 3x to 4x. Last week l went to store bought a few shirts with wife and my size is now 1xl. Wife says l should be in this size and that my whole wardrobe is waayyyyy to be and I kind of look bad because I am no longer that size.

I am so use to big clothes because I could hide my stomach, been doing it for 25 years, I am now 50.

I got expensive shirts that I have owned put one on last night wore it to event. Went into bathroom looked in mirror and realized pocket on shirt was down on my lower part of stomach. I said okay, enough is enough.

I stayed home from church this morning and looked in mirror and said, "Its time to turn the corner."

I emptied out all closets and put all clothes in pile on the floor. Tried them all on first and they are all too big.

I am contemplating putting them all in car and taking them all to the salvation army up the street. I have got to get rig of them or I will not turn the corner. I keep thinking this is like my yoyo diet and i will be back in them by June.

It will take some time to get a wardrobe again and contemplating that after taking 20 years to build this one is daunting and quite frankly frightening...

The surgery, my weight loss and the possibility of loosing 40 more pounds is a dream come true, a once in a lifetime dream come true...

I think I know what I got to do but I was just looking for some confirmation of sorts...

[FrankyG 1,450]

Save a few things... but just so you can look at them later and see just how much you've lost.

Congrats on such a great NSV!!

[jjmama 184]

Definitely get rid of them! And get rid of the mentality that you will just gain it back! I kept 1 pair of pants and 1 shirt so that I'd have a reminder of where I was and where I never want to be again! I am just buying a few things at thrift stores as I lose the weight and then once I'm at goal weight I will start to build my wardrobe. This is a life change! No going back!

[WLSResources/ClothingExch 3,444]

@@fly-high, ditch the old clothes and you'll fly higher. I don't think people keep the old, enormous things thinking they'll regain the weight, but because of an unspoken, half-conscious decision to regain. Lots of people also keep one or two items so that, down the line, they can hold them up and marvel or put them on and see them wrap around three times. If you think you'll take some satisfaction in that, go right ahead. My own thought is to get rid of everything because I'll never forget where I started anyway.

Rather than taking everything to Salvation Army, you might do a little research for a local organization that provides interview- and work-appropriate clothing at no charge to underprivileged men entering or re-entering the workforce. These would be men who are completing job-training programs of various sorts. If their training programs don't have a clothing component, they are referred to such a non-profit.

Congratulations on your success.

Edited December 26, 2015 by WLSResources/ClothingExch

[fly-high 84]

Thanks for all of the great advise...

I will keep one thing that will really remind me how much I lost and make me understand that i never want to go back.

Great ideal to also seek out other organizations that put people back in the workforce. I really have some good outfits that are like new that they would love..

I am starting to see this is all mental.... I will be taking a big step in getting past it by taking out this roadblock (the clothes)...

[shriner37 249]

@@fly-high Congratulations on your success! I've used the clothing size changes to Celebrate my victories. Started at a size 19 shirt, 46 slacks and 4x tees and have now progressed downward to a 17 1/2 shirt, 40 slacks and 2x tees. From my past yo-yo weight loss I had enough clothes in each size that I didn't need to buy a bunch of new items. It was a great victory celebration to fold and box up all of the big clothes in anticipation of donating them.

I'm about to run out of old clothes to wear though, as anything smaller than my current size is way old and out of style, so today it was a celebration to order size 17 shirts on sale. At my rate of loss I'll be ready for them right after the holidays.

[fly-high 84]

Congrats and we are twins! We are the same size. I am down to the size 17-17 1/2 shirt from 19 and my paints were 44-46 now I am 38 and about to go out and buy 36 by end of year...

Exciting yet hard to believe! As i said before the mental aspect is daunting, takes some time to comprehend it is happening and staying off for the FINAL time...

[VMS1990 30]

Congratulations! I think it is the best feeling. Out the old in with new. So many places you can take your old clothes too. I have found buy new clothes as I loose the weight is going to be costly. I'm shopping at Second hand stores. Friends clothes who don't want there clothes. Also I have a friend who had her surgery 3weeks after mine. The clothes that are too big for me saving them for her.

[fly-high 84]

Congratulations! I think it is the best feeling. Out the old in with new. So many places you can take your old clothes too. I have found buy new clothes as I loose the weight is going to be costly. I'm shopping at Second hand stores. Friends clothes who don't want there clothes. Also I have a friend who had her surgery 3weeks after mine. The clothes that are too big for me saving them for her.

It is a good feeling!

[JupiterinVirgo 846]

As I lose weight and my old clothes begin to look sloppy, I buy a few new outfits, to reward myself and confirm the realness of my changing body. I know I won't be wearing them long, but it's worth it to me to let myself feel good about how I look. And there's no shortage of overweight women looking for fabulous plus size clothing on eBay and etsy, so I can always recoup some of my cash, but allowing myself the pleasure of buying smaller clothes that fit is one of many ways to add beauty to my weight loss journey. I'm worth it, and so are you.

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

I got all my clothes together and took them to goodwill, all of them, in the matter of a day or 2. It hurt because I had a lot of nice pieces but it felt great.

I didn't keep one damn thing and I don't intend to keep anything. When I drop a size, I chuck all the stuff from the previous size. There is no going back and I want myself to mentally know that.

I have enough before pictures of myself, and enough memories that I don't need to keep material things around as a reminder.

I think it is an important mental and spiritual milestone to get rid of the old clothes all the told clothes. The friend that taught me this trick lost 200lbs without surgery and kept it off for years. I value their advice.

Leave yourself no options to relapse and keep looking towards the future.

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

@@fly-high, ditch the old clothes and you'll fly higher. I don't think people keep the old, enormous things thinking they'll regain the weight, but because of an unspoken, half-conscious decision to regain. Lots of people also keep one or two items so that, down the line, they can hold them up and marvel or put them on and see them wrap around three times. If you think you'll take some satisfaction in that, go right ahead. My own thought is to get rid of everything because I'll never forget where I started anyway.

Rather than taking everything to Salvation Army, you might do a little research for a local organization that provides interview- and work-appropriate clothing at no charge to underprivileged men entering or re-entering the workforce. These would be men who are completing job-training programs of various sorts. If their training programs don't have a clothing component, they are referred to such a non-profit.

Congratulations on your success.

This is a great idea. Just an FYI from my experience volunteering at a thrift store, many of these type of organizations may help their clients obtain clothes from thrift stores. They may give them vouchers or acquire clothes from thrift stores.

I think you can feel confident that wherever you donate the clothes, they will help someone either directly or indirectly.

[WLSResources/ClothingExch 3,444]

@@Inner Surfer Girl's excellent suggestion prompts me to be specific and jarred my memory for another possibility.

In NYC, Bottomless Closet outfits women who are joining the workforce, having completed job-training programs. It also offers workshops on interviewing skills, resume-writing, personal money management/budgeting, etc. One of their programs is unique: A book group, which is an opportunity for the clients to learn about networking and encourages those who haven't been readers to broaden their horizons. The staff and volunteers are wonderful people. This is the group I partnered with 5 1/2 years ago; it's on their premises that I do the WLS clothing exchange during their off hours. What the WLS participants don't take is donated to BC for its clients.

I don't know if each location around the country is related to the others, but Dress for Success also provides interview-appropriate clothing to women. There may be one in the area of anyone who's reading this.

Similar organizations for men are quite scarce as far as I know. In NYC there is Career Gear. Inner Surfer Girl's recommendation/information is most likely the way to go in other places.

Edited January 25, 2016 by WLSResources/ClothingExch