Weight Fluctuation and How to Dress for It

Getting dressed throughout a weight fluctuation can feel really hard. You don’t want to spend a lot of money on clothing you won’t wear for very long, but you still want to feel stylish throughout your transition.

Did you know that ten pounds of weight loss or gain is equivalent to one dress size? Too often women get focused on the pound numbers and forget about dress size. This results in wearing clothing that truly doesn’t fit—are you swimming in your clothes… or do they feel too snug? And it’s really hard to feel beautiful when you feel like your clothes were made for someone else.

So let’s avoid that impostor feeling altogether and dive into the tips that will help you have great style throughout any weight fluctuation.

First Things First

Please please please try on everything you own. You don’t have to get rid of any of it, but you do need to sort it. Keep only what fits right now in your closet. The rest of the pieces can be stored in a bin outside your closet marked with the approximate size they are so you can pull them out if you ever need them.

This is extremely important so you can see what you actually have to wear! If you keep everything you own in your closet you’re just tricking yourself into thinking you have more to wear than you actually do.

Buy Exactly What You Need

If you’re weight fluctuation is extreme at the moment, this is not the time to be flitting around in the clothing department. Decide exactly what it is you need to get by for now. Would two bottoms and five tops do the trick for a while?  This is a great time for keeping the most minimal of wardrobes. Solid neutrals will be your best friend—that way no one will know you’re wearing the same pieces over and over.

Accessorize

Spend the rest of your wardrobe budget on accessories—shoes, jewellery, eyewear, scarves, hosiery, bags. Accessories can totally change the look of an outfit even if you’re wearing the exact. same. thing. as your wore yesterday. They will fit no matter your size so you can continue to use them throughout your entire weight fluctuation and they will keep you from feeling bored with your daily attire.

Rethink Alteration Advice

Alterations can be expensive and continuous alterations make clothing lose their shape, so altering pieces while you’re weight is fluctuating might not make the most sense. Instead, pick and choose the pieces that make you feel happiest and alter them once weight has settled.

In the meantime, you might find it’s a better use of your dollars to buy a minimal amount of inexpensive clothing that fits and donate or store them when they no longer fit.

Lycra is Your Friend

Not just in fitness clothes… in all your clothes. If a garment is stretchy you’ll get more comfortable wear out of it for longer. For example, a pair of jeggings might look and feel good for fifteen to twenty pounds in either direction rather than a straight denim pair of jeans, which will be good for less then ten pounds.

Buy with Weight Fluctuation in Mind

If you know you’re going to be gaining or losing weight in the upcoming month, buy new clothes with this in mind. For example, if you’re working really hard to lose weight and you’re on that path right now, buy the clothing size that feels a little too tight right now. That way the money you do spend on clothes will go further for you.

Keep Putting Yourself First

This is so so important. If you’re on the path to reaching a goal, you don’t need to wait until you’ve hit that goal to feel good. Show off your current accomplishments by wearing clothing that actually fits. You will start to receive positive feedback from others immediately, which will only encourage you to keep going to reach that goal. You might find this to be the best kind of cheerleading there is.