Feel Better About Getting Dressed Every Day
stop the “nothing fits” madness!
Today, I want to encourage you and give you an easy win in the self-image department. I know all too well that after having kids, our bodies shift and change, and we can be very hard on ourselves about it. If clothing is feeling like your enemy these days, try and be gentle with yourself, because we all have a lot going on! And then read on for a simple solution to the morning “nothing fits” madness.
Why We Keep Clothes That Don’t Fit
Why are we punishing ourselves by keeping clothes around that don’t fit? The simple answer of course is that we want them to fit. Perhaps we have good memories tied to certain clothes, or we really loved a certain outfit. But the deep-down reason we are keeping those clothes is because we think that it will motivate us to once again fit them.
Rather, it makes us feel like crap every single day when we open the closet. And I don’t know about you, but feeling bad about myself has never been a huge motivator to do anything.
Another reason that we keep our closet filled with things that don’t fit, is because we spent money on them. It’s like each item represents a dollar value, and who wants to throw away money? But in reality, you aren’t saving money or even putting it back in your pocket by keeping too-small clothes around.
Instead, you see the clothes every freaking morning, and it keeps you in this weird “nothing fits” prison. You can’t dress the way you want to and show up looking fresh for your day, because your closet is being a jerk. There the clothes sit, making you feel horrible and collecting dust. And really, if you end up fitting those clothes again (not like you have to), are they even going to be your style anymore?
How to Make Friends With Your Closet Again
If you are ready to feel good when you get dressed again, you only need to do two things: ditch the mean clothes, and add a few new pieces. Yes, I am going to ask you to do some (gentle) purging, and no, it’s not going to cost a fortune. Let’s walk through this together.
To make this less overwhelming, work in “categories”. Do one category at a time (even over several days) until you are done! I divided mine into every-day clothes, loungewear/ athletic wear (which, let’s be serious, is also my every-day wear sometimes!), and undergarments (socks, undies, bras, etc.).
Go through each item, trying it on if necessary. Does it fit? Make you feel good? Is it worn out, stained, lost its shape?
If it fits, makes you feel good, and is in good shape, put it back in the closet!
If it fits poorly, makes you feel like crap, or is worn out, put it aside.
If getting rid of a big pile of clothes freaks you out too much, or if you are on a fitness journey and are almost there, by all means keep the clothes! But I want you to put them in a bin, and put them out of sight. Bonus points for setting a reminder to go back through it in two months. If you still don’t fit them and haven’t missed them at all, it may be easier to part with them then.
What To Do With The Empty Closet
After purging, I bet your closet has a ton of space in it! Before you get all weepy about (still) having nothing to wear, just think… All of that space was being taken up by things that you weren’t wearing anyway.
And now is your chance to buy a few new things that fit. By buying something a size bigger than you’d like, you aren’t committing to be that size forever! Rather, you are committing to being kind to yourself right now, and allowing clothes to make you feel good when you put them on.
There is no need to replace everything you just tossed. After all, there are only seven days in a week. How many tees do you really need? But “splurging” on one pair of jeans and two or three tops can make a huge difference in how you feel. When you look good in something fresh that fits, your confidence will rocket! Compare that feeling with the one you get when you are confronted with a closet bulging with nothing that fits… I know which one I’d choose!
The benefits of a good closet purge are that you can find exactly what you need, everything fits, and with those “mean old clothes” out of sight, that bad feeling that would overcome you when you’d get dressed will be gone, too.