If I see a clearance sale or something great at a thrift shop, I am likely to pick up something one size down. It has helped me to keep basics going as I drop sizes, but I do NOT go lower than one size. I am planning to stop at my next size 10 as I am uncertain I will be going any lower than a 10. ( I am a 12 now)
I get discouraged easily and if I buy something, work hard, then try it on and it doesn't fit, I would probably get upset with myself. I am so all or nothing sometimes, then if something I want to wear doesn't look good on, it is depressing.... Plus I am a cheapskate and don't like to spend money unless there is an immediate practical use for something lol.
I will buy one size down if im feeling my current size start to get to big. Say I have 14s now but they are definetly too big but im not sure if im a 12 yet, but I will buy 12s for when/if im able to get into them cause I know I will lose at least 10-15 more lbs and by then I will surely be able to wear them. I have a friend who buys clothes in what she thinks will be her goal weight size. she has tonnes and tonnes of it from her dieting attempts since she was like 15 (26 now) and to be honest, shes only gained weight since she started dieting. She has managed to lose a small amount, maybe one clothing size, but she isn't attempting to lose more. So now shes much bigger than any of her clothing and has very little to actually wear . Depressing really. So if you're motivated it can help but buying a wardrobe of size 6's when youre a size 16 and so-so dieting on and off? waste of thousands of dollars.
I used to do this... I have so many lovely "motivational" clothes from back in my dieting days. Recently though, I put them all in a box at the bottom of my wardrobe and started getting into instinctive eating. When they fit, they'll fit. I only ever used them to guilt myself into utter misery at hating how I look anyway. I remember watching a diet video my mum had when I was about 12, announcing to hang your skinny jeans on your wardrobe! I think it stems from that, lol :-)
For now I have to suffice with the 5% of my wardrobe that fits...
You know how some things just look better on the hanger than they do on you? The same thing could happen with your dream ball gown. By the time you get down to the weight you think you'd need to be to wear it, it might not even look good on you. There's no way to tell at this point.
As I've lost weight this time, I've purchased a lot of clothes at thrift and resale shops. Sometimes I'd buy something that was a little tight (one or two sizes) but I could always get it on and button it -- when thrift shopping, you won't always find the right item in the right size when you need it. And, sometimes, I've been disappointed to see that when it finally fits, I don't really like it anymore, or the fit is just a tad off.
If the ball gown is a bargain that you might not find again, go for it. If it's a major investment, I say wait. It will be fun to go shopping for that NYE special dress next year when you're at your goal!
i've unfortunately made the decision to get clothes that are not only one size smaller, but several sizes smaller for the past few years. i'm trying to use it for motivation, but it's a bit frustrating because, like other people said, the clothes might not look good on me when i get there. that, and i haven't really lost weight, so there's a whole big pile of clothes i can't get into, and a small pile of clothes that i can get into.
Well I bought a BUNCH of too small clothes and so glad I did because now I am wearing a lot of them and still have some nice stuff to work my way into!
I have a ton of clothes that stopped fitting when I gained weight. I love being able to fit into them again but I don't buy clothes that are too small. If I find myself in between sizes, I will buy the smaller size because I'm consistently losing weight and I only have a small window of time that my new clothes will fit.
I've bought smaller clothes on purpose several times, and I'd say that in general 1) it didn't actually work so well as motivation, lol, and 2) when I did finally fit into them (quiiiite a bit down the road) they generally didn't fit or look as good as I hoped anyway. xD
I will say that clothing fit is a good way to gauge progress though. Much better than scale weight. I'd recommend that over doing it for motivation or becuase you actually are hoping to wear the clothes later!
I've come to realize that there will always be stylish, well-fitting clothes offered in the future, often on clearance.
This is so true! I'm a shopaholic at the best of times and going down a size or two coupled with planning for the next size or two means I have an entire wardrobe for any given size, most still with the tags on
It can be a great motivator, I have one dress that I keep as my 'goal' dress and I look at it quite a lot to remind me why I'm doing this (like being healthy and happy isn't enough right?) so if that'd work for you OP, why not?
Don't do it with shoes though! My feet have gone down a whole size and I'm not even a quarter way to goal.
I have a dress, a skirt and shorts that fitted me when I was at my goal weight. Iīve used them for motivation for ten years and it works for me... short term, because I keep putting the weight back on.
I have bought clothes two sizes down and it has worked as well. I think it can be a good motivation.
Right now I have taken my skirt and dress from the closet and itīs almost like stepping on the scales. I know how much weight I have to lose to fit into the skirt.
If I have a favourite item and it is still current season - then I buy it in smaller size. Especially if it is a Sale item and a classic that I need. I am losing weight so easily this time around and I feel so energised that I am confident this is a forever eating plan. The only problem is trying to guess my final weight... but I certainly am buying a few clothes in a couple of sizes smaller... And I also kept my old clothes that were too tight so it is pretty cool to be able to wear them again.
