I would pick up some simple/cheap t-shirts at Target, throw on a light jacket or cardigan and some nice jewelry.

Anonymous wrote:I am stuffing myself into my old fat clothes. Clothes I almost got rid of because I vowed never to be that fat again. Yet, here I am.

If I were to restrict my calories right now, I would mentally break. So I am chubby for a little while.

+1. Dieting is not my friend right now. I'm hoping to indulge in my need for comfort food for another week and then reassess. Let's hope this passes!

OP here-- thank you, thank you! These are such helpful and supportive ideas. I think it's been a challenge because I want to lose weight and at the same time, I've been wanting to improve my wardrobe without spending a fortune. So many good ideas in this thread. I hope others will keep posting because it sounds like this is an issue many of you have experienced or are experiencing currently.

Anonymous wrote:What have you been wearing the past 2 years?

Also 20 lbs is not 3 dress sizes. It's closer to 1 dress size.

uh, it is at least 2 sizes.

I hear ya. I was up 10 lbs while trying to get pregnant (took a year) and now still have an extra 10 from being pregnant (20 lb in total - also 2 sizes for me). I don't want to buy much in this size, either. I bought a few pairs of pants that don't give me muffin top, so I can wear my old knit shirts w/o looking terrible. I then layer a cardigan or jacket left open. Empire waist dresses are my friend. A lot of the stuff I bought to fit me now (other than the pants) will still work as I lose weight - just choose styles well. No button down shirts. I bought most of my fat clothes at the outlets or Loehman's so I didn't spend too much.

wear a thong and get over it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am stuffing myself into my old fat clothes. Clothes I almost got rid of because I vowed never to be that fat again. Yet, here I am.

If I were to restrict my calories right now, I would mentally break. So I am chubby for a little while.

This is me, too. Chronic disease flared up like a motherfucker last year and here I am with 30 pounds to lose. Just barely feeling well and competent again and accepting that there are many other things that need to get back on track in our lives before I worry about my weight. Some of it will come off just with me being more active and getting better sleep, but I'm still going to be chubby by all accounts for a good while more.

Thank you - both of you - for posting. I am feeling so down because of my weight but also am well aware that there are other, more important things that I need to be addressing in my life in the near term. It is depressing, and it's hard - but it's also not forever. (And, for me, it's only 10 pounds! But it is an extremely unwelcome 10 pounds...)

Take heart OP. I was you last year and I knew I just wasn't ready to let go of my security blanket-food until other things in my life were in order. Honestly, once I decided that I would just stay fat for the short term, I felt much better. Starting this winter I got my shit together and have lost 35 lbs! Couldn't be happier.

Wait until you can mentally take on a challenge before losing weight, because it is a battle.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am stuffing myself into my old fat clothes. Clothes I almost got rid of because I vowed never to be that fat again. Yet, here I am.

If I were to restrict my calories right now, I would mentally break. So I am chubby for a little while.

This is me, too. Chronic disease flared up like a motherfucker last year and here I am with 30 pounds to lose. Just barely feeling well and competent again and accepting that there are many other things that need to get back on track in our lives before I worry about my weight. Some of it will come off just with me being more active and getting better sleep, but I'm still going to be chubby by all accounts for a good while more.

Thank you - both of you - for posting. I am feeling so down because of my weight but also am well aware that there are other, more important things that I need to be addressing in my life in the near term. It is depressing, and it's hard - but it's also not forever. (And, for me, it's only 10 pounds! But it is an extremely unwelcome 10 pounds...)

Dresses that aren't super tailored are great because you can wear them as your weight changes. Ross for Less has a good selection from time to time--have gotten Calvin Klein dresses there, for example.

Don't buy bigger clothes. Start your diet/exercise plan today. If you buy bigger clothes you will just adjust. This happened to me and my 20lbs turned into 40 very quickly.

Anonymous wrote:I am stuffing myself into my old fat clothes. Clothes I almost got rid of because I vowed never to be that fat again. Yet, here I am.

If I were to restrict my calories right now, I would mentally break. So I am chubby for a little while.

This is me, too. Chronic disease flared up like a motherfucker last year and here I am with 30 pounds to lose. Just barely feeling well and competent again and accepting that there are many other things that need to get back on track in our lives before I worry about my weight. Some of it will come off just with me being more active and getting better sleep, but I'm still going to be chubby by all accounts for a good while more.

Anonymous wrote:What have you been wearing the past 2 years?

Also 20 lbs is not 3 dress sizes. It's closer to 1 dress size.

NP here. I'm 6 feet tall and a size is about 10 pounds on me. On a shorter woman, which is 97% of the population statistically speaking, 20 pounds could easily be 3 or 4 sizes.

Anonymous wrote:What have you been wearing the past 2 years?

Also 20 lbs is not 3 dress sizes. It's closer to 1 dress size.

NP here, depends on where you gain weight and how tall you are. 5 lbs is a dress size for me.

I've had to deal with this recently. Get a couple basic pieces that are nicely made and fit very well (which will make you feel better in the meantime) that you can repeat with cheaper stuff. For me, this meant some nicer black pants, blank ankle pants, jeans and a couple cardigans (long and short sleeves) that I've paired with cheaper tops from Old Navy, Ann Taylor Loft, Target and the like.

Anonymous wrote:What have you been wearing the past 2 years?

Also 20 lbs is not 3 dress sizes. It's closer to 1 dress size.

Depends on where you started. Like OP I've gained 20 pounds and gone up 2 dress sizes and 2-3 pant sizes depending upon the brand.