Clothing Motivation

I have been buying smaller sized clothing for 3 months now.  I wasn't really eating well when I bought most of the clothes, but I always had good intentions of starting on Monday, or next week, or after the holidays.....


So, I have clothing that is too big, just right, too small and way to small.  It is now serving as one of my big motivators (besides my upcoming wedding).  I don't dress the way I want to dress because I don't look the way I want to look.  Yes, I am the same person who posted this post "Dressing for the Body You Have" a few months ago.  I do mean everything I said back then.  I think you should dress the body that you have, not the one that you used to have or want to have.


In a general sense I don't dress awful.  I try to wear things that fit at the time and make the best of it.  However, the majority of the clothes that I am drawn to are not in my size or I am not willing to wear them at my current size.  It can make things really difficult.  I feel like a fashionista that is trapped in a fat body.  I read many blogs about people who are curvy and they all dress so well and are so confident with their bodies.  I think that is AMAZING!  I on the other hand am not content with the body that I have right now.   I am looking forward to the body that can wear these items below.  


I apologize that the picture quality is so poor, it is taken from my phone as my camera is MIA right now.

Navy dress with unique back straps from Forever 21+

Cute denim jumper from Forever 21+

Gorgeous skirt for the winter.  It has a nice shimmer to it that you can't see here.  Forever 21+

Fun dress for work or a special event.  Forever 21+

TGIF and Dressing for your Size

It is finally here!  That little thing called Friday that we chase after all week!  I honestly couldn't be happier.  It has been a looooong week!

On Wednesday I went to Mall of America with my older sister Claire to help her find clothes for an upcoming weekend in Chicago with my other older sister.  She wanted to find something to wear to a play and the other girls who were going were wearing fun, trendy and dressy outfits.  Claire is a stay at home mom who takes very good care of her two boys, her house and her husband, but she doesn't really take the time to do stuff for herself. 

Claire usually wears Old Navy jeans and solid color t-shirts from Target, so she wanted to feel comfortable in what she was wearing and still look fashionable.  The other issue that Claire was having is that her body is different than it used to be and she isn't used to dressing for the body that she has.  She was afradi to shop at the, "fat girl stores".  Now, I don't love that phrase.  I think she uses it because she is embaressed about her body, but I think the most important thing that someone can do is to do, "dress for the body that you have!" This may be one of the most important things that I have ever learned.  If you are overweight you can still look nice if you dress for your body shape.  I know that we aren't all comfortable with our bodies where they are at, but I know that I personally feel better putting on jeans that fit and a nice shirt rather than baggy clothing that makes look and feel larger than I am.

So, I took Claire to Forever 21 Plus and she got a few pairs of really cute skinny jeans.  We then ventured to Torrid and she proceeded to try on the entire store.  It was a good chance for her to see what looks good on her body.  She hadn't really tried on clothing in her new size before and she was slowly starting to gain soem confidence as I and the lady from the store told her how great she looked.  She really did look great in all of the clothes and I got to thinking about how we are all comfortable or uncomfortable at different sizes.  For example Claire was wearing size 14-16.  I thought to myself, "I would be THRILLED to be wearing a 14-16!"  She was clearly having a hard time adjusting to it.  I could see that she was skeptical about wearing skinny jeans or leggings and some of the more form fitting tops.  I knew that if I looked like she did in some of the clothing that I would be strutting my stuff all around town.

It is hard to be uncomfortable in your own skin no matter what size you are.  It is important for me to know that everyone's comfort size is different and all that matter is that I get to mine.  I know that I will lose this weight and be more and more comfortable in my own skin.  My sister even said I can borrow the clothes she bought as soon as I am that size.  It is just another thing to look forward to.  I have never been able to share clothes with anyone in my life, so getting to swap clothes with anyone would feel amazing.  So, long story short is work towards getting to your comfortable size, but until you do dress what you have and feel great in your own skin!  :)

P.S.  I am also down 2.2 pounds this week and I am wearing a dress that used to be too tight today without Spanx because I don't need to suck in my gut that is slowly starting to disappear!  Oh, the small things in life :)

This is my new dress from shopping. It is super flattering and a whole size smaller!

The Venue

So, we officially have a church, a venue and a wedding party.  Woo hoo!  We will be getting married on October 6th, 2012 (plenty of time to be wedding dress ready and lose weight).  We are thrilled that we got the church of our dreams and that everyone we asked to be a part of the wedding said yes!  

This is the front of our venue.

This is the entrance to the ballroom as seen from inside the ballroom.

I hate the carpet in this venue, but when all the tables are up you wont see it too much.

This is where the head table will be set up.  Outside the windows is a veranda

that people can go out on during the reception.

This is the whole length of the ballroom.

This is where we will set up our escort cards and welcome table.

Stairs leading up to the bridal suite.

Front door area.

Door area leaving the cocktail room going towards the main entrance.

Large cocktail area.  Through the doors is another cocktail area that has huge picture windows that overlook the beautiful golf course.

So, moving on from wedding stuff for now and onto the new and exciting things coming to my blog!!!  I decided to discontinue Saturday Sessions because it just seems like I am focusing too much on the short term and not enough on bigger goals.  I am going to start doing a monthly session on the first day of every month rather than something every Saturday.  My hope is that this will mean that I make bigger goals and have longer time to accomplish them. It seems like when I was making goals for SS before they were so short term and I was finding that it wasn't having the lasting impact that I hoped it would have.  So the new thing will be called Monthly Sessions and I am starting it today!  I am one day late, so I apologize for that!


Goals of the month are...


1. Lose 10 pounds. 
This may seem slightly aggressive and it might be.  I feel like I need to kick it in and really set a high goal.  I want to lose 10 pounds a month leading up to my wedding, which is a little over 2 pounds a week, so we will see how it goes!
2. Donate my over-sized clothes
I don't want to keep my fat clothes as a crutch.  When they don't fit they are going to be donated.  I just can't have them sitting around telling me that it is okay when my jeans don't fit and encouraging me to grab the fat jeans and then when they dont fit going a size up and a size up.  It is a slippery slope.  A slope that I have slipped on before and I WON'T do it again!
3. Take a group fitness class at Lifetime 20 of the 28 days of the month.

The group fitness classes really help me lose weight. I push myself harder and go for longer.  I sweat more and I actually enjoy it!  I am not saying that I am taking the other 8 days off, but I am going to go to the gym and take a group class 20 days this month and I am very excited about it!  I promise to post my sweat proof this time so that you don't think I am all talk! :)

I weighed in last Sunday and I was down 2.6 pounds.  A loss is a loss and I am not complaining about it.  I am just aware that I have a timeline that I would like to get to my goal and I can't wait to finally get there.  I am starting to be able to imagine what my thin and helthy life will be like!  This week I weighed in down 1.2 pounds only.  I know this is because I didn't make the best choices, but after grocery shopping today for all healthy items and getting everything cleaned and cut up I feel ready to tackle the week being healthy.

Sunday Sessions

1. Try a 2 new fruits and 2 new vegetables this week.
Done!  I tried pomegranate and kiwi.  I have had kiwi before, but never purchased it on my own and I hadn't had it in a long time.  I really like them when they are not too soft.  They are the perfect size for a quick and healthy snack in between meals.  I also bought a pomegranate and I have to say that I have not eaten it yet, but it looks good and I just saw that someone else posted on their blog about how to cut them, so I am excited to eat it this week.  I got eggplant and spaghetti squash for my two vegetables.  The eggplant I roasted in the oven and I was not really a fan of it.  Everyone tells me to try eggplant parmesan, so when I buy it next time I will get that.  The spaghetti squash was awesome!  I even got my boyfriend to eat it.  I ate it with some low sodium sauce, sauteed veggies and some grilled chicken and a little bit of reduced fat feta cheese. YUM!


2. Move my body as much as I can throughout the day. 
I think that I did really well with this goal this week.  I parked in the back of lots, got up and moved around at work more than usual and worked out more than I have any other days so far on this journey.  I also tried to move around at work more and stood at my desk doing work for a few hours.  I know this is always something that I can improve on, but it was a great start for me!


NEW GOALS 


1. Change up my work-out routines.  As my brother-in-law calls it, muscle confusion.  Sometimes I get on the elliptical for 45 minutes and I wish the time away.  I hate this.  It makes me dread my workout and hate what I am doing.  So, I have printed off the group fitness schedules for my gym and I have highlighted all of the classes that I could attend during the week that sound good to me. I have a plan to mix-up my work outs this week and "confuse my muscles" so that I am getting a really good work out and hopefully burning more fat!


2. Organize my closet, try on clothes and get rid of what doesn't fit. 
I have clothes from one size larger than I am now all the way down to 4 sizes smaller than I am now.  I know, I know it is crazy and I need to get rid of things that don't fit me so that it isn't convenient for me to gain weight and move back into my old clothes.  I still don't know what to do with my clothes that don't fit though, so I need to organize my closet and make a plan for these items that are now too big.  Yay!

The scale doesn't lie... and neither do my jeans

Weigh in results show that I am 32.2 pounds down.  I have been on this journey for about a month, so that number is pretty good.  I am a little disappointed that this week was only about 5 pounds, but a lose is a lose.  My dietician thinks that my body is adjusting to my new work-out routines and I am also gaining muscle, so no complaints here.

I have also started to go through my closet and get rid of old items that don't fit or are stained, etc.  I have a section in my closet though of clothes that either don't fit or summer/spring clothes that definitely won't fit next summer.  I am wondering what people on their weight loss journey have done with their clothes that no longer fit?  I give tons of clothes to the goodwill and I am fine with doing that again, but if someone else is on their journey and they would benefit from having the clothes until they get down to the next size then I would be happy to give them away to them.  I think I may hold onto them until I get some more stuff stocked up and then I will maybe give some stuff away on the blog or just donate it.  Let me know if anyone knows anything else you can do with clothes.

Versatile Blogger Award!

A big thanks to Vicky from Getting Fit for giving me the versatile blogger award!  It is nice to get an award to brighten your day and remember what you are working towards.

When you are given this award you are supposed to list 7 things about yourself and then pass on the award to 10 fellow bloggers. Apparently some people do not enjoy getting awards, so sorry if I give one to you and you don't like them.

1) I've never been to Iowa and it borders the state I live in.

2) I ended my relationship with soda 4 weeks ago and have never felt better.

3) I am allergic to fish and coconut.

4) I lived in Italy for 6 months and loved every second of it.

5) I was the 6th grade spelling bee champion.

6) I am going to go grad school next fall.

7) I am really excited to conquer this journey during the holiday months.

I'm passing this award on to:

Shanilie at Losing Over Half of Me
Whitney at Slimming Down for the Gown
Alissa at A Journey to Thin
Kelly at Life in the Fat Lane
Kenz at All the Weigh
Lyn at Escape from Obesity
Kati at The Great Balancing Act of a 24 Year Old
Stacy at Stacy's Weight Loss Blog
Tim at Fat. Boy. Thin
Jessica at See How She Runs

A few other comments/notes about today...

1. A very long battle that has been going on in my family is finally over and I feel sadness and peace at the same time.  I am so beyond happy to move on, but moving on means letting go completely and although I feel ready for that it still makes me slightly emotional and sad.

2.  Yesterday was my nieces birthday and I went to her house to wish her happy birthday and there was spaghetti and a princess cake and there was slight temptation, but I remained strong.  I passed on everything, ate some fruit and veggies and went home to eat my healthy meal.  We also had a Halloween Nacho-bar potluck at work today.  Last year I made AMAZING queso with more cheese than can be imagined.  I was asked to make it again this year and I was a little bit nervous.  In the past I have made"exceptions" to eat poorly on holidays, birthdays and special events, so it would not have been out of the ordinary for me to choose to do this.  I am really, really trying hard at this losing weight battle and I didn't want to compromise my results this early in the game.  Last night I made my own healthy mexican pizza that I ate during the potluck and it was great.  Sure, I can honestly say that I didn't miss the other food at all.

3. Final thing for the day is... I have been wanting to try the Forever 21 Plus size line Faith 21 for quite some time now, but when I googled it one day I found all of these negative comments about the sizing.  I looked at their website and found the size guidelines and noticed that a 3x was a 17-18 and thought eeek, there is no way that will fit me.  I have been looking online at their clothes for weeks and finally today I went to the mall to look at the selection.  The closest mall to me is Mall of America, so their selection is HUGE, which I know is not the case in every mall.  I found dozens of things that I loved.  A lot of it I looked at and thought there is no way that will fit me.  Not now, maybe later?  I found two skirts and a sequined tank top that I had to have.  I figured I would take them home and have a reward when I reached one of my smaller goals and was able to fit into them.  I got home and thought I would try them on quick just to see how much they didn't fit, so that I knew how long it would be before I could wear the items comfortably.  Well..... ALL 3 ITEMS FIT!!!! Super cute, trendy clothes for a reasonable price in smaller sizes than I am used to and they fit?  Amazing.  I might return the items and get a 2x just so that I have something to fight for and look forward to wearing around the holidays.