The Purge
Don’t worry, this purge is not proceeded by the word binge. I am talking about my closet.
Last night my lovely wife and I dove into the scary project of emptying all the over sized clothes out of my closet . Technically it’s the guest room, but we call it my walk-in closet.
I have to admit I am a bit of a clothes horse. It’s not so much that I buy a lot of clothes, I just never throw them out. And, over the last few years I have collected a lot of clothes. When you’re going up a size every 6 to 8 months it’s hard not to accumulate.
Needless to say this purge was long overdue.
The main criteria for getting rid of clothes was size. Everything with a XXXL went without even trying it on. A lot of the XXL stuff went as well. I was really surprised at how much stuff ended up in the to go pile. There are clothes that that I haven’t worn in years because they were too tight that are now to big to wear. I missed them going up and coming down.
Last night was the first time in this whole healthy living process that I have felt like a person who has lost nearly 50 lbs. Seeing my old clothes looking like a Mama Cass mumu on me, clothes that used to be tight just 9 months ago, made me really see my body in a new way.
While this was mostly a joyous occasion, there are some things that I will be really sad to see go. I had just received a lot of really nice clothes for Christmas this past year, which I hardly had the chance to wear and now they are 3 sizes to big for me. It made the whole experience a little bitter sweet.
Tonight I tackle pants and sweaters. I have a feeling the purge has only just begun.
The most triumphant moment of the evening:
- One of my favorite shirts is a western / rock star shirt my lovely wife gave me for Christmas 3 years ago. I have never been able to wear it properly, even when she gave it to me. Last night I buttoned it up for the first time.
Here’s me in the shirt this past Christmas weighing 288. I’ll take a new picture tonight to compare and contrast.
Tony
8/28: 239.8 lbs.
Goal: 220 lbs.
19.8 lbs. to go
Cross published at Guess How Much I Weigh.
I am so glad that you are getting rid of your bigger clothes. I have been doing that too. It feels good. Having those big clothes around just leaves an opening for relapse.
I have had to buy new clothes because I don’t have anything in my new size. I just got a pair of pants in a medium and held them up and thought, “There is NO way these are fitting.” Well, they are on and they look great! Especially with the new string bikini underwear I have taken to wearing. You know the road is long while we’re losing weight, but it’s filled with so many cool milestones, including this pair of medium pants. High school was the last time I fit into a medium!
Yeah, the whole clothes thing is probably the most rewarding part of it all. I love putting on jeans that stayed hidden away in my closet the whole time I was fat. The fat clothes are now gone, and my skinnier clothes are hanging up front and center.
I’m also having to “purge” clothes – everything is just hanging on me these days (I’ve gone for a 3x to a an extra large). It’s a great feeling. Two friends at work are donating clothes to me that they no longer need to help me make the transition (since I don’t want to spend much on in between clothing) – they have been dieting and these are too big on them, and I’m just getting into their size when they started dieting.
I don’t shop much, so my bigger clothes hold no sentimental value – but I plan on donating what ever I can. You might be able to find someone to exchange with or just donate them to a good cause so at least your “favorites” will move on and be worn. You’ll have lots of new favorites too.
I plan on keeping only one or two pieces of my bigger clothes (one’s I’ve had photos taken in) just to keep as a tribute to my success. But I am NOT going to keep a large size wardrobe. I used to for years just hold on to everything – because I used to yoyo and I didn’t want to waste money on clothes – but I am NO longer a yo yo dieter and tossing out, exchanging, and donating larger size clothes is making that commitment real and permanent.
Happy sorting and purging!
Tony you are such an inspiration for me!
I didn’t blog about it, but 2-weeks ago I purged. I followed a similar technique. All the XXXXL stuff went without a ‘tryout’, as did pants above 54″. I did have a pair of Ralph Lauren jeans that I just couldn’t part with, so they have been designated my BEFORE pants. A couple 3X shirts dodged the bullet this time… but their days are numbered.
The joy I am finding… I am comfortably wearing 2xl shirts (celebrity golf tourney, etc.) that I got when I worked in radio that are brand new!
[...] by John on August 30th, 2007 The rapidly shrinking Tony over on FatBloggers posted his accomplishments in purging his closet of his ‘fat-man clothes’. His pile of [...]