Waiting to lose weight before you buy clothes? Read this

There is a pair of jeans in your cupboard that you are “going to fit into”. There is a kurta you bought one size too small, as motivation. And there is a whole life you are living right now, in whatever still stretches.

If that sounds familiar, this post is for you.

The “someday” wardrobe

I see it in wardrobe sessions all the time. One section for the body she used to have. One section for the body she hopes to have. And in the middle, a small pile of loose, dark, shapeless “safe” clothes that she actually wears.

She does not buy anything nice because “what is the point, I am going to lose weight”. Months pass. Sometimes years. Weddings, promotions, holidays and birthdays all happen in the safe clothes.

Quick question: how many things in your cupboard are for a body you do not have today? Count them. The number usually surprises people.

What the research says about dressing to hide

Psychologists have studied why women choose the clothes they do. In a 2009 study of 162 women aged 18 to 55, most women wore clothes mainly for assurance and fashion. But women who were more dissatisfied with their bodies were more likely to choose clothes for camouflage, and they had a more negative experience of shopping for clothes.

A 2012 study found the same link: the heavier women felt they were, the more they chose clothes to hide in.

And a 2021 study of 792 women found that dressing mainly for camouflage and comfort went with a casual, minimalist style, while dressing for individuality went with a more sophisticated one. The researchers suggested that clothing can help women push back against body-ideal pressure rather than surrender to it.

In other words, hiding is common, understandable, and a choice you are allowed to change.

Why hiding usually backfires

Here is the irony I explain in almost every session: the clothes we hide in often make us look bigger.

• Oversized and shapeless clothes add volume everywhere, including places you did not need it.
• Head-to-toe black can make a figure look heavy and a face look tired, if black is not your colour.
• Clothes one size too small pull, gape and crease, drawing the eye to exactly the area you wanted to hide.

Clothes that fit your body today, whatever its size, almost always look slimmer, smarter and more confident than clothes that are too big or too small.

And the too-small “motivation” kurta? In my experience, it rarely motivates anyone. It hangs there as a daily reminder of what you have not done yet. Every morning starts with a small failure before you have even had your chai. That is not motivation. That is a tax on your confidence, and you pay it every single day.

Dress the body you have today

1. Buy for today’s measurements. Then spend a little on tailoring. Fit is the most flattering thing you can wear.
2. Choose structure over size. A jacket with a defined shoulder, a wrap or V neckline, and fabric that skims instead of clinging.
3. Put colour near your face. When the colour near your face suits you, people look at your face first.
4. Respect the changes. Pregnancy, medication, stress and menopause all change bodies. Your wardrobe is allowed to change with you.
5. Keep two or three goal pieces if they genuinely motivate you. Let the rest go, and the guilt with them.

Try this: pull out three things that fit you today and make you feel good. Wear all three this week, somewhere that matters.

If you take one thing from this

You do not have to earn nice clothes by losing weight. You deserve to look and feel good at every size you live in, including this one. Your life is happening now, not at the goal weight.

Tell me in the comments below: is there something in your cupboard you are saving “for when I lose weight”? And if you want help building a wardrobe that works for your body today, a body shape session is the kindest place to start.

Research behind this post: Tiggemann & Lacey (2009), Body Image; Tiggemann & Andrew (2012), Body Image; Stolovy (2021), Frontiers in Psychology.