Good article about embracing your current size

Great article- thanks for the share. Timely for me as past 3 years saw 2 heart surgeries and a broken foot. A lot of sitting, a lot of mindless eating and too little exercise created a wardrobe crisis limited to outfits with give and stretch. Slowly coming back but appreciate the article more.

7 years ago

Janet

(website)

Veteran

It's ridiculous but sometimes I've refused to go up a size when I've already tried on the "largest" size I want to admit needing.

But it really is silly when you think about it. Like, who is going to dig through our closets and see what numbers are printed on the tags? If the number bothers you, cut the tag out. It's a weird world in which I can have a 4 and a 12 hanging in my closet and they both fit.

7 years ago

Style Fan

Veteran

Great article. Thanks for sharing Anna.

7 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Terrific article, Anna. Thanks for the link.

7 years ago

Aquamarine

Veteran

Great article...good for her, and a nice reminder for the rest of us to look behind the number on the tag. I’m as guilty as anyone.

7 years ago

Toban

Veteran

So true! The inconsistency of sizing is challenging. I am also always a bigger size in woven materials than in jerseys and knits (to fit chest without pulling). Add in differences between regular and petite size ranges, the tags in my closet are widely variable and yet fit my current body.

7 years ago

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

Easy to understand rationally, harder to digest emotionally and I think every article like this helps bolster our defenses. Thanks for sharing.

7 years ago

cindysmith

Veteran

I kind of sort of gave up on worrying about numbers on tags when I realized that womens clothing sizes have about as much to do with anything real or rational as a bag of flour has to Jupiter's rings.

Before my middle age weight gain, when I held a fairly steady weight , size, and shape for years and years, it was insane.
* chico's 00
* New York & Co 2
* Banana Republic 8
* Anne Taylor 4
* Gap 6
* Old Navy anything from a 0 to a 6
* Chadwicks 10
And so on and so forth

There's a catch: if I told you that it didn't sting a little bit when my mom didn't like my outfit & gave me a lane Bryant t-shirt from her closet, AND IT FIT... well, I'd be lying. Now I rock that t-shirt, because it is what it is and I've got better things to stress out over. Like my job that I have to leave for in about 15 minutes or so LOL

7 years ago

gradfashionista

(website)

Veteran

I have a sneaking suspicion that those who are especially attached to tag size don’t track other health measurements, which is why arbitrary sizing has more power than it should.

7 years ago

Beth Ann

Veteran

Great link, Anna! We've got a long way to go, and we need stories like Becca to remind us actively create our own message, rather than internalizing the less helpful messages sent to us.

7 years ago

Michelle

(website)

Veteran

Maybe it's just that I've been having this exact internal dialogue for years, but I always find it jarring to read how new the concept of accepting your current size is to some people. Of course accepting is a long way from embracing it as this woman appears to have done, and she's a standing lesson to us all. Good for her. And her dress sounds awesome.
Thanks for sharing this Anna!

7 years ago

Kari

Veteran

Me too, Michelle-but I also think of how HARD it was to get there for me, and that I’m lucky that most people in my life don’t berate me for my size or shape, and I’ve also been lucky to have landed at YLF even before my first real job so didn’t have the whole “ew, that’s from the plus size section/brand” reaction mentioned in the article. (And also, how tissue thin my body image apparently is when someone DOES say something nasty about me.)

7 years ago

Kari

Veteran

Lately, particularly for the past year, I’ve been bolstered by seeking out role models who are similar to or larger than my size AND are amazing athletes. I don’t personally seek to run marathons or do athletic competitions, but feeling like I can take pride in the strength I have, build more strength and resilience, and delight in my body was a new breakthrough. I don’t find myself desiring to be LESS, but rather to do MORE with the body I have today, with whatever energy I have at the time.

7 years ago

Anonymous

Great article, thank you for sharing.
Kari - really resonate with your comment about building strength and resilience and doing more with the body we have today, with whatever energy we have. When I have momentary meltdowns that a certain top no longer fits and I "have nothing to wear" ... I try to tell myself "small price to pay for now being able to lift xx pounds in shoulder press!" Or so on. Focusing on the strength beneath the skin helps.

7 years ago

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