rachylou - it is good to know your enemy. Mine are carbs that’s for sure. And not potato and rice, I eat them all the time - but wheat based like pasta, pizza and bread- I can’t even look at them without gaining weight:)

With the pilates you’ve gained muscle and dropped fat. That’s why you weigh the same but the size is smaller. If you plan to continue training probably the waist and hips will continue to shrink.
I too was at a very low weight last Christmas due to stress, not enough calories and continuing to exercise. After months of trying to lose weight and fit into my clothes I was shocked that everything became too big and I didn’t have much to wear yet again.
Agree with Angie that if the weight is dropping beyond your desired goal, a gaining diet is needed. Maybe your body needs more fuel now when you’ve made lifestyle changes. Wardrobe wise - in this situation I found fitted knit dresses to be great solution. Because they’re fitted they’re flattering to the slim figure, can be found at almost any brand and with a jacket and sharp boots can look as professional as pants. Another idea that comes to mind is pants with stretch. They do look skinny but maybe are more flexible with few kilos up or down.
That said I think that everyone has some healthy size beyond which cannot drop without extreme restrictions (sport or not). So probably your size will stabilise at some point if you maintain your current lifestyle long enough. Don’t know how long however, think it’s also personal and cannot be easily predicted.
In any case you look beautiful! And you’ve done something amazing.

Dreika - thank you, you get me. I will try to be as patient as possible while I wait for my size to stabilize. Will not say weight because it seems that stable weight does not guarantee the same size. And I plan to continue with the same lifestyle changes and have some more in mind for the next year. It is just disappointing to me that I am still not in wardrobe maintenance mode, and I am sick and tired of wardrobe building. I envy those that are planning French 5 and similar strategies for next year, it seems still out of reach for me.

I'm with Dreika, 100%. I think your pants may have stretched a bit too. You've lost fat and gained muscle - hence the weight is the same, yet the size is smaller. AND you need more fuel. Up the calories!

Angie - I was thinking that pants may have stretched and would not think twice about it if not realizing this morning that all my pants have stretched at the same time almost over night

Why not look at this from another angle, Anchie. Dressing your beautiful strong body in small but stylish FRESH capsules - per Toban’s method for a transitional wardrobe. Buying small amount of strategic pieces which are just enough to get you through the season could be exciting. It could bring newness which is sometimes not so easy in maintenance mode.
Not saying that it’s easy or not frustrating at times. Just that there is positive side to it and that focusing on the positive could make the transition easier.

Dreika - I will try to look at the positive side. In all honesty I would be trilled with this additional unexpected weight/size loss if I have not started wardrobe building. It was premature, I should have waited some more. I learned expensive lesson. I am now going to make do and wait until spring. I haven’t started rebuilding my spring/summer wardrobe and this area will need complete refresh anyway. And by then I hope things will stabilize.

And 3 new pairs of pants don’t even have belt loops, how stupid of me.

Don’t mess around with your body to suit a wardrobe of clothes! Eat a healthy, nourishing diet and exercise in moderation for health and pleasure. Your weight should stabilize, and your measurements will, too, eventually - though they can shift with change in exercise routine and age. Yo-yo dieting messes with your metabolism!

From age 30-55 I weighed 150-155 lbs, but in 2016/2017 after training more rigorously than my norm for a special triathlon event, I dropped about 15lbs. After the event (September 2017) I expected the weight to creep back up, but it never did. I now fluctuate between 136-140 (5ft 7in). I weigh myself once a week on a scale that also provides fat/muscle/bone/ and water numbers which I document in my training log. I don’t get too hung up on the numbers, and strive rather for consistency/maintenance. Since my weight is within the norm for my height and build, I’m good with it.

Runcarla - this year for me was big turning point. I turned 50 and I dedicated the whole year to improving my health and wellbeing. I ditched some bad habits, stopped drinking alcohol completely, started eating more healthy and eventually started exercising regularly. I had a wake up call when beginning of year I hit my all time high weight at 167 pounds. I took a picture to motivate me. Hope it is ok to share it. Second picture is six months later, when I was trying on swimsuits. I was 141 pounds then. I thought that this was good weight for me. I am now 130, but don’t have a picture.

Wow that is some before and after picture.You look fabulous in the second picture,toned and healthy.

Well there’s a happy ending if I ever heard one! You look toned and gorgeous. Of course adding Pilates—and sticking to it!—three times a week is going to change your shape. I’d say it’s for the better, think you look terrific—& are motivating me to get myself to the pool tomorrow, after putting it off far too many days.

Don’t beat yourself up over no belt loops on the admittedly very nice pants. Next fall, assuming you’ve settled into a size & shape, you can have them tailored to be just right.

Thanks Cardiff girl and FashIntern - second picture is actually before adding Pilates. Was not really toned

Are you sure French 5 is out of reach? That almost sounds to me like a solution, as many of those talking about it are planning for their 5 items to be “extras”, stand-out pieces. Fitted dresses and pants probably aren’t a good idea for now, but a gorgeous scarf, a cape or poncho, a wrap dress or skirt could certainly all work to zazz up basics at any size, until you are ready to start investing in basics and essentials.
Btw, would you mind saying how tall you are?

FashIntern - I have to think about it some more. Maybe if I get itch to buy something, I can concentrate on things that are not size dependent, like shoes, scarves, bags etc. But usually when I change size I first look for essentials- I can’t get dressed without good fitting neutral pants.
I am 169cm.

Was it Claire that used to post about her fabulous but hardcore capsule approach? She used to get an entire season's set of clothes, a pretty small group from what I recall, secondhand and then wear only those 10-15 pieces until they wore out or the season changed. Something like that might work for you, just get a week's worth of items and wear them like crazy.

I agree that tailored pants are the hardest to make work through size and shape changes. Try dresses, knit skirts, anything with stretch and/or an elastic waist, or jeans since they are easier to style with a belt.

Laura - I have been thinking a lot about what you and others recommended and I think I finally understand source of my frustration. My fall winter wardrobe is very simple and template based. I only wear mix and match sets of blazers, booties, layering sweaters and tailored pants. Switch pants for jeans and you get my weekend look. I always need at least 5 pairs of pants to make this work - 2 dark neutrals (both navy and black), 1 light neutral ( light gray, camel or tan - this is the most difficult to find and get right), 1 color ( red or burgundy usually) and 1 pattern (plaid most likely). But because I rely on tailored pants so much I get frustrated easily and have to keep buying them. When I was in transition, I was shopping deep sales or fast fashion, but last few months I was buying best quality I could afford and most of it full price because it was beginning of season. I honestly thought that this will not be another disposable capsule.
In spring and summer I wear less pants, and more skirts and dresses and it was so much easier to accommodate changes. Lesson here is that I need to rethink my fall/winter dressing formula. It would probably require some preparations first - for example I don’t have any knee high boots at the moment. And I am not sure that one pair would be enough, I have variety of booties that I coordinate with my outfits. I am also not sure that all my blazers would work with skirts and dresses. And to be honest I find shopping for dresses very difficult - don’t see many that I like, that are long enough, with nice neckline, sleeves, and not 100% polyester. Maybe I should forget about dresses - and just concentrate on skirts? But that still leaves me with footwear dilemma.
One thing is sure - I don’t want to rush this time, I want to get it right. I don’t need wardrobe in yet another size that can end up being temporary. I am off work next 2 weeks, so getting dressed will be easier and I will see where my size is going.

Do you have things to wear right now?

Yes, I have jeans and few pairs of pants that I can wear with belts. I need new belts though, I keep punching new holes in my belts, but they are getting too long now. Unfortunately can’t wear the belt that came with new Boden pants - not easy to punch a hole in that one.

My progress according to my favorite belt I used all holes expect first two. Last one was made yesterday.

I really hope that I am not annoying you all and that I don’t sound like bragging. It is not my intention at all. Maybe someone find my experience inspirational for setting new year goals. Well, not my whole experience, but good parts And learn from my mistakes.

I appreciate your post & the honest body talk.

It’s not annoying! I get the frustration and can relate even though I have the ‘opposite’ problem - a closet full of clothes that fit the last weight/size I decided to embrace and thought I could/would naturally maintain, which are now a size too small. At this point I’m just not interested in buying a lot of clothes in a size up, so I spend more on footwear and accessories and maintain a small wardrobe of basic pants and tops worn in uniform formulas depending on the season. And it turns out I’m quite happy like this (although running out of room in my shoe storage...).
I’d suggest you go buy maybe 2 pairs of inexpensive, neutral tailored pants that fit very well for now, since that seems to be your main frustration. Wear them multiple times a week and switch up your toppers and accessories. You might find that just a month or two of trying to eat a bit more, over the holidays and winter months when many people naturally gain a bit, helps you get back in your fabulous wardrobe of choice. Your style is fairly classic as well, so your pieces should have good longevity.

Jules - comforting to hear about your experience. I also don’t feel like shopping. I am especially bummed about pants that I bought as part of suit. Blazers are still fine, but not as suits.

I wonder if you can get those pants in a smaller size, perhaps at season end close-out prices.

Is secondhand, either in person or online, an option? I know you’re not in NA so the options are less diverse, but check somewhere like eBay and see if you can buy your same exact pants a size or two down.

Laura and FashiIntern - that is great idea, I just don’t want to act on it just yet. It may not be needed after the holidays

The struggle with suits and weight loss is challenging! When I was about 10 lbs from goal weight I found a great little navy skirt suit that would well for a work event that was coming up at the time. I needed something that worked right then. Fortunately it was in sale. After buying it, then doing some thinking, I went back two days later to get the skirt in a second, smaller size. I am so grateful I did that. The smaller size still fits me and the blazer is an open style that is robust to some size fluctuations.

Toban - you bought both sizes? That is brilliant solution, but takes some confidence I always worry that I will jinx it if I do that. I did even make few mistakes this year when I went with bigger instead of smaller size, when in between because of that. Vey silly.

@Toban - what a brilliant solution to prolong the wearability of the suit when weight is in flux!