If you wanna get motivated to lose weight, I suggest you get out of your pajamas. As a programmer/IT consultant my job is pretty flexible and for the past few weeks I’ve been able to work from home. Awesome for getting work done at weird hours. Not so awesome for acting like a real person who interacts with society-ever. And by acting I mean dressing.
I have tons of clothes. Promise. My closets prove it as does my luggage whenever I travel. When I travel for business I check one bag. When I travel for pleasure I check two bags and inevitably steal some luggage space from my lucky travel companion as well. Lately, however, if you were my neighbor you would think I somehow lost everything except a few select pairs of pajamas and gym clothes. If you had the misfortune of running into me somewhere in public, you would think I was homeless. Okay, the hot pink Coach bag might tip you off that there’s more to the story, but you would guess that the story ends with me living in a tunnel.
In college one of my roommates was a girl named Carolyn. I know what you’re thinking: I thought your name was Carolyn. It is and so was my roomie’s. It was a small school. We were roommates, best friends, and had at least two classes together. It was confusing for everyone. Carolyn is one of those girls who always looks flawless. She’s always wearing the right thing and has her makeup and hair done. I, on the other hand, can be a hot mess. I have a great sense of style but don’t always make it a priority. Especially in the morning. Carolyn was late to class because she was perfecting her eye makeup. I was late to class because I overslept.
She came up with a rule after one too many Saturday mornings that I walked out of the room with Friday night’s eye liner all over my face. It was simple: “Look in the mirror before you go anywhere!”
I’d like to say that I follow that rule to this day but I have already proven that I don’t. Today, however, I took a mental step back and looked at my proverbial self in the mirror. Who honestly achieves success while spending the day in their PJs?
After my shower (which may have been a day overdue) I decided that I was not gonna be that girl today. I want to take the 24 Day Challenge seriously because I deserve a healthier and more energetic body, but how am I gonna give myself all that when I can’t even be bothered to properly clothe myself.
Rockin' some heels
So I put on a dress, jewelry, makeup, and even heels (see above for proof). I felt more confident going into my day and it definitely helped me stick to the cleanse.
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I have also heard that it can be hard to lose weight when you work at jobs where you wear clothing that is loose and baggy (perfect example: scrubs; another perfect example: PJs). This made sense to me because I thought about what I did every day when I came home wearing dress pants–I immediately rushed inside and changed into stretchier “comfy” pants. I also noticed that on the days I was a slacker and wore scrubs to work, I ended up lounging around in them for hours after I walked in the door. If you stay in tighter clothes, it makes you more constantly aware of your body. Bonus: you are also more aware of the weight you’ve lost when those tight clothes are not so tight anymore!
Totally!!!!!! Expect a post in the future about the dangers of wearing leggings for months at a time. This may result in learning you’ve outgrown your jeans by several inches.