You’ll be happy to know that it doesn’t have to do with food, exercise, fad diets, or cleanses. Not directly anyway. You don’t need to feel tiny needle pricks by an acupuncturist or nervously go under by a hypnotist. There’s no magic pill…not yet anyway, despite the plethora of print ads and commercials that claim otherwise. There’s no Lap-band procedure or surgery of any kind required.
The answer is pretty simple, but not one that you’d even think to consider. Ready for it. It has to do with what’s in your closet. And that is anything with an elastic waist–yoga pants, sweats, leggings, jeggings, or any other kind of eggings. Yes, the comfort of an expanded waistband can trick you into eating more and can even fool you into thinking you’re (perhaps) a size or two smaller than you are.
The way your clothes fit are the best gauge of your weight. And wearing anything that easily expands can and does hide the incremental weight gain from a weekend laden with desserts and cocktails or the week-long vacation from not only work but from your usual diet. Add to that the birthday party you attended last weekend, or the two nights you noshed on appetizers and dinner with friends.
You don’t need a scale to tell you what slipping into a pair of slacks will show you. The minute you need to tug that button into its slot, you know it’s time to rein it in.
Don’t be discouraged, though. You don’t need to toss those expandable items, for there is no better feeling than lounging in comfy clothes, but make sure that several times a week you wear something that buttons, hooks, or zips.