The Warm Up

Before you begin any workout, you're smart if you do a warm-up first.   

*Set up several bags or bins in your garage (or spare bedroom, or where ever will be most convenient for you and able to stay up for a while without being in the way.)  You'll use one for donations, one for alterations, one for keepsake/nostalgic items (I recommend a storage bin for this one), and one trash bag for items that don't qualify for any of the other categories.  I always have a donation bag in my garage, so as I come across items on a day-to-day basis that just don't work for me anymore, they can go straight into the bag. 

*Put on some energizing music.

*Stay hydrated and nourished - I like to keep a bottle of water handy, and depending on how much time I've allocated, I take breaks for snacks.

*Remember to breathe...it's all going to be okay!

Photo: ShawnRossi

Lift Those Weights!

There are tough parts to any workout. If you're going to build strength, you'll have to be willing to tackle the tougher, weightier issues.

*Honesty is truly the best policy when it comes to shaping up your wardrobe.  Each item has to be evaluated on several levels:

• Is it working for you now...for who you are now, or is it hanging on from a former time in your life or a former style that you no longer embrace? 
• Does it fit you now...or can it be reasonably altered to fit you now?
• Are you able to pair it up with other items in your wardrobe to make several outfits, or is it a 'closet orphan'?
• Are you missing key pieces?
• Here is a key one: Do you enjoy wearing it...does it make you smile and feel good about yourself? 

*This is where you'll make those decisions that will carve the 'fat' out of your wardrobe, or will make it make it clear where you're a little too lean, and need to add in those missing items that will help you pull outfits together. Maybe it's a critical item like a basic pencil skirt (for example), or maybe it will be a scarf or other accessory.  

*Like your physical trainer would do, keep a record of your progress. In this case, a list of items you need to replace or what you need to fill in the gaps.  You can take this list with you when you go shopping (whether it's to a store, or on-line) so you can shop wisely. 

*This part of the process is one that will likely take time, depending on how well you've curated your closet in the past.  It may help to break it down - so... 

Focus On Body Zones

-Upper body: first tackle the blouses, then the tees, then the jackets. For blouses and pants, I like to segment them into dressy, work, and casual, as much as you possibly can.  Then within those categories, sort by color.

-Lower body: pants, shorts.  Follow the above process - sort first by function, then by color.

Photo: Pinterest,CupcakesandCashmere

-Toe Touches

  shoes. My personal favorite is to arrange heel to toe on a shelf; it allows for more storage. A lot of women like to store their shoes in boxes. I personally don't recommend this method because it takes up a lot of space, and primarily because it doesn't allow for the shoes to air out between wearings, but this is something everyone must decide for themselves.

-Core Strength:  underwear, shapewear, lingerie. This area often gets overlooked, but having the properly fitted underwear, and the appropriate shapewear on hand makes it so much easier to get dressed. 

-General Conditioning:  accessories (jewelry, scarves), purses, shoes (polished, with heels and soles in good repair), outerwear. Just like with your clothing, these items must be curated on a regular basis. Purses and shoes can take a beating with regular use, so you must be diligent in keeping them in tip-top shape and then letting them go if they can no longer serve you well. 

The Sprint vs. the Marathon

How you deal with the issue of closet maintenance is in large part determined by:

• the time you can make available at any one sitting...
• your tolerance for pain, because for many women, this purging and decision making is a difficult process...
• and your motivation (are you just sick and tired of struggling with what to wear every day or having so much 'stuff' in your closet that you can't begin to find the things that you know are in there and will work for you, so you wear the same things all the time? Sound familiar?)

Some of you will want to tackle this and get as much done in long sessions as you can; for others, you'll prefer to take it on zone by zone.  It's the difference between the person who runs the marathon and the one who excels in the sprint.  They both are getting fit - just in different ways.

Work in the manner that best suits you. Sometimes clients need me to come in to help them get started, then they feel comfortable tackling the remainder of the organization themselves.  Others need me to see it through with them all the way to the finish. 

The Cool Down

Whether you've finished a marathon or a sprint, it's important to not skip the cool down portion of your session.  It helps you relax from the workout, as well as prepare you for the next one.

• Review your notes - what you accomplished, and what remains to be done. What items on your shopping list do you need to purchase right away and which ones can be deferred? Which items are you going to get altered now, and which ones for later?  
• Schedule your next session on your calendar now. Don't lose your momentum. 
• I think it's important to actually take some time to give yourself a small reward for your accomplishment - it may be as simple as a bubble bath and a cup of tea (or maybe a glass of champagne!)  It might be a good idea to actually do a few stretches and take some deep breaths to decompress - it's hard work physically and mentally to move clothing around and make all those decisions.

Your Fitness Plan Going Forward

We all know that once we've achieved a specific weight or fitness goal, it doesn't stop there.  If we do it correctly, it's a life-long commitment, so it's important to have a plan to keep from back-sliding into old, bad habits.  It works just the same for your closet.

• A lot of people have trouble remembering new combinations of outfits they've put together in this process.  Take pictures! Put them into Albums in your phone for easy referral. You might have a Work Album, Date Night Album, Dressy Album, Hanging at Home Album (yes, it's important to have some good-looking casual outfits for when you're just hanging around the house!)  Whatever you choose for your categories, you will have these inspirations at your fingertips.  Don't forget to include accessories, like jewelry, shoes and purses if you don't think you'll remember later. 
  
  For you techies - there's a great app called Cloth that was developed just for this purpose - you might want to check it out.    
• Keep the 'fat' pared down.  A favorite tip is to always remove one item of clothing whenever you add something new.  Another is that whenever you put something on and you immediately say to yourself, "Hmmm...nope, this just isn't working", recognize this as a signal that this item may need to go into a potential donation pile.  Ask yourself  'why' it isn't working (bad fit? damaged? not inspiring anymore? needs something to complete it?) and deal with it right away.  It's when you stuff something back into your closet without dealing with it that the 'fat' starts to add up again. 

For a look at some of the closet organization ideas

I've pinned to my Pinterest board,

click here!