Personal Hygiene And Clothes

I went into several posts on personal hygiene – specifically looking at how as a larger man you should be taking care to groom yourself and the need to shower daily so that you don’t stink!  But personal hygiene also extends to the clothing you wear.

As a large person who may be trying to lose weight, you don’t want to wear clothes that are obviously too tight or too large because you will look bigger than you are (in both cases).  You want clothes that fit well, and look good – so if at all possible avoid the discount racks!

But taking care of your clothing is just as important as taking care of yourself.

How many pairs of pants/shirts/under shirts and under pants do you have?  How many pairs of socks, and shoes do you have?

While it may seem wasteful to own more than one or two pairs of shoes – it’s not!  In fact it may help keep your shoes usable longer.

When I buy runners, I tend to buy 2-3 pairs at a time (especially if they are on sale) — but then they will last me up between 1 and 2-years since I normally go through one pair in about 6 months time due to heavy use.  For dress shoes for work, I keep three pairs all the time.  They don’t show as much wear and tear as one pair would, and having three pairs means that I always have something.

I do the same with clothing.  I have three good suits that are for work, but that I don’t wear all the time.  I’ve also got several sports jackets.  Sports jackets are great because they are so versatile and provided you buy neutral colors they will go on just about any type of pant and shirt combination.

While you don’t have to keep a closet full of clothes and shoes that would rival Imelda or the Queen or any other celebrity or politician having enough means that you don’t have to wear the same clothes everyday and can mix and match.

If you’re a big guy that sweats a lot make sure you are changing your clothes daily!  Everything.  From top, to bottom!  There is no wearing the same shirt a second day, because while you may not notice it – others around you WILL notice the smell!

Even if you don’t sweat a lot, certain clothes must be put in the wash daily – socks, underwear and undershirts (if you wear them – undershirts, that is) should always be in the wash.  Why would you want to wear the same underwear for more than one day.  That’s pretty gross.

Shirts can be iffy – you might be able to get away with it for one day, but I would highly recommend that shirts be put in the wash daily.

Pants are another thing – even if you sweat a lot pants don’t get wet and in most cases pants are generally dry-clean only.  I would suggest dry-cleaning all your pants once per month – you should determine a schedule that works best for you.

If you decide to dry-clean less often then at the end of the day when you get home, immediately change into something more comfortable and air dry/clean your pants.  Put them on a hanger and keep them out of the closet to freshen – don’t throw them into the closet immediately. 

Taking care of yourself and your clothes, and dressing and looking sharp will present a different image of you to those around you regardless of your size.  As a large person we already have a lot against us and public opinion is against obese people for many reasons — why give people more reasons to look at you with disdain?  Dress sharp, look sharp and clean and people will have a different opinion of you!

Mohamed

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Technorati Tags: Personal Hygiene, personal hygiene clothes, personal hygiene for overweight men

Personal Hygiene For Men

Just a little while ago I started a series on Personal Hygiene For Men – to date, we’ve had hundreds of hits and visits to the series, so it is obviously a topic of interest to men (whether you are big or not).

I also did a quick side trip to talk about how large men should dress – by no means am I an expert, but with the help of my wife and the few places I purchase my clothing I do know what looks good and what does not.

If you’ve missed any in the series, here are the posts so far.� As each new post is made, the part/post number will increment and I’ll continue to add the new items to the list.� I will also be adding a widget to track important posts so that it is easier to find them and read or look for the tag PERSONAL HYGIENE.

Here are the posts so far (as of June 20, 2009):

 

• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/05/26/personal-hygiene-for-men/
• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/05/27/personal-hygiene-for-men-showering/
• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/05/28/how-to-look-sexy-if-you-are-big/
• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/05/26/fat-man-dont-dress-like-this-please/
• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/05/17/overweight-men-dress-for-business-success/
• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/05/28/how-your-undies-track-the-recession/
• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/06/10/7-steps-to-personal-hygiene/
• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/06/08/personal-hygiene-at-work/
• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/06/04/personal-hygiene-for-men-personal-grooming/

Added October 22, 2009:

• http://www.lose-weight-feel-great.com/2009/10/22/workplace-statistics-regarding-body-odour/

It’s about time for the next post in this series, which will be all about personal grooming which goes to things that men don’t spend a lot of time on:

• manicures
• pedicures
• proper haircuts
• trimming bears
• dental care (like flossing, and regular brushing)
• body hair and dealing with it (arm pits, back, chest, abs, arms, legs, and the ‘nether’ regions)

And now something for your reading pleasure, atleast until I complete writing the next post and post it, here is an article from 2004 (yah, ancient history) from MSNBC�- http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4751816�- here is a small (excuse the pun) snippet from the post “The style, Mitchell says, depends on what their wives and girlfriends want. Men go along, she explains, because removing the hair makes the whole package look bigger. She charges $85 and up for the service.” – and I leave the rest to you.

Enjoy!

Mohamed

Technorati Tags: obesity personal hygiene, overweight men, Personal Hygiene, personal hygiene clothes, personal hygiene for men, personal hygiene for overweight men, personal hygiene teeth, personal hygiene workplace, should I shower every day?, showering daily, why shower every day

Personal Hygiene For Men

Over the next few days/weeks I’ll be presenting a set of posts on personal hygiene for men – really, it’s meant for overweight men – but the topics covered will be of interest to others as well.

Being a big guy – big men are often judged on how they are dressed (and if you are in a long line up) how good (or bad) you smell and your general appearance.

Guys – appearance counts to everyone: your family, friends, the public, your employer, your co-workers – no matter what, people judge everyone by the way they look (whether they are the right weight, overweight or underweight).

Hygiene is not just about smell – it’s about personal grooming as well, things like getting regular haircuts, if you wear a beard ensure it’s trimmed nicely, making sure your fingernails are clean and cut (and yes, if so required going for a manicure), using an anti-perspirant (most have deoderants included), wearing colognes (evening) or using aftershave (during the day), taking care of your teeth (regular dental appointments, brushing, flossing). 

It’s also about washing your clothes regularly, changing under clothes often (a couple of times per day if so required) or even changing a shirt twice per day.  It can even include removing excessive hair on your body (under your arms and groin — don’t make faces!  If you’re an excessive sweater, and have seen a doctor they will ALSO give you that advice).

Guys – it’s the COMPLETE package!  This is not only to make you look good regardless of your size, but so that you look attractive to the opposite (or same sex, depending on how you swing), and when you’re at work you’re not looked at as the “big guy” – but as part of the crowd because you do take care of yourself.

You may be thinking that this is “girly” – after all most women can easily spend hours on personal grooming (women reading this – no I’m not stereotyping you, and actually admire women who do take the time to ensure that they look good).

So stick with me over the next few days, and weeks and you’ll be treated with some practical advice on staying fresh, and looking good!

Mohamed

Technorati Tags: obesity personal hygiene, overweight men, Personal Hygiene, personal hygiene clothes, personal hygiene for men, personal hygiene for overweight men, personal hygiene teeth, personal hygiene workplace, Weight Loss, well dressed overweight men

Fat Man? Don’t Dress Like This, Please?

If you are a big guy (fat, portly, pudgy… whatever) please DO NOT dress like this.  You are living up to the stereotype that ALL BIG guys are slobs.  We are NOT.  Some of us do dress very well and spend quite a bit of money to ensure we do look good.  You don’t have to spend a fortune to dress well even if you are overweight (but you can).  As I mentioned in my post of a few days ago about how should overweight men dress, I always look for sales and also rely on the Internet for shopping for clothes – there are always GREAT deals available on-line from reputable retailers.

It starts at the little things – like personal hygiene (question – do you have MORE than 1 or 2 pairs of underwear?) to how you groom yourself (big guys that keep those scraggy, unkept beards look really bad).

If your belt is worn badly, BUY a new belt!  Pants don’t fit quite right?  Buy new pants.  Stomach overhangs over your pants – buy looser fitting pants.  Don’t wear skin tight shirts because that’s all you have – you look bad and NOBODY wants to see every bulge on your body.  Uggggh…

I was in LA recently on a mini-vacation, and stopped by one of the outlet locations and went shopping at Casual Male XL-why be average when you can XL? – if you are in the US or close to a border crossing (and live in Canada) you should check them out.  There are a few places in Canada that do sell XL clothing, but you should add Casual Male XL to the list.  Good clothes and GREAT prices!

When I was there I picked up some great shoes, Polo Ralph Lauren spring jacket in addition to a belt, a couple of pairs of great pants and two shirts.  I spent less than $300.00 US for some great fitting clothes which are some of the latest styles.

I did talk about some Fashion Tips for Overweight Men just a few days ago, read it.  Please.

Here is to your health!

Mohamed

Technorati Tags: dress well, how fat men tend to dress, overweight men dress well, personal hygiene for overweight men, well dressed overweight men