Wellbeing Wednesdays week 13 – You wear it well

What are you wearing right now? With England in the throes of lockdown number three, many people are spending their day in PJs or lounge wear.

You may not realise it, but the clothes you choose to wear each day reflects our mood.

You may feel comfortable at the beginning of the day, however, at the end of it, you may end up feeling sluggish and unproductive more than ever before. What is the reason for this?

Dress up for the day

Have you ever heard of the saying “dress up” for the day? This is more important than ever during lockdown. What you wear can affect your cognitive function.

Cognitive functions are defined as intellectual activities that lead to knowledge. These functions encompass reasoning, memory attention and language, which all lead to attainment of knowledge.

To put it simply, what we wear has an impact on our brains to process information. So, if you are working from home, you may be more productive if you wear work attire rather than rolling out of bed and wearing your PJs!

Getting dressed establishes routine and routine is beneficial for your mental health and wellbeing.

Whilst your usual routine may have gone out of the window, it is important to employ a new routine.

Getting up, getting dressed, eating meals at the same time every day, a regular bedtime and dedicating time for exercise, or relaxing, are all good ways to start your new lockdown routine.

You are what you wear

Do you feel happy, confident and feel good when you are wearing your favourite clothes ? This is because what you wear impacts your mood.

Choosing the right clothing for the day or occasion can lift our spirits, boost self-confidence and can set your mood for the day. So, if you are having a low mood day, open up your wardrobe and pick out something which gives you that boost.

We consider some clothes powerful, fun or relaxed. We even evaluate people by what they wear.

However most importantly, without realising it, when you put on your clothes, you start to evaluate yourself.  How do your clothes make you feel, do they suit the occasion? Remember, what you wear can affect your mood.

Clothes and your mood

Here are a few situations where the clothes you choose to wear can be associated with your mood:

• Work – wearing clothes which are appropriate for the day (remember not PJs, unless you test beds for a living) puts us in the right frame of mind – think “Dress for Success.”
• Socialising (even if it is on Zoom at the moment) – by wearing something you feel relaxed and comfortable in, it can help you open up and be more relaxed and creative in the situation.

• Gym (even your home gym) – Wearing gym clothes or active wear means you are more likely to actually exercise. This is because wearing these clothes acts a reminder to make healthy choices.
• Uniform – By putting on your uniform it makes us conscious of our duties and encourages you to pay more attention to your job. It’s not just for adult Studies shows children who wear school uniforms rather than their own clothes perform better.
• All the colours of the rainbow – Remember last week’s Wellbeing Wednesday? Colours therapy works with your clothes too. Colourful clothes can boost your mood and energy.

Three time a week, open your wardrobe and pick an outfit which brings you joy. So the final question is, what are you wearing tomorrow?

Remember: Stay safe, be kind and dress to impress yourself.

Share your ideas and experiences

We want you to share your ideas and stories with us too. Please email your stories, ideas, videos and photos to boxinmind@englandboxing.org, or share on your social media using the hash tag #EBWellbeingWednesdays

Find out more

You can discover more by going to the England Boxing Mental Health website page and also find ideas to keep fit physically on our Stay Active page.