We are programmed by society to think that there is only one type of body that can wear a bikini. As consumers, all we see accepted by society are the same thin bodies, over and over again. As someone who has never been anything smaller than a size 10, it’s frustrating to see a limited variety of bodies in the media. While many brands have been incorporating plus size models into their campaigns, it can still be hard to really accept that your body, in its entirety right this second, is enough to put into a bathing suit and strut along the beach.
I myself have trouble with this every spring when its time to go swimsuit shopping. I always put on some weight in the winter months, it’s natural to do when the weather is colder and you can’t get as active as you can in the summer. In the past, I hated going shopping, not just for bathing suits, but for clothes in general. I always struggled with body image. I never truly felt comfortable in my skin. There was always something that could look better whether it was my jiggly arms or my stomach pooch, and as soon as I fixed that, I could love how I looked or who I was.
Not until a couple years ago did I really decide to not care about what people thought of me. I was always told that if someone didn’t like the way I looked they didn’t have to look at me. To this day, that is what I tell myself when I wear something that I am still getting used to. Last summer was the very first time I posted a photo of myself in a two-piece bathing suit, and I remember being so nervous because I thought people would notice all the tiny things that I noticed that were “not right.” Thinking back now, nobody really cared how I looked, because even though there are sucky people out there who will point out your every flaw to make themselves feel better, I think we as human beings, are evolving to realize that it is what’s on the inside that makes a person. Not the outside. As a society, we are evolving to accept everyone for what truly makes them the beautiful person they are.
It’s important to remember that there is no such thing as the “bikini body.” Literally any body can be a bikini body. It’s true when they say that you are your biggest critic, and nobody cares about what you’re wearing quite as much as you think they do. If you’re worried about wearing a bikini this summer, remember that even if you don’t feel 100% confident in your appearance, pretend you are and nobody will believe you aren’t.
