Women's Health magazine has recently announced that it will no longer feature the words "bikini body", "drop two sizes" and other such phrases on their covers. Not from print in the entire magazine, but from the cover, which is OK, because a small step in the right direction, is still a step.
For much of my life, I never dreamed of, or even had the desire to wear a bikini.
I had to stop for a minute last week, as I said to my Mom, "do you know where my black bikini is? It's my favorite one?"
Not only have I started to buy and wear bikinis, but I have so many that I have a favorite one.
I do not, by any means have a perfect body, but I do have a bikini body.
As in, I put bikinis on my body.
I have two daughters and I cannot tell them to wear whatever they like, because they're beautiful, and then turn around and not wear what I like because I'm self conscious.
Actions speak louder, friends.
I am going to tell you something that will make you uncomfortable.
Do you want to have a bikini body?
Well, guess what, you already do!
If you have a body, then you have a bikini body.
We recently spent a week on vacation in Mexico and I wore a bikini every. Single. Day.
In a not-so-distant past, I would have written a self-deprecating sentence about having, by no uncertain means, a bikini body.
But I do. I can wear a bikini. I can freaking ROCK a bikini.
But it wasn't easy.
It was so difficult to do.
The first day.
After that, it actually wasn't difficult at all.
The first day I felt incredibly self conscious and I was certain everyone was judging me.
They were.
Then I had a few cocktails, and accepted the fact that I was being judged, (and, really, had I been wearing a one piece suit, I'd have been judged for that too, so...), and just embraced the fact that I was wearing a two piece swimsuit, alongside my girls, so they can know that the nicest thing a woman can wear is any-friggin'-thing she wants with a huge side o' self-confidence.
So, the uncomfortable bit? If you feel your body isn't "worthy" of wearing something, you really should resolve to get over that.
I wear long pants and at minimum a t shirt to the gym. My legs and arms shouldn't be seen.
But. truthfully, they look just fine, and I feel badass when I wear a tank to the gym.
However, this year, starting tomorrow, when I purge my workout gear of shitty superstore t shirts that are too big and hold onto sweat like sponges, I am going to wear workout gear that keeps me a)dry, b)mobile and, honestly, c)looks cute.
I've worked very hard for this body I live in, and although I want to take it somewhere different this year, right now, right this very second, it's worthy of any damn thing I want to put on it.
I know that the New Year can really rev our engines, and give us a bit of pep, but this second, any one of you who are reading this can and absolutely should be confident and proud. If you want to change your bod this year, I support you wholly, BUT, your current one is pretty amaze-balls too, capiche?!
"I'm not going to go on vacation/join the gym/do anything new or challenging, until I've lost ___ lbs." That shit's bonkers, so seriously, know that you're worthy of anything you want. Right now.
And, in my humble experience, of purchasing my first bikini last summer, and following up with a serious addiction, to the point where I now have a favorite 'kini, I can tell you, that if you put on the bikini, you will feel exposed, and uncomfortable. But do it again. And again. And be confident AF, because if you do that, then that's all anyone will notice.
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