Spring has sprung but before you can even think about all the new outdoorsy things to do, everyone and their mother seems to be buzzing about their latest diet and #BikiniSeason. The pressure to lose weight is at an all time high because of the insecurity girls feel about someone judging them for not having the “perfect bikini body” (whatever that means). However, I will not be participating in any harsh absurd diets (aka juicing) or hating on myself since someone will be seeing me in bikini, instead I am excited for bikini season. No, I am not a size 0 nor do I have perfectly toned abs. I am simply myself and I am more than happy with that.
For years I would dread bikini season because I would feel an immense pressure to be perfect. Everything about bikini season was a nuisance for me, especially buying new bathing suits, which would always end in a locked dressing room in tears. I did not love myself and I was constantly looking for approval elsewhere, instead of looking for it within me. This resulted in hour-long workouts and practically starving myself on some insane diet that never worked, all for nothing. During these times, I practically put my emotional and physical state in jeopardy for a peace of mind that I never got.
After much self-reflection, I realized that working so hard to achieve the perfect bikini body was nonsense because the perfect bikini body does not exist. Beauty comes in all shapes and sizes and one does not outbid the other. I realized that my body is my temple and I needed to treat it right. I started exercising and eating right with no other agenda than to simply be healthy. The better I treated my body, the better I began to feel about myself.
There is so much more to bikini season than stressing out about what society feels is perfect. From now on, I anticipate bikini season because it means tanning on the beach, listening to county music, and spending time with friends and family. The furthest thing from my mind is how I look in my bikini because I know I look great and so do you!! Bikini season is the time to distress from school and have some fun in the sun. Do not let some ridiculous notion of needing to get the perfect “bikini body” ruin a good time because you are perfect just the way you are.