Spring is here. And as it brings long, sunny days, a fresh breeze, and of course the seasonal allergies, I know the countdown to the end of school can’t help but start ticking down in the back of your mind. Summer is just a few months away!
The trendiest thing for the past few summers has been the “Hot Girl Summer.” According to our queen Megan Thee Stallion in her hit song “Hot Girl Summer”, which coined the term, a “Hot Girl Summer” means having fun and being confident without a care in the world. However, “Hot Girl Summer” has gone beyond just promoting strong, carefree women to encompass a certain level of health, wellness, and beauty. Oftentimes, it is also related to not being tied down to a man, going feral (partying, drinking, etc.), and staying single. While I think the concept of a hot girl summer is great in a lot of ways considering it encourages women to be confident and do as they please, I still think it has a lot of issues that we don’t need to still be encouraging in 2024. For that reason, I am petitioning to officially cancel the “Hot Girl Summer” body.
The “Hot Girl Summer” body does not necessarily need to be canceled by me, as I think it is already growing outdated. Considering trends come and go, the “Hot Girl Summer” concept began years ago and has become less prevalent as time goes on. However, I think this has become such a popular trend that it will be a term used for years to come, just like many slang terms have taken a longer hold on our generation (flex, OOTD, bet, etc… you know the ones). While the TikTok and YouTube videos teaching you how to get a natural BBL or the perfect bikini body have died down, I’m sure as summer comes around, they will pop up again. Despite the self-love energy going around, the drive to attain the perfect summer body never seems to leave!
There is a major difference between being healthy and having a “Hot Girl Summer” bod. A healthy body looks different on everyone, and our journeys and struggles with our bodies and identities do not follow the same timeline, especially not a timeline that warps to fit the months of summer. When I think “Hot Girl Summer”, I immediately think that it means it’s time for women to begin prepping for their “Hot Girl Summer” bod — one that looks good in bikinis and minimal clothing and is something that appeals to men.
While I love the idea of trying to stay fit to be confident in yourself, that element has been completely misconstrued. The problem is that “hot” is associated with “attractive,” and attractive is associated with a certain body type and look that is often unachievable or unrealistic. It also assumes that you should be showing a lot of skin and attain a gorgeous sun-kissed tan before returning to school in the fall. I personally know many girls talking about their urge to achieve a “Hot Girl Summer” body when they are already beautiful, simply because the pressures of the beauty standard become stronger as summer approaches. Working out excessively and eating less because of the “Hot Girl Summer” movement is wrong in every way.
As summer approaches, I want to be the first to declare that the hot girl summer body is officially out — a fad from the past. Although it’s been said before, it cannot be said enough: loving and accepting your body comes before getting the “hot girl bod,” even in the summer! If the “Hot Girl Summer” popularity endures, let it mean what Meg Thee Stallion really wanted it to be. I recently attended a Real Hot Girl Wellness class as a part of Meg’s collab with Nike, and the mantra was “thee hottie state of mind.” Hot isn’t the perfect body — it’s having a badass, I-can-do-anything mindset about every aspect of your life. “Hot girl summer” also does not mean trying to obtain something that the male gaze will like on you — it’s about not caring whatsoever about what men think. Spend this summer doing things you love, not what you think other people want to see you doing or what people are pressuring you to do. Being happy and healthy in whatever way that means for you is what it takes to be a real hot girl this summer.
