How to Get a Bikini Body

Ah, your bikini body.

Didn’t show up again this year?

…

YES IT DID.

PUT A BIKINI ON YOUR BODY (nod to my friend and mentor, Neghar Fonooni). AND BYEEEE.

You don’t have to shape it, shrink it, tan it, or pose it. And you MOST CERTAINLY don’t have to hide it.

Your body is worthy of whatever display you desire, no apologies necessary.

We get told that to put on a bikini when you don’t have a body that conforms to a narrow standard is “brave,” but, truly, it can be much more raw than that: you can show up living in a body that is sick and tired of being told how it should look and feel, so you just put on the first damn bikini you picked up and rocked the fuck out of it.

We get to choose, no matter what that choice is. There's no wrong way to have a body, and your perception of your body runs so much deeper than whether you like the way it looks or not.

Do you feel safe in your body? Comfortable? Strong? Powerful? Resilient? 

Body image is about more than conforming to a standard and, therefore, liking the way your body looks. It's a rebellion: to develop a nourishing relationship with our bodies and our perceptions of them is to reject a culture of fatphobia, sexism, racism, ableism, and more. It's to feel sexy and powerful while refusing the constant narrative of sexualization and the narrow standards of beauty determined by those who seek to take our dollars in exchange for our magic.

You don’t have to be brave; showing up in exactly what you’d like to wear – on exactly your terms, how you’ve chosen to adorn yourself – is your right.

Claim what’s yours.

xoxo,
Steph