I looked at my swimsuits and bikinis from past seasons and knew that I needed to do a re-up (The Wire: IYKYK); “crunchy” elastic and thin material was not a good start. I started scouring websites for cute looks, hoping that I might look 1% as good as the models (still fighting the negative self-talk and I’m not ashamed to admit it). When the deliveries arrived I cringed as I put on the first swimsuit. But then I stopped. Before I looked in the mirror, I reminded myself that I accepted and respected my body. I was eating intuitively, embracing movement that made me feel good, and was not, and never ever would be, a size 0 or 2 and that’s ok! Well guess what, when I turned to face the mirror, my first thought was “hey, I don’t look so bad”. I walked down the hall to show my husband and I can tell from the look on his face that he thought I looked pretty darn good too!

Fast forward to day 1 in the sun.

Bikini and sarong on, I walked out to the pool area. I was still feeling a bit hesitant about how I looked, but there was no turning back. As I started to look around at the other guests I very quickly realized 2 things:

(1) no one cared about what I looked like more than me
(2) there were so many different body types, wearing a wide range of swimsuits, and every woman was owning it!

• Embrace body positivity - everyone has a different body and genetic blueprint, and there is no such thing as a perfect body

• Find a flattering swimsuit - there are so many styles out there, find the one that makes you feel comfortable and confident

• Practice self-care - prioritize self-care leading up to swimsuit season or start right now; embrace movement to feel good, stay hydrated, get enough sleep

• Focus on self-acceptance - replace negative self-talk with positive affirmations and remind yourself of all of your strength and things that you love about your body; be kind to yourself and practice self-acceptance

• Develop a healthy mindset - shift your focus from solely focusing on appearance to embracing a balanced healthy lifestyle (physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually); focus on feeling strong, energetic and confident