Why Are Swimsuits So Scary?

My friend Laura sent a link (here) to a spoof on what kind of body you need to have to wear a bikini.  It's based on those damned magazine articles about body type and flattering swimsuits that crop up every summer.  It's all about covering up imperfections.

To hell with it!  I think every woman in America should publish a picture of herself in a swimsuit and overwhelm the number of photo-shopped, air-brushed photos of models in swimsuits.  This is what real women look like. 

I got so worked up, I put on my current swimsuit and took a picture:

 

 

I feel a bit embarrassed by the state of my bedroom--another feminine hang-up--but not about how I look.  I realized that after 12 years of wearing a swimsuit twice a week for pool exercise, I think I've gotten desensitized to fear-of-swimsuit! It is what it is.

 

Maybe all it takes is repetition.  And a nice crowd.  The first day I went to the pool, I was freaked by how out of shape I was.  Then I looked around the dressing room and realized that nobody cared what I looked like. 

 

A great crowd

 

Nobody there would ever study another person's body in a swimsuit and think, "fat thighs, bulging stomach, big hips," or any of the other mean things I'd been saying to myself.  Mean, mean stuff. All they cared about was exercise and getting in shape.

 

I've gone through countless swimsuits in 12 years.  The chlorine rots them and makes them fade, stretch out, and become translucent.  After buying expensive ones with special panels to hold in my tummy ("Miraclesuits"), and cheap ones at Ross in mid-winter (great bargains if you can find your size AND it's Senior Discount Day), I've settled on simple tank suits I find at  this website. 

 

I order two sizes larger than I wear in jeans, and I like the "Longitude" brand because it's long in the torso, with a built-in bra.  The straps stay put.  What more could I ask for?  And there are always some on sale, and they're exercise-friendly.