Being Body Confident During a Beach Vacation
With beach vacations, comes swimwear and lots of exposed skin. Although most of us may love the beach, we may not always feel comfortable showing off our bodies. It doesn’t always have to be about being uncomfortable with the physical condition of your body either, sometimes modesty can also affect your ability to be your most confident self when soaking up the sun. So, how do you go about being body confident during a beach vacation?
Workout
Now, by suggesting that you work out, I don’t necessarily mean that you have to get in body builder physical condition. Even if you only go for a walk a couple times a week, being physically active can really improve your mood and self-esteem. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins and dopamine (the “feel good” chemical). Confidence starts in your mind. If you are regularly active, you will constantly be releasing dopamine, which will cause you to view yourself more positively, thus improving your confidence and making you more comfortable in your own skin. Plus, you’ll also be making incremental physical changes to your body which will surely help you to feel good.
Adjust your diet
We all know that eating healthy foods is 80% of reaching our physical fitness goals. But adjusting your diet slightly a week or two before your beach vacation can really have positive effects on you both mentally and physically. Drink more water. Eat more vegetables. Cut back on sugar, junk food, and bread products. These changes can help you to reduce bloating and water weight gain and can detox your body and mind, making you feel more confident when you finally hit the sun and sand.
Pick the right swimwear
There are so many different swimwear options out there to choose from, so pick one that makes you feel like your best. Prefer a one piece suit over a string bikini? Then wear one. If you like a design with fun animal print or graphics on it, go for it. If you hate a particular part of your body, find a suit that enhances the other parts of your body that you love. Don’t worry about the current trends or what society says you should wear based on the characteristics of your body; wear what makes you feel awesome and strut your stuff confidently!
Confidence is silent, insecurities are loud.
Embrace your body
Embrace YOUR body. Stop looking to magazines or celebrities to tell you what you should look like. Everyone’s body is made differently and not everyone’s “healthy” looks the same. As a runner, the best example I can think of is running a race. If you look at the people that run marathons, they are all different shapes and sizes. I’ve seen people that according to stereotypes, don’t “look like runners”, yet they can run 26.2 miles without stopping. Admit to yourself that not everyone has the same DNA and not everyone’s body will look the same. Two people could eat the same meals and have the same exercise plan and look completely different physically. This very fact is why you should not compare your body to others. Accept what you’re working with and own it.
Fake it until you make it
The easiest thing to do when you just can’t seem to find the confidence is to fake it until you make it. Just go to the beach and have a great time. Don’t worry about how you look or what people may be thinking about how you look. Chances are that the very people that you’re worried about are more worried about their own bodies, not yours. Fake confidence and eventually you will either actually become confident, or forget why you were worried in the first place.
Life is too short to not enjoy a beach vacation because of body insecurity. Don’t let something so insignificant prevent you from enjoying life to the fullest. Live, explore, and work whatcha momma gave ya!
