Hearing the phrase "summer body" holds a different meaning than it did when I first started hearing it. Before, it used to leave an uncomfortable impression in my mind and made me think about how I was going to "get my summer body ready." But today, I love my "summer body," my "fall body," my "winter body," and my "spring body," because they're all my body.
This generation needs more body positivity.
It was around the end of middle school or the beginning of high school when I started hearing the phrase "summer body" followed by workout regimes and "summer body diets." I never really thought about participating in any diet, but I did look for workouts that helped tone muscles and keep a flat stomach. In recent years, social media has been flooded with body-positive accounts not just for the summer, but for the whole year! I started seeing women proudly showing their stretch marks and extra skin; various waistlines and bust sizes, all accompanied with body-positive messages. Honestly, I think that's what this generation needed, especially since (at least for me) "ideal body types" have been something most women have looked for.
At some point or another, we've compared our body types to the models on billboards in Times Square.
But lately, we've found our own ways to hold onto our self-worth.
I think one of the biggest steps this generation has taken is learning how to love ourselves, and it's shown to be one of the most influential shifts in society. We needed to find and hold onto our self-worth, and we found our own ways to do that. This is what sparked the body-positive messages, accounts, posts, and even songs on the radio, starting a mass movement of learning how we can love our bodies, even if they don't "fit the mold." I discovered my value and what I meant to myself by building the foundation I needed for gauging how I should let what people say affect me. Needless to say, I have come to recognize my worth, and I love myself for taking the time and actions to do so. I hope you will realize what an amazing and beautiful human being you are, too.
I couldn't be more thankful for the people who speak up about things like these that are considered "taboo."
There are so many things posted on social media that can make us feel belittled or insecure about how our body looks (like hip dips, back rolls, stretch marks, and vitiligo). This is one of the things we should PREPARE ourselves for instead of OBSESS over. But I couldn't be more thankful for the people who decided to speak up about something that was, at a point, taboo.
At the end of the day, it is YOUR body and no one else's, and you should feel comfortable in it.
Wear your body proudly because no one can work it better than you, and I hope when you hear "summer body," you think of your body because your body is beautiful.
