Fitting guide: Best swimwear for Body Happiness

How would you describe your feelings about your body? Complicated? You may be lucky enough to feel confident or neutral about your body – you enjoy what it allows you to do, and don’t worry too much about how it looks. But, for many of us, letting go of those body hang-ups or worries is a difficult task.

We hear a lot about ‘body positivity’. In many ways, it’s a fantastic movement that encourages us to see beauty standards for what they are – ways for £multi-billion, global industries to make money by making us dissatisfied with how we look. But the body positive movement can also pile on a different kind of pressure, making us feel like we need to love our bodies.

Body neutrality, tolerance or happiness feels more obtainable. The latter, body happiness, implies a more holistic feeling – rather than being pinned on appearance, it encompasses how we feel in our bodies. That means that rather than focussing on being happier about how you look, you think about what makes your feel good. We find that if you feel good, you forget your body worries and radiate joy.

So, how do you find that body happiness in swimwear? Lots of women have told us that they feel more confident in swimwear than fully dressed. Why? Because they wear their swimwear to do an activity they love, whether that’s swimming, reading a book on a sun-lounger on holiday, surfing, paddleboarding or playing on the beach with their children. The important thing, then, is to find the right swimwear.

Swimwear for body confidence

In order to feel happy in your swimwear, it should be:

1. Supportive: Swimwear should hold you in all the right places to avoid discomfort or self-consciousness from a poor bust support or saggy fabric.

Try: The Essential Swimsuit in Black or Cobalt. The bonded fabric is thicker for ultimate support.

2. Second-skin: Research shows that if you’re aware of your clothing, you feel more self-conscious. To avoid this, your swimwear should fit you like a second skin, avoiding rubbing, pinching or squashing.

Try: The X-Back Swimsuitwith its four-way stretch that fits every inch of your body like a glove.

3. Soft: There’s a fine line between supportiveness and constricting. Finding swimwear that’s super-soft, stretchy and flexible will help you feel comfortable.

Try: The Adjustable Plunge Swimsuit, which is made from two layers of butter-soft fabric, seamless against your skin.

4. Made for movement: However big or small your movements, you need your swimwear to work for you. From swimming laps to jumping waves to lifting that cocktail from the side table to your mouth, you need to be confident that nothing will slip or pop out.

Try: Our Sports Swimbra in Forest Green for simple, sporty style for swimming, surfing or paddling.

5. Stylish: Lastly, your swimwear should be a style that you love and makes you feel great. You can opt for the safety of classic black, but we love splashing out with bright colours and showstopping patterns that make us feel amazing.

Try: Our gorgeous Body Happy Signature Swimsuit in Violet and Rose for ultimate joy.