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Original poster

Am i too fat to wear a bikini?

198 replies

Sammyfifi · 05/08/2016 00:44

Hi im new to this so here it goes ...
I go on holiday soon and im no slim Jim i weigh 17st and a size 18 and i don't know weather to wear a bikini or not would any body else if u was my size and weight or do u think i would just get laughed at ? My partner has told me to stick my finger up at people that look at me in disgust i just don't know wot to do 😯

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dementedpixie · 05/08/2016 08:00

I am almost 16 stone and wore a bikini on holiday recently (and the last few years tbh). Most people on holiday wore them regardless of size or age. I wear a 36GG bikini top and a 20 bikini bottom. I have panache and curvy Kate bikini separates.

PeppaPigTastesLikeBacon · 05/08/2016 08:02

It's to do with confidence more than size - the same with clothes. If you feel uncomfortable in a bikini then you will look uncomfortable which is not very flattering. This is true of a tankini and a swim suit also.

to be honest, whenever I have been on a beach or by the pool I'm not looking at or concentrating on other people

Tryingtostayyoung · 05/08/2016 08:02

Wear it!! Who cares, the last time I went away I was a size 12 (now a size bigger but that's a whole other thread) and I didn't have the confidence to wear a bikini, I watched how a woman I made friends with strutted around in a string bikini, size 18/20 and all I thought was good on you if only I was that confident. What's funny is that I used to be bigger size 16 and would wear a bikini, no one ever said anything, looked at me funny and I never felt judged.

wotoodoo · 05/08/2016 08:04

I am a size 8 and weigh less than 9st but I do not have the confidence to wear a bikini as I have a pregnant looking tummy despite pilates/core muscle exercises and after 5 dc. So I am really self conscious even in normal clothes, let alone a bikini.

I think anyone who has the confidence to wear a bikini is amazing, I would love to have that confidence but if you don't have confidence I don't think a partner or anyone else can really help you, especially if you don't believe it yourself and causes you anxiety.

I remember a magazine article about French women and they said they were amazed at the confidence of British and US women for wearing whatever they liked and not giving two hoots what others thought of them. They thought that kind of not giving a damn as quite breathtaking and thought it must be quite liberating!

There are plenty of skimpy clothed tourists who sunbathe in culturally sensitive/conservative areas where the local women would view this as terribly disrespectful and disgusting behaviour no matter what the size of the woman!

dementedpixie · 05/08/2016 08:04

I have this bikini top and teamed it with plain black bikini bottoms

Am i too fat to wear a bikini?
Onamissionfor2015 · 05/08/2016 08:06

Honestly no body cares! Or you might get a few people who make a snide comment to their partner under their breath but why care about people like that anyway.

Size 18 is hardly enormous.

Please take the bikini anyway so that you can wear it the 2nd day after you feel self conscious on the first day being one of the only people in a one piece Smile

ChipInTheSugar · 05/08/2016 08:07

Pixie what make is that? It's lovely.

NewUser2016 · 05/08/2016 08:07

sammyfifi definitely wear a bikini! You rarely see someone model like on beaches in my experience and nobody bats an eye. You see all shapes and sizes and at the end of the day, you don't know the people, so their opinions shouldn't matter Smile

dementedpixie · 05/08/2016 08:07

Think these are the bikini bottoms. They were more flattering than the shorts style ones

Am i too fat to wear a bikini?
dementedpixie · 05/08/2016 08:08

ChipInTheSugar it is curvy Kate. The bottoms are panache Isobel.

Kirriemuir · 05/08/2016 08:11

There is a a website I have found called swimwear365. You put in your measurements and it will tell you and show you the best styles to shop.

MorrisZapp · 05/08/2016 08:12

I'm 45 and a solid 14. Massive boobs. Here I am in Panache, my favourite brand.

Am i too fat to wear a bikini?
soyvanillalatte · 05/08/2016 08:13

Absolutely go for it but just makes sure the bikini is your size.
I have been watching a girl on facebook, (not a friend - a coach type person), who is all about "wear a bikini no matter what" and "in your face, I'm in a bikini" and shows pictures of herself defiantly in a red bikini. All well and good but it isn't about her size, more about the fact the red bikini doesn't fit well and isn't her cut. Pop another bikini on her and her raison d'etre would disappear I suppose. No-one would look twice. Just a gal in a bikini.

Sugarlightly · 05/08/2016 08:22

Take a look at #WeWearWhatWeWant on twitter

DavetheCat2001 · 05/08/2016 08:23

I've just got back from Menorca.

It was 35 degrees most days. I took a new bikini (skimpy) and a nice tankini with me as I wasn't sure.

I practically lived in the bikini and didn't bother with the tankini as it was too ruddy hot!

Take a few things and then you can decide when you get there.

juicee13 · 05/08/2016 08:24

It's all about confidence, as a pp said you can be a size 8 and feel exactly the same as you do.

I'm size 10 and feel incredibly self conscious in a bikini, not necessarily because of my size, but because I hate the cellulite on my legs. My partner and friends tell me I'm silly all the time and people would kill for my figure etc. I just try to keep the positives in mind, like focus on something about my body I like and I put my negative issues to the back of my mind. Well I try to anyway!

I've never sat on a sun lounger looking at larger people and thought anything bad. I look and think "wow, good for them having that confidence"

Sofabitch · 05/08/2016 08:27

I'm a size 24 and Wear a bikini. They are more comfortable.

Just make sure you pick one that fits properly and flatters your shape. They can be way more forgiving than a swimming costume if you're careful with the style.

carabos · 05/08/2016 08:32

I'm a toned, well-defined size 8. I wouldn't be seen dead in a bikini. It's nothing to do with size, just confidence.

HerOtherHalf · 05/08/2016 08:36

We are all beautiful and we are all ugly, it just depends on the mentality of the observer. I don't give a flying fruitbat for the opinions of those who can't find the beauty in every person. It's like trying to cure the Internet of Stoopid. Be happy within your self because it's the only self you're ever going to get.

pollyblack · 05/08/2016 08:36

I don't think its all to do with confidence. I am size 10 and don't feel comfortable in a bikini. I don't wear clothes I don't feel comfortable in so why would i for swimwear- i just don't think bikinis suit my body shape. I wore gorgeous strapless swimsuits on the beach this year and felt great and didn't care if people thought it was weird to not wear a bikini. There is no rule that bikini is the "best" swimwear- and living in the north no one would ever get to see my brown tummy anyway so wasn't bothered about it staying white!

dementedpixie · 05/08/2016 08:41

Much easier to go to the toilet wearing a bikini and you don't have to do a full strip off

unlucky83 · 05/08/2016 08:41

Another saying go for it - if I was more organised I would have bought one before going away this year. I went to a hot place last year and in a costume (I've never worn a bikini in my life!) I was definitely the odd one out - lots of people of all shapes and sizes were wearing them around the pool.
Left everything to the last minute this year so didn't have time to shop for one so felt like the odd one out again -but actually find costumes easier to swim in and more comfortable - less bits to dig in.
Also I feel sad that DD2 (9) (thin, perfect weight, not hit puberty yet) will only wear a costume and wonder if she has picked it up from me. Am going to work on getting her to wear a bikini next year...
DD1 (15) wouldn't wear swimwear as she is being 'agender' -trying to make people confused whether she is male or female and in a costume she can't hide her chest Sad . I am hoping she grows out of it as she used to love swimming. I did get her in the pool once in a costume and she came in in her (male) shorts and t-shirt once but even though she wears a binder the tshirt clung to her and you could tell she had boobs...so she wouldn't do it again Sad

unlucky83 · 05/08/2016 08:44

demented I learned this last year (late 40s) - it was a revelation.
Most people don't strip off a costume to use the loo - just pull the lower half of your costume to one side for a wee...a life changer....

heateallthebuns · 05/08/2016 08:45

I wore a red swimsuit on hols with tummy control and padded uplift cups. Halter neck. From tesco. Looked v good I thought. I'm size 14.

Aiming to be 12 for next year and I might wear a bikini, but I have a v wrinkly twin tummy. I really like the 50s bikinis, v glam.

Plus I've cellulite so I didn't feel as good in my shorts as I did in my swimsuit!

At a 12 the cellulite and wrinkles might not show up as much, plus I'll put a f**ckload of fake tan on.

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