Inclusion and going beyond the beach body

Aden- Sports Illustrated

I don’t like the phrase ‘beach body’. It’s a common term that is often thrown around when the summer/August holidays approach. I never gave it much thought when I was younger, but I have come to realize it pressures mostly women into feeling immense shame about their bodies and even robs them of the joy of having a good day at the beach.

The typical representation of a beach body is usually a super slender body with the abs displayed or a slight print of the rib cage clad in skimpy swimwear. There is hardly any bodyfat to be seen and the swimsuit tends to fit like a glove.

In my 29 years of life I have never really felt ashamed of my body because for the most part I was represented size wise. They call it the ‘skinny privilege’ and like any other privilege it makes you unconsciously ignore the underrepresented and the marginalized.