Bathing Suit TMI

Today we went to the beach. And it was lovely even though it was windy and sandy and my shins are sun burnt because I forgot to put sunscreen on them (but I got the rest of me thank god). We walked a mile down the beach and then back poking jelly fish that had washed up on shore and watching the plovers run from the waves. We sat in the sunshine and I wore a bathing suit without too much damage to my self esteem. j/k.

Vacations past have normally meant a new bathing suit. When I was heavier and settled at an 18W-22W, I had several and I loved them. I spent hours lounging by the pool at my apartment complex in Boulder soaking up the sun and not caring what others thought. One was a black and green Liz Claiborn number with a matching sarong that I wore all the time. I wasn't shy about wearing it without the sarong and was so tan I practically glowed. One of the pictures in my slide show is from that time. Back then I felt thin at 240ish and while smaller, my sag was still well filled out. I definitely felt more comfortable in my own skin then than I do now.

Fast forward a couple of years and as I dropped weight I never bothered to get a new one that I could actually wear. Then came a vacation to Key West in early 2006. I figured there must be somewhere down there I could get one. I ended up purchasing a bright pink, yellow orange number (again with matching sarong) that had no strap around the neck. I have no boobs to speak of and even less so now that I have lost weight. It stayed up just fine but was more for the pool than the beach. I actually wore it to our company outing last year and felt perfectly comfortable in it, but I was sitting about 1/4 of a mile away from everybody else.

Earlier this year we went to Arizona and I really wanted to use the pool. I scoured the racks at Marshall's and came away with something passable and on sale. I wore it once and probably won't ever again. It's black with a strap around the neck. Not very comfortable.

So when packing for vacation last week I grabbed the one from Key West figuring I would wear it if I had too. But when we stopped at the LL Bean outlet they had bathing suits on sale. I couldn't help but look. My first attempt at a swimsuit when I lost weight ended poorly and it was an LL Bean tankini. Back then I had yet to learn that I need a one piece and that even though I may be a 10 in real life, I am not a 10 in bathing suits. Due to a shipping snafu I now have 2 tops and bottoms, only worn once. It exposed my middle and the skirt was dreadful. Nice idea, but not on me. I had planned on returning it, but in that quest to lose the last 10 pounds I kept it. I should have returned it for all the good it has done me.

Anyways, back to the LL Bean stop this week. I pawed through the racks and noticed they had those cute swim skirts than have no pantie inside. It covers my upper thighs nicely as they are designed to go over a one piece. Being an outlet they only had selected sizes and colors but I did manage to put together a cute one piece in a blue and green floral with a solid blue skirt for 30 bucks. Not bad.

Today I put it on and let me tell you it felt kind of weird. I am not used to my sag being held up like that. :/ Seriously I am used to my extra me hanging over my hips bones. It's this tummy flab that requires me to buy a suit in a larger size than I would normally. If I try on a 10, the fabric doesn't reach my chest the way it is supposed to and the built-in bra ends up supporting my middle. No good. Sometimes a long torso will fit okay, but I have to try it on. The suit I just bought was a 12 and the skirt was as well. Fits good, looks good, but still feels odd.

This is us enjoying the beach.