[Vex]

So I went to buy a swimsuit over the weekend and tried on a tankini with both the regular bottom and those skirts they make.

My old swimsuit was one of those with a skirty bottom, but I was hoping that I could finally do away with them.

I didn't actually think I looked all that bad in the regular bottom (size 14 omg!) but chickened out and bought the skirt one to save everyone from the deflated balloon thighs. It shouldn't make a difference as it doesn't cover all that much more, but it does.

I have to ask, for those of you who have lost weight and worn alternative swim bottoms, did you ever get the courage to go normal?

[Jonsgurl0531]

Not yet for me.... but my thighs are pretty SAD looking .

[Munchy]

I have always been a "curvy" woman and even at my lowest adult weight of 112, I bought a gorgeous bikini and never wore it without a cover up.

I have not walked around in only a bathing suit since I was probably 6 years old. Even when I was lifeguarding I wore shorts. It's just not comfortable. I usually wear dresses to the beach now, and just forgo the bathing suit all together since I never swim anyway.

[berryblondeboys]

Well, I have a suit with a sort of skirted bottom and two without it. DO I have loose skin on my inner thighs? You betchya, but my legs are also really toned from working out.

Personally, I HATE the wet skirt on my legs that takes forever to dry and really - are suits REALLY covering anything? Not really... At the pools I see a lot of skinny people with flabby thighs, poochy stomachs, saggy boobs, etc. We're all imperfect.

Wear what you want to wear and act confidently in them - that's all that matters. If the skirt makes you feel more comfortable, then go with that. If regular does, then go that route.

[kateleestar]

I actually just ordered swim bottoms yesterday. They have a 5.5 inch inseam, so I'm hoping when they arrive they will be long enough to hide/cover the deflated thighs, lol. If not, I might rock them anyways.. The people on the beach can suck it!

[kateleestar]

Originally Posted by berryblondeboys

Wear what you want to wear and act confidently in them - that's all that matters. If the skirt makes you feel more comfortable, then go with that. If regular does, then go that route.

YES! This, exactly. Totally agree!

[CanadianCutie]

I have never liked the skirt bottoms or skirted bathing suits. The only ones I have ever had I have not bought myself, and I refuse to wear them now. It might be because I am pear shaped, but I can't stand the feeling of the wet fabric against my thighs, no matter how fast they dry, it's not fast enough. Perhaps I'm in the minority, cause that's pretty much all I can find around here.

[sontaikle]

There is no way in **** I'm running around in a little tiny bikini bottom that ties on the sides. I bought a boyshort style bikini. It doesn't quite hide the loose skin on my thighs, but it does hide the lose skin on my lower abdomen.

The fact that I even bought a bikini is mind-blowing to me. I have no other swimsuit though, so I have to wear this one!

I don't know if I'll ever get the courage to go "normal" on the bathing suit, but as long as I am comfortable in this one I think I'm fine.

[Sheridan]

Hi,
I guess I am the odd person who actually prefers the skirts. I love that they do double duty for tennis as well though my tennis days are over.

I would agree that the best thing to do is to where whatever makes you happy.

Good luck,

Sheridan

[kaplods]

When I was in college, I bought my first unskirted bathing suit since I was 8. I weighed about 280 lbs (so pretty close to what I weigh now). I LOVED that suit.

It showed a lot of upper thigh because it was high cut, but it made my legs look longer (and my thighs were firmer then - still a lot of cellulite though).

My biggest problem with it, was that it freaked me out how much "maintenance" I had to do (in terms of shaving my bikini area). I was always terrified that hairs were sneaking out (or god forbid, a tampon string).

I never bought an unskirted bathing suit since (except one that came with a separate sarong coverup and I always wore the sarong).

I'm really picky about my skirt though. It has to be the perfect length and it has to be the perfect amount of gather. I don't want it to be too poofy, but I also don't want it to be a tight tube.

As I'm getting smaller, my preference in length is changing. At my highest weight I had a suit I had a real hard time getting rid of (until hubby started telling me I looked ridiculous). The suit was a gorgeous aqua color with a little fishy print and the skirt was long (and seemed to get longer as it got wet - if it had covered my knees I would have been very happy - why can't there be a wider range of acceptable lengths in swimwear).

My current suit I got on sale and I'm not happy with it (but it will do until I need another size down). I need a two piece (because with my arthritis I can't get into or out of one pieces very well), and I wish I'd been pickier - I bought what I could find at the best price in my size. The skirt is shorter than I like (which isn't terrible) and doesn't have enough gather (it isn't a super tight tube, but it does emphasize my humpty dumpty tummy). The top also is a bit blousy, and I prefer a suit that rocks the cleavage.

I think skirts can be as flattering/sexy as traditional bottoms, but it's all about picking the right skirt.

If you don't like them, you don't like them. Find something you do like and wear it.

I've found that no matter what you choose (and no matter your weight) some people will criticise it, but most people couldn't care less what you're wearing.

[Munchy]

Originally Posted by sontaikle

I bought a boyshort style bikini.

Boyshorts are cute, and I love the look of the board-shorts as an alternate for the skirted suit. I had a pair from the Gap that were really cute and didn't look or make me feel too out of place when I was in high school, but I haven't been able to find another pair that aren't too long/bermuda-y and are as flattering as those were.

[JustJ280]

Ok, this might be TMI, but I have to put my two cents in here. I LOVE the skirts! But then again, we tend to hang out in areas on the coast where it's perfectly normal to go somewhere in a suit. With that said, my main reason is... I don't want any pubes hanging out! :O I try to be diligent with keeping that up down there, but I always have this fear of missing something and stuff hanging out! LOL So, I just always have worn the skirted ones heavy or thin. I do remember owning suits without the skirt and I remember checking non-stop to make sure there was nothing showing. I think even at my goal, I'll go to a bikini top but still keep the skirted bottom. I don't even really notice it brushing my thighs, but then again I wear the shorter more fitted ones.

[SisterFunk]

I just bought a new suit last week and I made the transition from the skirt to the regular bottoms. I still haven't given up on the tankini top yet. My biggest complaint about the regular bottoms is the maintenance of the bikini line.

I keep saying I want a body I can wear a bikini in but I am not sure I'll ever be a bikini type person...

[guichita]

I LOVE those super high cut bottoms from the eighties. I doubt I'll ever have the nerve to pull them off, but man, when I see those they just put a smile on my face.

[586]

I made the move to non-skirted swimsuit just this summer for the first time in a decade. I decided I just did not care what anyone might think about my thighs, my butt, my arms - I refuse to hide my form when I'm doing anything athletic. When I go to the pool, I'm there to swim. I've got my trusty plain black onepiece suit that suctions to my 'flaws' and I just adore it.

I have a psychedelic colored bikini with regular high-thigh cut bottoms that I reserve for laying out in at the beach. I've braved it without a sarong or coverup which took a lot of ovaries to do with my residual body image issues at play but it felt liberating.

I'm almost convinced it's the psychedelic print that gave me the courage.