Google “Swimsuit Body” and a gallery of supermodels and swimsuit models pop up. The women are clad only in swim suits and they are in peak shape with very little body fat, aside from their plumped up breasts and buttocks. The images of men show big chiseled muscles on their chests and abdominals. Some of these images are photoshopped, but a lot of them are real people taken at great angles by good photographers to help make the subject look their best. That said, it is the magazine cover model that most people aspire to when they think of having that swim suit worthy shape.
A lot of pain and suffering can go into getting ready for the swimsuit season after months of not thinking about it. We would like to help eliminate that from your life, by providing you with the tips and tricks to help you look and feel beach-worthy year round.
Defining A Beach or Swim Suit Body
If you look at Urban Dictionary, a beach body is “a body that’s pretty much perfect. Perfect enough to show off in swimming trunks or bikinis.” To most of us, though, there is a lot more nuance to the definition. There is even a debate as to whether or not we should consider every body a beach, or continue to urge people to be as slim and fit as they can be year round. Or should we hold up images of swimsuit models and let people know that they too can look like this with just a little bit of work? TSLMS does not want to take sides in this debate, however, we can see the merit in all of the arguments. And we strongly applaud HealthLine for publishing their piece, “What A Beach Body Means To You.”
In that article, a number of women are asked what a beach body means to them. Their responses were that a beach body is any body that puts on a swimsuit and goes to the beach. They also remind their readers that bodies come in all shapes and sizes. Some people are wheelchair bound and have scarring that is unavoidable. Others carry more weight than others, even when they are entirely fit. And almost everyone, they point out, is insecure, so being self conscious is a trait common to the vast majority of people.
Another definition falls into the category of healthy. A beach body is healthy and fit. Lean because of exercise and a good, balanced, diet along side adequate hydration. Muscles that are developed and a body that spends time moving and stretching is going to look and feel better than a body that is sedentary. Some people are actually able to get close to the idealized body through exercise and diet. Many, however, need extra help from a doctor or other aesthetic professional to smooth out the cellulite, tuck up some wayward fat, or enhance certain features that fall short of body-owner’s desire.
Diet and Exercise Tips for A Year Round Beach Body
TSLMS is not a fitness and health expert. We are experts in providing that extra help that people need to look the way they want when they cannot achieve that vision through diet and exercise alone. So, to provide advice in this field we turned to our friends at the American Fitness Professionals Association (AFPA). They put together an article that we absolutely love on how to get beach body ready. We think that these tips pair perfectly with our work – to help our members’ clients stay looking good after they invest in work on themselves. Here are those tips (more details on each can be found in the article).
- Eat protein with every meal.
- Stop snacking.
- Cut out cocktails, wine and beer.
- Eat foods that fight cellulite.
- Follow a low-bloat diet.
- Sleep 7-9 hours every night.
- Don’t neglect upper back training.
- Train for better posture.
- Use high-intensity interval training to lean out.
- Increase your non-exercise physical activity.
- Select exercises that emphasize the core.
- Shape your glutes with weighted hip thrusts.
Fat Redistribution and Body Resurfacing Make You Swimsuit Ready
One of the biggest trends in body re-imaging is fat redistribution, or fat transfer. This is the process where fat is taken out of one part of the body where it is less desired, rendered, and inserted into another part of the body. This is a more natural way to make small tweaks or enhancements to the thighs, stomach, buttocks, breasts, and even the face. According to Women’s Health Magazine, it does pose some challenges such as the reabsorption of fat. However, for those people who are on track with diet and exercise and are looking for a tweak, not a giant size adjustment, these low impact procedures might be an excellent choice for having two areas of the body become more aligned with the desired look than the single area that other fillers will help.
Body contouring, combined with skin resurfacing, can also help. There is a device on the market that some of our members are starting to use which can do both for clients, as well as help to break down cellulite. Alma Accent works a little bit differently than other devices and is making waves with its capabilities. It is a laser that “combines the latest innovations in ultrasound (US) and radio frequency (RF) technologies to deliver effective, highly customized treatments with natural, long lasting results. The US energy is distributed homogeneously throughout the treatment area, effectively disrupting stubborn fat cells. RF power is then used to produce thermal deep heating to the tissue, resulting in more concentrated energy treatment.”
We are excited to see this, and other technologies that are coming to market and changing the way the average body can be transformed into the swimsuit body year round.
