A recent poll of two thousand Brits revealed that just over half the 59 year-old women who took part were confident of looking good in their summer clothes, including bikini's or swimsuits, yet only eighteen percent of men and women between 18-35 felt positive about shedding their clothing for the beach. Surprising results, as personally I had much more confidence in my 20's than 40's.but then again this is an industry that uses models with a BMI of 5 and it is usually the young who are affected by what they see in magazines and on the catwalk.

Preparing to hit the beaches and don a bikini can be by one of two ways - or a combination of both:
The cheap and difficult way - get into a gruelling routine of sit ups, leg lifts and frantic dieting or
The expensive but much easier (and more relaxing) method - get a spray tan to cover stretch marks or imperfections, have some lymphatic drainage massages to tone the thighs or even indulge in Ultratone sessions (similar to a souped up Slendertone machine).

Alternatively, do neither - as long as you are confident, happy and healthy, it shouldn't really matter what size you are! Swimwear and beachwear for all shapes and sizes.