A new study, by swimwear brand Pour Moi, has revealed the state of the women’s body confidence in 2023. The study looks at how women feel about wearing a swimsuit and the results are overwhelmingly negative, with women of all generations saying they feel nervous and inadequate when it comes to wearing a bikini or swimsuit this summer. To combat this, swimwear brand Pour Moi has worked with a self-love experience to create bespoke affirmations to target this lack of positivity and confidence.
According to the survey of over 2,000 women, women are not feeling good about swimsuit season this summer. When asked how they feel about wearing swimwear 83% of responses were negative, with feelings of embarrassment being more common, followed by anxiety and nervousness. Sadly, across all generations from Gen Z to Baby Boomers, none had any positive sentiments when asked how they feel about wearing swimwear.
Gen Z and Millennials both had ‘anxiety’ as their top feeling towards wearing swimwear, whereas the top feeling of Gen X and Baby Boomers was ‘embarrassment’.
Millennials & Gen Z’s Most Common Feelings Towards Wearing Swimwear
| Gen Z | Millennials | ||||
| Rank | Feeling | % of women who experience this feeling | Rank | Feeling | % of women who experience this feeling |
| 1 | Anxiety | 41% | 1 | Anxiety | 36% |
| 2 | Embarrassment | 39% | 2 | Nervousness | 32% |
| 3 | Nervousness | 32% | 3 | Embarrassment | 30% |
| 4 | Worry | 29% | 4 | Worry | 23% |
| 5 | Dread | 28% | 5 | Stress | 22% |
| 6 | Feeling dislike | 24% | 6 | Feeling dislike | 19% |
| 7 | Stress | 24% | 7 | Dread | 19% |
| 8 | Unhappiness | 23% | 8 | Feeling scared | 19% |
| 9 | Panic | 23% | 9 | Panic | 19% |
| 10 | Feeling miserable | 20% | 10 | Fear | 18% |
Reasons behind Gen Z’s and Millennials’ women’s bikini worries
The study also reveals the reasons why women worry about wearing swimwear, with not having a flat stomach being the top reason stated by both Gen Z and Millennial women. For Millennials, physical worries continue in the findings, with concerns about having gained weight (43%) and feeling wobbly (40%) being the next most common worries.
Gen Z, our youngest generation surveyed, were notably more concerned with others’ perceptions and comparison to social media. A third of Gen Z women are worried about being stared at in swimwear, making it the was the second most common worry (33%), followed by concerns about others criticising their bodies (32%).
The worry about don’t looking like those on TikTok or Instagram was sixth on the list for Gen Z (29%), the highest this concern appeared for any generation.
| Gen Z | Millennials | ||||
| Rank | Issue | % of women with this swimwear worry | Rank | Issue | % of women with this swimwear worry |
| 1 | Not having a flat stomach | 40% | 1 | Not having a flat stomach | 49% |
| 2 | Worried about being stared at | 33% | 2 | Having gained weight | 43% |
| 3 | Worried others will criticise my body | 32% | 3 | Feeling wobbly | 40% |
| 4 | Having gained weight | 31% | 4 | Stretch marks | 36% |
| 5 | Stretch marks | 30% | 5 | Worried others will criticise my body | 35% |
| 6 | Body doesn’t look like those on Instagram or TikTok | 29% | 6 | Cellulite | 34% |
| 7 | Not having a bikini wax or shave | 28% | 7 | Having thighs that touch | 29% |
| 8 | Being on your period | 27% | 8 | Worried about being stared at | 28% |
| 9 | Having hairy legs or underarms | 27% | 9 | Being pale | 24% |
| 10 | Having thighs that touch | 26% | 10 | Body doesn’t look like those on Instagram or TikTok | 23% |
Bespoke swimwear affirmations
To help encourage positivity when wearing swimwear, Pour Moi has teamed up with affirmations expert Latha Jay to create a bespoke set of affirmations that are aimed at combating negative thoughts and feelings this summer season.
The affirmations, which each target a specific common swimwear concern that emerged from the survey results, are to be used through the summer season – either repeated out loud in the morning and evening or written down and kept with you throughout the day for you to refer to.
More information on the survey results and the affirmations here https://www.pourmoi.co.uk/nowtrending/now-trending-body-positive-affirmations-for-swimwear-season
