It’s summertime and the living is easy…if you’re thin, I mean.

Hear me out.

The temperatures climb and for many women, this means one very exciting thing: shopping. Shopping for sundresses, jean skirts, tank tops, even – for some freaks of nature who actually enjoy this sort of thing – bikinis. It’s time to start slathering on the Jergens lotion with a hint of color so all that exposed skin looks healthy and glowy. Yeah, cellulite might present a challenge for the beach but if Mischa Barton and Jennifer Love Hewitt and Kim Kardashian and Janice Dickinson all have it, why the hell can’t we?

But I’m getting off the point.

A week ago, UK columnist Kira Cochrane wrote a piece for The Guardian about the perils of being overweight in the summer. Her point: There’s this intense societal pressure to cover everything up, but damn, it’s hot out here (or is it just me? tee hee)

(Note: This idea came from my iVillage editor who read the column firsthand while on a trip to Scotland and had the audacity to email me pics of her cavorting in gorgeous castles and drinking real Scottish tea and playing with cuddly, cottony sheep, which is a lifelong dream of mine. The sheep thing, I mean.)

An excerpt from the column: "The other thing that makes us hotter than the average Joe is that, when it comes to clothes, there is lots of cultural pressure for fat people to cover up. This comes in many forms, both obvious and insidious: the columnists who write about how disgusting fat people are, the people who call out, "Oi, fattie!" in the street, the well-meaning aunties who take us aside and tell us we really shouldn't be revealing any flesh, save our wrists and ankles, out of aesthetic consideration for others.

This pressure isn't such a problem in the winter, when we can happily throw layers at our body, like a stripper in reverse: vests, tops, cardigans, hoodies, anoraks, job done. Down below, there's the option of trousers, and also, for women (and the more adventurous men among us) that wondrous invention: tights.

… Come summer, of course, and it's goodbye to tights and layers, and hello to a constant calculation of how much you can get away with wearing. Too few clothes, and you run the risk of being scorned, or, worse, pitied for your excess flesh. Too many, and you will burn up suddenly, shamefully, like a sausage in hell. And so I found myself on Sunday, in a Topshop changing room, trying to decide whether I could get away with a white cap-sleeved T-shirt. Did the sleeves finish far enough down my arm, or was there just too much of my wonderful, rippling upper-arm cellulite on show? I finally decided that the T-shirt would be absolutely fine - with a cardigan on top. And thus I resigned myself to another sweltering summer.”

So, how do you feel about this? She’s not asking for pity – just the ability to wear a cute, comfortable outfit on a sweltering day. Something like this, perhaps. (Which, incidentally, I recently purchased, though the style is totally out of character. It’s short, but cute. A padded bra will be necessary. As will some cajones.) But the sad fact of the matter is, as a woman who does not have to deal with society’s prejudices against obesity, I can wear this on a 95 degree/102% humidity Chicago day and won’t be pointed at…construction workers aside. Kira just wants to wear a freaking tee shirt without worrying if her heavy upper arms will somehow offend a passer-by.

While the column ran abroad, this is a wholly American conundrum. Just this morning, I heard two radio jockeys bantering back and worth about summer fashions that piss people off. One caller mentioned gigantic, bug-eyed sunglasses on gilrs; another said he always laughs at guys who "pop" their collars...especially mutliple collars. Then one DJ asked, rather crudely, "What about fat women? Should they let it all hang out in the summer?" The other responded a bit more kidly with, "You have to know how to dress your body."

I don’t know if this is going to devolve into a ‘personal responsibility’ discussion, but let’s remember to be kind and compassionate. That said, what are your feelings? Do you –consciously or sub - expect heavy people to cover up more than their thin counterpart come summertime? And if so, why?

Comments

Ahh, this topic has long been an issue for me. Thank you for bringing it up.
I can't stand it when I'm in public and an overweight person is wearing something that shows a lot of skin or isn't exactly flattering in our culture...and I think, "You go girl! Wear that belly top and work it. Wear whatever makes you feel good, other people be damned." However, if I'm with someone and we see that person (male or female) my companion is sometimes inclined to shield their eyes (as if they've been "blinded") and make fake gagging noises. I mean WHAT is the big deal about seeing all that flesh?? IMHO if you have that much trouble looking at a fat person, YOU are the one with issues, not the lady who just wants to be cool in the summer.
If i can where it, so can she. Women put WAY too much stock in "what other people might think."
OK, off my soapbox now. :-)

Yikes- not sure how I feel about this one.
i hear SO OFTEN from my overweight clients that they are overweight as a protective shell- everyone sees them as the fat one instead of the one thats not pretty enough or smart enough or successful enough. if people brush them off as being fat, they cant be judged(and rejected) for their actual personalities.

Maybe the missing layer of clothes leaves them feeling more exposed than they are used to and there for a bit more aware of it? if someone is a big enough ass to say something in the summer, they will say it in the winter as well.

That being said, wear whatever the hell you want. I expect to be able to walk outside in shorts and not get whistled at, but it happens and you know what? F-them. being objectified doesnt feel good either, even though its not nearly as hurtful as being made fun of. its better than heat stroke, though.

Oi. F--- that. It's HOT, dammit. And I like to swim (which is good healthy exercise too, btw.) And I like capris. And I like tanks. And within reason - I do try not to traumatise the neighbors - I love to be nekkid.

Hey, I'm a human being who has got just as much right to be here as anyone else does. If someone doesn't like seeing me, guess what? They don't have to look. Life is way too short to go through it spending that much energy trying to be invisible.

Women have the right to wear whatever they want, especially when it's hot outside. Still, I think there are decent and not decent clothes for everyone available. I don't like seeing anyone's ass hanging out of their shorts, not even the girls with the "ideal" body. But that's just me, and I dress myself accordingly.

Hmmm. I say dress for the occasion, age appropriately of course. If it means showing some skin, so be it. I mean, if you're by the pool, wear a bathing suit. If you want to wear capris and a tank, I guess you should wear a bra if you need one. Like Sonn said, if you don't like what you see, look the other way. Now matching...that's something I personally like to push just to irritate people. Mustard color flats, jeans, white tank and teal cardigan and nothing to tie it all together! Drives people bonkers and I love it!

Wear what you're comfortable with. I don't have a problem with seeing flesh if the person is confident about what they are wearing. I grew up fat, and I remember how uncomfortable & self conscious I always was in the summer...it sucked. But I also spent most of my life worrying about what other people thought. Who knows, had I not given a damn I might have actually enjoyed a day at the beach.

Hey, if guys with beer bellies and LOTS of body hair can wear a Speedo, then women should be able to wear whatever the f*** we want.
When we were in France, we saw people of all ages, sizes, shapes and colors wearing teeny-tiny bathing suits, and most of the women were topless. And that's just how it is there. Even Queen Latifah says she wears a bikini in Europe, but never in the U.S. I think that's sad.
I think women should wear what fits, what makes them comfortable and confident, and screw what anyone else says.
just don't forget the sunscreen.

I think you should wear what you want. That said I don't have ripped abs so I don't wear belly shirts. I'm not crazy about my upper arms so I pick shirts that have 3/4 sleeves. But my legs aren't bad so I wear shorts.

And I must say a little motivation to exfoliate since more is exposed isn't a bad thing. Come sweater weather who gives a darn.

People should wear what they want... but I don't want to be in restaurant with the girl whose booty crack is showing because her super low rise jeans are two sizes too small and her top doesn't cover her belly. That goes for big women AND small women.

So I’ve tagged you on my blog - I don’t know if you’ve been tagged before, but if not…you’re it!! You can do it if you want to :)

Hmm, I think really it just comes down to being decently dressed...I'd love to have a swimwear's model body, but even if I did, would I walk around all day in a bikini? Actually, scratch that, it's very possible that I would.

I think as long as one is tastefully dressed...but then that's such a subjective concept isn't it...yeah, I can't really decide.

All I can say is that I'm more comfortable showing more flesh when I have less flesh to show, but someone else's flesh really bothers me little.

I don't think it's necessary for someone to cover up just because of their body shape. I love the European mentality where body shape doesn't matter... you wear what you're comfortable with. Like Cara, I think that people should dress tastefully and there's an appropriate place for every type of clothing (ie. not wearing a super skimpy outfit in the office, no matter what your body size). It's wonderful to see people NOT covering up their bodies in the summer- it shows their confidence and pride in the beauty of the human body.

I'm all about the hygiene. I don't care so much what people wear as long as they practice good hygiene. My most horrific Summer Don't example was this teeny cute lil' teen girl sitting in a sidewalk cafe with her boyfriend. She was wearing one of those pleated microminis that doesn't cover your butt AT ALL when you sit down. When she stood up and bent over to pick up her purse, me and my children were subjected to a full view of her Brazilian. Seriously, how unhygienic is that??? Can you get VD from a park bench? I probably shouldn't add this last part but she had a piercing down there. So it probably wasn't too healthy for her either. Overweight girl in a tank top? WHO CARES. Anyone who makes me have to sanitize the seat they just sat on? EVIL.

I'm overweight, and this summer I plan on showing off my new tattoo that covers most of my back by wearing tanks, the sexy razorback kind!

I think its awesome when I see overweight, even obese women that are well-dressed and showing a lot of skin.

I think there's definately a line as to what people should wear during the summer, whether they're big or otherwise.

Some chick wearing a barely there tank top and a skirt so short that there's nothing left to imagine is gross no matter what somebody's size is.

But seriously, it's HOT!
If somebody's big and they're lettin' everything hang out, they'd get looks.
But if it's 90 degrees and you're in pants and a sweater, you'll get looks too. (That would happen even if a Kate Moss type did it too.)

So wear whatever you're comfortable in.

I answered yes.

I recently (well, 5 months ago, but I still use it as an excuse) had a baby and have joined the ranks of the overweight. This is my first fat summer. It's difficult to find summer tops that cover my new huge bras. The woman at Intimacy tells me they don't make lower cut bras in DDD and I certainly haven't found them. When I do find a way to wear normal clothing, I show way too much cleavage for anyone's comfort.

I've found I prefer being uncomfortably hot to being uncomfortably exposed. The same clothes were no problem when I was thin. So it's long jeans or knee-length skirts and high-necked, sleeved tops for me this summer.

I wouldn't impose the discomfort on myself if I didn't believe the "rule".