With summer only around the corner the dreaded bathing suit season is almost upon us.  All over, women are scrambling to find the next super diet that will shed those winter pounds quick and easy.  Many of the super diets have been around for quite awhile and get passed from woman to woman through word of mouth.  The cabbage soup diet seems to be a very old and popular one.  I have been told about this diet from many women ages 18 to 60.  It requires you to eat cabbage soup for about three days, yes, nothing but cabbage soup.  Its purpose you may ask?  I have been told that it jumpstarts your diet.  Now, no woman has ever been able to explain the magical mechanism by which the diet works; however, they all swear by it.  My best guess is that only eating a ton of roughage and broth cleans out the pipes and empties the stomach.  Another popular get thin quick scheme involves a diet of salmon and grapefruit for a couple of weeks.  Nothing but protein and acid, this just does not appeal to me. 

Besides these natural diets there are a slew of diet drugs on the market that are supposed to speed up weight loss.  Since most women forget that bathing suit season is coming until spring is in full effect the fast part is extremely important.  For faster results many women turn to drugs like Hydroxycut, Dexatrim, and Xenadrine.  Now there are drugs that target women specifically like Slim Quick, Estrolean, Tight Fem and Curvelle.  These products are supposed to be formulated just for women.  So why do we do it.  Why are women starving themselves on crazy diets and exposing themselves to range of non FDA approved drugs in order to fit in a bathing suit.  Whenever I go swimming I see a ton of men, gut out, cellulite glistening (yes men have cellulite), and so hairy that they look like they are wearing fur.  At the same time women of all shapes and sizes are hiding behind cover-ups, dresses, towels, shirts; anything to hide their bodies.  I say no more!  This swimsuit season dare to be you.  To bare your body in its “I have been hibernating” all winter glory.  Hey, if you would like to go to the gym and tone up, or just shake off the winter grays go for it!  But refuse to kill yourself worrying about this or that jiggly part.  Don’t starve or expose yourself to various side-effects in the name of the vanity.  Love yourself, be yourself.  And remember only a dog wants a bone.