But now the tide is turning and the body positivity movement is growing.

The latest body part to show off on Instagram? The belly outline.



That’s right, the fact that your tummy will stick out when you wear a tight dress or skirt is no longer something to be ashamed of, but something to be proud of.

The majority of women - even the slim amongst us - have rounded tummies. And so many of us either avoid wearing tight clothing to disguise them or are constantly trying to suck our bellies in to create the appearance of a flat stomach.

God forbid any of us should have some fat round our middles.

Now, however, body positive influencers are encouraging us to love our tummies and not be afraid to reveal our belly outlines.

One such person is the woman behind SelfLoveClub, the body positive instagram account with 26.4 thousand followers.

Celebrating her own visible belly outline, she writes:

“Cheers to a summer of rocking clothing that give you a visible tummy outline. Cheers to not giving a s*** what people think about your body or the way you dress.

“Cheers to embracing what we've been told not to wear because it doesn't ‘flatter our body type.’ Cheers to living free of judgement, reservations, and inhibitions.

“Life is short, enjoy it. Don't let others affect your happiness and self worth. Bellies are cute and worth showing off.”



And many women are loving the permission to love a body part they’ve for so long thought they had to hide.

“I needed this. Thank you,” commented one.

“You look great! I'm always afraid people may think I'm pregnant... But this gives me confidence! Thank you,” added another.

“You have no idea how much I needed this,” wrote one person. “I have struggled with my tummy for as long as I can remember to the point where it feels like how it looks and how my clothes fit play on my mind every second of the day.

“I am still dealing with some disordered eating and I right now I'm still not really be 100 per cent comfortable with myself but seeing things like this plus other people celebrating their bodies and their health has really helped me and my confidence and spurred a huge change in my thinking.

“You are beautiful and I can't thank you enough for this post.”

Tummies are beautiful.

More about: #Instagram   #body