Forget fatkini and instead opt for “deadkini” if you’re a full figured woman who wants to gain empowerment by doing something that few plus size women will ever do.

And that is to learn to deadlift heavy barbells.

The show is over once you take to the beach for the first time in your new bikini or two-piece swimsuit. You did it. There. Game over.

Then what? There is no progressive component. Next time you visit the beach or swimming pool, it’s a replication of the first time. And the third time duplicates the second time. And so on.

But if you do the “deadkini,” that is, train in the deadlift, it means never-ending progression.

You’ll get stronger. And stronger and stronger. You’ll always have new goals to set and achieve.

Starting position of the deadlift. Shutterstock/SerdyukPhotography

Instead of flaunting what your body looks like, how about flaunting what your body can DO?

Many fatkini women claim that getting into a two-piece bathing suit makes them feel confident.

It’s a safe bet that the woman lifting a heavy barbell has a lot more confidence in LIFE than does the woman in the bikini — which is merely a prop.

It’s possible that the woman doing the deadlift also wears bikinis, but it’s a sure bet she draws her confidence from a barbell, not a bikini.

If the physical effort of slipping on two-piece swimwear and walking around at a beach gives you confidence, imagine how confident you’d feel being able to deadlift 185 pounds.

185 pound deadlift.

  • Even a 100 pound deadlift will put fatkini to shame.
  • Fatkini does not make you bold and brave.

Deadkini will give you a level of confidence and body positivity that you absolutely cannot begin to imagine – until you start training in the deadlift.

Where are all the images of big women deadlifting 135 pound barbells?

• Anyone can put on a bikini and pose.

• But deadlifting 135 pounds takes perseverance to get to this point.

So what, you put on a bikini and took a selfie in your bedroom. Big deal.

• Learn the deadlift and post the images to social media. Maybe you can start a trend that puts fatkini to shame.

Ask yourself what your full figured body has DONE lately, not what is has worn.

A body trained at heavy deadlifts is one with strong joints, a strong spinal column, dramatically improved bone and soft tissue strength, a kick-butt core and a significantly improved ability to perform household tasks that involve heavy lifting.

Amazing Phenomenon!

What’s very discouraging is that if I google “fatkini” or “fat bikini,” the results for Google Images is an endless scroll of pictures of large and very large women posing seductively and sometimes arrogantly in bikinis.

If I google “fat woman deadlift” or “overweight, plus size woman deadlift,” I have to scroll for 10 minutes before I can find just three images of a large woman (excluding competitive athletes!) performing this highly functional exercise.

Fatkini is a fad. It’s time for deadkini!

Lorra Garrick is a former personal trainer certified through the American Council on Exercise. At Bally Total Fitness she trained women and men of all ages for fat loss, muscle building, fitness and improved health. 

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Top image: Shutterstock/DenisProduction.com