COSTUME DRAMA

I swam a fair bit when I was pregnant, not to keep fit but to try and turn the baby round. The whole time I was expecting Florence,  she was lying back to back. “It’s fine! Don’t panic, she’ll turn in labour” my midwife had said. She didn’t turn. And 9 months later, out she came out sunny side up. The good thing was, I made full use of my maternity swimsuit. In my naive state, I thought, it’s fine, I’ll just wear my normal bikini and squish the bottoms down under the bump at the front! I’m not entirely sure what I was thinking seeing as my rib cage had expanded to approximately double its previous width and my bum was…well, put it this way, no-one was overtaking me in my swimming lane.  So I bought a Mamalicious black swimsuit and proceeded to swim for what felt like an entire trimester; little did I know at the time, to no avail!

I remember when I was looking at swimwear, there wasn’t a great deal of choice when it came to maternity swimsuits.I found Asos had the best variety from a fashion point of view. But if you’re looking for more support or technical details from a swimsuit, look at brands such as Cake Maternity who’s styles have built in support and 50+ UV Protection and are chlorine resistant. And if you’re buying for a holiday rather than actual swimming, a tankini is your best bet so you have the option of covering the bump if you feel the need.

Here’s my edit of the best bump-suits on the high street…