So, summer is coming up, and obviously going to the beach and swimming are things about summer that a lot of people enjoy. (Including me, but I stopped years ago because I hated wearing girl bathing suits.)

What would happen if I went swimming in my clothes? Like, if I wore my tritop from Underworks with a t-shirt over it or something, and board shorts?

Like, would my binder be okay? Would I have to hang it out and let it dry afterward or something?

From what I hear chlorine can really eat away at binders.  It might be a good idea to wear an old one or a sports bra instead.

I've been avoiding swimming too.  Right now I'm debating about joining some people on a trip to a hot springs this weekend.  It sounds like fun, but I'm not out to them and really couldn't handle having to use women's changing rooms etc.  I'm also worried about being comfortable in swimwear without drawing attention to it.  Does anyone question you about it if you're wearing swim trunks and a tshirt while being read as female?

Underworks does sell a swimsuit for FTMs.  It covers you well.  I like the looks of it.  but it's $75 before shipping and tax.  so, I don't think I would pay that much.  and plus I haven't read reviews on how well it works.   Here is it if you want to see it.  Scroll down a few:  http://ftm.underworks.com/

I don't know how it is from your side, but for me, I've avoided swimming for much of my life, even when I was portrayed as a guy, always afraid to show my bare chest that most of the time if on the beach I'd be wearing a tee shirt, and avoided pools completely, but this mostly because of the chemicals, too strong. But anyway, last year my nephew's family put a pool up in their yard, I went swimming in it, sure I can't wear what I'd really like to wear, package below that would stick out or try to no matter how I bound it up, but I wore a sports bra and shorts (since I didn't have any kind of bathing suit), worked well for me, I felt comfortable enough, but then I wasn't swimming in the general public either. My mom was like, I didn't know you knew how to swim, I told her that just because I've alway avoided going in the water doesn't mean I'm scared of it or that I'm incapable of swimming, she was surprised, sure I'm not a strong swimmer but I'm not going to drown. Anyway, always some way around our wrong parts betraying us, even when going swimming. I know its gotta be a lot harder for FtM to pull it off, because I've rarely ever seen guys going swimming with all their clothes on, top is usually off, guess that won't work too well if you got boobs.

Out on the West Coast, where beach stuff and swimming are pretty huge activities, board shorts are the hip cool things for girls to be wearing now. 

Swimming is a problem for most ftm's for sure. I wear lose board shorts no packer don't have one I want to wear in chlorine water and fear it may come lose in the water.  I have heard the chlorine water is hard on the elastic in binders.  I wear an old binder with a lose shirt over it.  This works for me, not the best but I get to swim.

I wear the Love Boat long V-neck velcro binder (forget the actual name of it but it's here: http://www.lesloveboat.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=57&products_id=84) under a rash guard, on top.  The rash guard is navy blue so it doesn't show the outline of the binder too badly in the right light. 

On the bottom, I wear board shorts with my packer in a jock strap underneath to keep it in place.  I've worn it doing some pretty rough stuff (like kiteboarding and at the cable park) and it's stayed put. 

When I get out of the water, I wash both my packer and my binder as soon as practical. 

I'll change my profile photo to one of me wearing it so you can get an idea.  Caveat:  I was blessed with A's so YMMV. 

Ive worn just a normal binder under a shirt in a swimming pool and beach a couple of times. I dedicated that binder to swimming/just a spare one and so far its fine. It hasnt changed much at all I guess if you wore it a lot tho, it would deteriorate.

I found that the waves in a beach can pretty much stretch out anything tho. I go to the beach every year for a holiday with my family. We spend a week at the beach and usually swim maybe 2 times a day. In the past I have come home with some very very very big and stretched out rash guards from just the waves Maybe its just these crazy Aussie beaches 

I do have the swimsuit binder from underworks, and for me it works good  It doesnt bind as tightly as the tri top...and I wouldnt suggest anyone who is larger than a B cup gets one. Ive worn the swimsuit one heaps and it hasnt deteriorated yet 

I have the Underworks Swim Binder, but haven't gotten to use it yet. I tried it on, and I will say two things: I got it because another guy didn't like it and he big-bro'd it to me, and it zips up really high to your neck which does bother me a lot, but probably less than the other swimming options I have. You do pretty much need to wear something over the swim binder, though.

I might as well be a fish. I competed for 10 years and I always love to go for a swim, but these days its less comfortable for me to stomach the dysphoria. I'm gonna check out the compression suits, I've been eying them for a while. But god, I can't wait until I can just wear my favorite board shorts without worrying about it. My system has been to wear board shorts over a polyester practice suit, but in competition size (usually one or two sizes smaller than what you'd normally wear). The polyester type compresses well enough, if you're strapped for cash and don't have a junk binder. Just slap a T-shirt on over it. Although it sucks...I shouldn't have to wear a girl suit at all and hearken back to the dyshoria of competing as a girl for years.

Man chest, here I come.

Quote from: Megan Joanne on May 10, 2011, 08:48:08 PM
I've avoided swimming for much of my life, even when I was portrayed as a guy, always afraid to show my bare chest

I can relate to that. I used to swim all the time as a kid, but when I became a teenager I began to feel uncomfortable taking my shirt off. Often I try to get away with keeping it on.