If you’ve ever hit the beach with stubbly legs and felt embarrassed about it, fitness blogger Morgan Mikenas is here to tell you that having a little bit—or a lot—of body hair is nothing to be ashamed of.
Mikenas has an enviable physique and dedication to fitness, but what she doesn’t have is time for people who feel the need to spread negativity—especially when that negativity comes in the form of opinions about other people’s beauty choices.
Mikenas went viral over the summer thanks to a YouTube video in which she explained why she stopped removing her body hair. She made it clear that she’s not out to convince anyone not to shave, but rather that she wants to spread the message that it’s totally OK not to let cultural beauty standards determine the way we live our lives.
As she explained in the video, Mikenas first stopped shaving not to send a message, but because she simply thought it was a waste of her time. Anyone who’s ever shaved their legs can probably agree that it’s the lengthiest step in your shower routine (and a part of your routine that shouldn’t be rushed, unless you like rogue patches of hair and minuscule, but somehow excruciatingly painful, cuts).
Her philosophy: You should do whatever makes you feel good, not what you feel you should do to fit in. She even admits that, in the past, letting her leg hair grow out made her feel “dirty,” “ashamed,” and “not feminine,” and would shave to feel sexier and feminine. Now, though, she says she loves her body hair, never plans on removing it again, and, frankly, doesn’t care what anyone else thinks about it.
“Beauty is not something that can even be defined,” she explained in a follow-up video. “What works for someone may not work for someone else. Every person is different, every circumstance is different. Whatever works for you is what you should do. Don’t just follow the crowd because you want to look this certain way—beauty is completely subjective, and that is my message: Beauty is your own choice, how you define it.”
So just remember that as long as you’re doing it for you, you’re making the right choice when it comes to your beauty choices. Whether you shave or not is up to you, but definitely don’t feel bad about it either way.
