Last week I did Bikram yoga next to (well, almost) a woman wearing only a bikini. True story.

I immediately judged her – not very yogic of me, I know. "What happens when she bends over?" I wondered at the beginning of class, assuming that A, she was confident her beauty therapist had done a good wax job; B, she was certain of her bikini's fit; and C, that she'd been to a Bikram class before and knew her cozzie would be drenched (in the most unflattering places) within a few minutes. I also wondered how comfortable the people immediately around her mat must have felt. I was shocked, horrified and slightly amused.

After a few minutes of meditation, I realised my reaction to Bikini Woman was fuelled by my own body insecurities, and my horror morphed into respect. And then envy. Because there is absolutely no way you'll catch me in a two-piece in front of 40 people, let alone stand in tree, double into a forward bend or drop unceremoniously into a goddess squat without my body being covered by an ample amount of fabric.

So over the past week, I've been trying to become more comfortable with my body. I'm taking inspiration from Bikini Woman's confidence, and from a PR account exec called Vuvu Zapa, who's featured in our December issue.

After spending two months in hospital following a running accident, "I woke up ... and realised that I had lost out on so many years when my body was intact, when I had no reason whatsoever to cover up," Vuvu says in a story called Feel Good Half Naked. "I had wasted my time waiting for the perfect body when it was already good enough."

If you've not seen the issue yet and are filled with pre-beach holiday angst, I suggest you get your hands on a copy. In Feel Good Half Naked, the writer interviewed four women who for years had major body issues and who're now so comfortable in their own skin, they allowed us to shoot them in their bikinis. If they can do it, I tell myself, then so can I.

If all goes well, this December could be the first time in many years I wear a cozzie to the beach. Not to a yoga class, though. That might be next year.