SEXY-ING UP SPRING

For many of us, it’s that time of year again. The sun is out, the weather is warming up –

spring is in the air! After a long winter, there’s nothing better than that first time you can roll down the windows, crank up your “feel good” playlist, and drive in actual, clear-skied sunlight.

Spring is a time of rejuvenation, renewal, growth…and it’s also the sexiest of the seasons. You read that right.

Some may argue for summer, with all the suntanning and swimsuits. Others might sit on the side of a cozy, sexy fall. And yet others may claim winter as the sexiest. Spending time bundled up by the fire with your special someone certainly sounds sexy, but it still can’t hold a candle to the combination of effects spring has on our bodies and minds that make it the sexiest season.

So why is spring so sexy? And what can we do to make it even sexier?

Cold & Sad

If we’re going to talk about the effect spring has on our bodies and moods, we actually have to start with what comes before it: winter.

Some might love that bundled-up coziness, but for many, winter can be a GIANT mood killer. As the weather grows colder, the days turn darker, and our exposure to sunlight takes a huge dip…that’s when the sluggish feelings of sadness start. There’s even a name for it – Seasonal Affective Disorder, or “SAD.”

 They literally called it SAD.

 SAD is that depression that swoops back around each year so regularly that you could almost just add it to your calendar between your nephew’s birthday and your dog’s license renewal. It tends to start up as it grows colder, last for weeks (if not months), and then melt away with the snow. As spring comes around, the days get longer and that added sunlight boosts our serotonin production, giving our mood a boost along with it. It’s like coming out of a dark cave and seeing the sun for the first time in months.

And this springtime re-emergence of positivity is the perfect foundation for the other change that happens in this seasonal transition…

Hot & Bothered

 Clothing.

 Gone are the thick winter coats, hats, and scarves, back are the bare arms, crop-tops, and curves. After months of being bundled up, suddenly we’re let loose. An entire season without so much as a cute little ankle, and then – BAM – belly buttons are peaking out over waistbands, and sleeveless shirts are revealing Henry-Cavill-esque physiques!

 It’s this hibernation of skin and bodies that feeds into the lust of the season. As that winter depression melts off and the tank tops and shorts start coming out, it creates a perfect storm of sexiness and desire unrivaled by any other time of year.

But how to stand out from the crowd in this hurricane of hottness?

First up…