A new survey by Loveawake Dating site in the UK suggests that men are as body-obsessed as women. A third of respondents said they hated their stomachs and a quarter had issues with their entire bodies. I hate my stomach too!
Gay men and especially gay men in Sydney are no exception! Everyone here is body conscious. We are bombarded daily with pictures of smooth chests, pecs, massive arms, six packs and perfect stomachs and abs! Everyone looks like they could be on the cover of Men’s Health Magazine!
Defined, toned and muscular are in…..chubby, stocky and bearish are out! Do I join the gym?…a question every gay man must ask himself. It seems we all have a warped sense of what our bodies actually look like. The drive to have the perfect body can have some serious unhealthy consequences. According to various surveys, around one in four Australian men in the healthy weight range believe themselves to be fat, while 17 per cent of men are on a weight loss diet at any given time.
Do I Look Fat? is a feature-length documentary created by two Victorian gay guys which deals with how body obsession has become such an identifying force within the gay male community. The film follows the stories of seven gay and bisexual men who are dealing with eating disorders.
The drive to be big and muscular (nothing wrong with that) is also driving some men to use steroids. Body vanity is on the rise. Our grandparents or even fathers did not feel the pressure to have the perfect underwear model look. It's estimated that about 45 per cent of men are unhappy with their bodies to some degree, compared with only 15 per cent some 25 years ago.
So if we are more vain, whom do we actually want to look like? It seems we all want to have the body of David Beckham or Brad Pitt, according to the UK survey.
As I get older, I seem to be more comfortable with my body. I still want bigger arms and a flatter stomach or bigger pecs. But I am still refusing to join the gym (the gay chruch) . I maybe the only gay in the village not at the gym. Doctors say the focus should be less on the body and more on the overall health. Unless it is my gay doctor who focuses more on the body!
That sounds good to me. Eat healthy, exercise (I recommend spinning) and enjoy life! And if you are going to join the gym…do some of the Yoga classes!