Male Body Image

[Bathsheba]

I've always placed brains above brawn/braun however you spell it LOL I'm with Niass, vanity in either gender is a turn-off. Healthiness is attractive. Any guy with any sign of obvious bad health (greasy skin/bad teeth etc) would be unattractive to me. This is based on our species survival instincts: we want to breed with people who are going to produce healthy children. Muscle men to me are not necessarily healthy. To me they are likely to be full of steroids and they apparently have very fragile immune systems. I recently learnt that in an artificial milk thread! Body builders often take cow's colostrum to help build up their weak immune systems... you learn something every day in here!

I've always had a soft spot for bookish/nerdish guys too LOL as they are always far more interesting than what Americans call "Jocks". My man sounds a bit like you in appearance rols. However he has never been over weight. He would benefit from a few extra kilos maybe but I think he is currently at the right weight for his size. I have to admit that I've never found chubby guys attractive but once again, if a chubby guy had a beautiful mind then I would grow to find him attractive.

I'm raising my DD to be highly sceptical of everything she sees/reads in the media. She is very good at spotting avertising in non-obvious forms eg product placements in movies so i think that when she starts thinking about boys she will know to look beyond appearances.

Great thread.

[Phteven]

Bath, bodybuilders don't just have weak immune systems; most of them have constipation and heammaroids as well. They have a really high protien/low carb diet so they have a hard time doing poopies.

Anyways, I like a fit guy with some muscles but not the kind of OTT buff that seems to be promoted as an ideal these days. Most of the guys who are really cut are like that because they take steroids - ewwww. If you look at athletes who are at the peak of fitness but not taking 'roids they're not so OTT muscular.
I like that DH is quite fit and works out because I believe that a healthy body and a healthy mind are connected. If we don't get enough excercise it impacts on our mental well being and I don't want to live with a grumpy sour-puss.

[Bathsheba]

How true Chloe that healthy minds and bodies are linked! My DH doesn't workout or do any sport but I think as the boys get older he will be motivated to do more with them. ATM he volunteers at my DDs Little Athletics as a track official so he at least will be a good role model in terms of fitness with our children. He has a certain degree of natural fitness, with his high metabolism, but i think as he grows older he shouldn't take that for granted meaning that he could find that he puts on weight more easily. But for a guy over 40 he is definitely a lot trimmer than most guys his age.

[rosehannah]

Dachlostar I'm never going to able to look at buff guys again without that image in my head lol

I love it when my DH is freshly shaven (his face), I like men to look fit and health and to take pride in themselves. I would take a man who loved me and looked after me over some buffed self absorbed hulk. I'm attracted to nice eyes and a warm smile.

[Bathsheba]

That reminds me of a survey I read recently involving people being shown photos of highly attractive people vs normal looking people. They were asked to separate the images into "flings" and "marriages". All the Bimbos and Buffs were almost unanimously put into the "fling" category. Who would want to be earmarked as a "fling?" ...not me!

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

Rols, my DH is perfectly content with his body and doesn't want to change it. That's really attractive! He does want to change mine, not as attractive! But then even my parents don't find me attractive... I sometimes think I'm the only person who doesn't think I look awful and even I admit I could do with losing the loose skin on my tummy.

Niass, I agree, everyone assumes that because I'm big and plain I am "grounded" and can "cope" with stuff, whereas my petite SiL and MiL and my pretty sister get so much more looking after - DH was more worried about how SiL was with her pregnancy than he was with me! And he still looks after his mummy... although he isn't going to see her for another 6 weeks because his daddy upset him. Even so, it's annoying that my looks mean no-one ever puts me first, not even my husband or my parents.