Trigger warning: this article briefly mentions eating disorders.
For as long as we have known, we have been exposed to these limiting restrictions giving us a detailed guideline on how to look like and who to be. Looking like that girl on the cover of a magazine, a size 0, or that male that has two thick bricks for arms from the amount of weight he carries. Those are the standards to which we measure ourselves. Why do we do this? Why do we take part in this cyclic exposure of overabundant perfection? What is perfection anyway?
Just as this universal standard of what constitutes the perfect body is what girls measure themselves to everyday, just as well do guys. Males face the same pressure to perform well on a daily basis – look good, eat well, eat “healthy”, etc. Even the word “healthy” is becoming problematic because it is no longer got its traditional meaning. Rather, it got this new tag with high standards on it, that makes not eating healthy not okay, and this is where things become problematic.
However, I just want to clarify a few things: I am not implying that eating healthy is wrong, rather, I am pointing out the fact that the words “eating healthy” have become politicized and are used to imply other problematic things. Genuinely eating healthy because it is better for your mental and physical health, and because you genuinely enjoy the fruits/veggies/healthy proteins and fats is great. It is only when you begin imposing your thoughts on others in terms of what they eat and how they eat that there starts to be an issue.
Addressing males and the problems they face regarding their self-image and body issues due to this universalized standard is something that is not really addressed when it really should be. It is something detrimental to their mental health, leading them on paths that sometimes have no return. So, where did this obsession with the perfect male body begin?
Pre-Male Body Obsession
It is interesting to note that, before the 1950s, there were rarely any gyms and excessive amounts of money were not spent on protein shakes and gym memberships. Many men had not even heard of measuring body fat, and they did not worry about their fat either. This goes to show what we have already suspected: businesses, of course, profit off of such male standards. The emergence of this gym culture, soon after, paved the way for many money hungry institutions to take part in this introduction and expand it. Before gym culture, no one cared about their muscles or their figures. After that came an infiltration of obsession – an obsession with the Adonis Complex, paving the way for eating disorders to take center stage. Typically, the media played a huge role of spreading this Adonis essentiality.
Mental Health Effects of Male Body Obsession
This immense pressure that is placed on guys makes it hard for them to cope and manage their weight, with even friends and family taking part in imposing their opinions on them. Many friends and families interfere because they believe that they would be benefitting you, but the result is, quite frankly, the opposite. Not only does negative self-esteem get developed with this pressure and obsession with the “perfect” male body, but also so do eating disorders, with anorexia being one of them. Anorexia is defined as an eating disorder that entails not eating for long periods of time and forcing oneself to vomit. Anorexia is a disorder that makes you see yourself in a very different light than how you really are, in terms of body weight. In fact, dissatisfaction with one’s body is also yet another one of the effects on mental health for males. Body dissatisfaction is defined as seeing your body in a negative light and just not liking anything about it. This is correlated with a development of eating disorders, in addition to muscle dysmorphia. Shame is also another negative correlation with not having the “perfect” body.
Male Body Obsession and Silence
Another detrimental issue is the silence behind men’s suffering. Why this topic is not being properly addressed can be due to a number of reasons, with the main one being the taboo behind men feeling insecure about their bodies. Emotions are a man’s worst enemy. He is not allowed to feel them, according to societal norms. This is problematic because it allows for males to keep their real emotions about their bodies and the pressure surrounding them hidden, never to be revealed. Emotions are meant to be felt no matter what gender you are, especially if keeping them inside will be further damaging to your mental health because of the problem not being addressed.
To the males not feeling confident about their bodies, hating their bodies, wanting to lose weight, feeling the guilt of eating a sandwich, counting the calories they have taken in on a daily basis. To the males that feel as though they cannot speak about their issues because they are “minor”. To the males who feel inhibited by societal norms and expectations. I just want you to know that it is okay to feel, and it is okay to talk about what you feel. If you do not address these issues, they could turn into something worse, and you will find yourself falling into a hole with no way out. Please, if you are suffering, seek the help you need!