Men vs. Women body image...

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Katherine_Nelson
Katherine_Nelson Posts: 70 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
No offense to all you men out there but why is it that if a guy is fat no one cares? but if a woman is fat, she is judged, made fun of, and automatically written off as disgusting and stupid.

im not terribly overweight by any means, but i get rude comments about being fat all the time. if there were a man with my exact body type people would think he is slender.

.... this just frustrates me.
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Replies

  • anulle2009
    anulle2009 Posts: 580 Member
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    I think it is just the way people are. Women are suppose to be like models or something. It drives me nuts too!
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
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    I think if men are really obese they get the same, but for women it seems if they are 8lbs overweight they are a target. Usually for men. Even when I had a BMI of 22 I occasionally had men shouting at me in the street I was a fat b****. I think some men just hate women and think commenting on their weight is a surefire way to offend. I have never had a woman be anything but flattering about my size and shape.
  • bmontgomery87
    bmontgomery87 Posts: 1,260 Member
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    I was actually thinking we had it harder.

    For a girl to be "attractive" she pretty much just has to be thin.

    Guys have to balance bodyfat with muscle to look good. Skinny guys aren't attractive. So all in all I feel like we have to work a lot harder.
  • Onesnap
    Onesnap Posts: 2,819 Member
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    men also loose weight differently than women. There's the going joke that a man cuts out soda and loses 10 pounds by changing nothing else. I don't think overweight men are not made fun of. Go to the beach, you'll see what I mean and how cruel some people are.
  • Katherine_Nelson
    Katherine_Nelson Posts: 70 Member
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    I think if men are really obese they get the same, but for women it seems if they are 8lbs overweight they are a target. Usually for men. Even when I had a BMI of 22 I occasionally had men shouting at me in the street I was a fat b****. I think some men just hate women and think commenting on their weight is a surefire way to offend. I have never had a woman be anything but flattering about my size and shape.

    thats exactly what i mean! men only get judged if they are significantly overweight and us girls are targeted for a mere ten pounds.
  • outersoul
    outersoul Posts: 711
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    That's not true at all. We get the same sort of ribbing, bullying, down talking as women do just in a different manner. You're the last to be picked for a sport. Women don't talk to you. You're self image can be really bad. You're expected to be funny.

    It's the same across the board...being big is hard.
  • fteale
    fteale Posts: 5,310 Member
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    I don't think it's true that women JUST have to be thin. Even my husband has pointed out cellulite on thin girls before now. And thin, untoned girls get called bony or gaunt.

    Also, I think some men (I get the impression more in the States than here in the UK), think women should be thinner than is actually healthy too. Most models and actresses are underweight. We shouldn't be aiming to look like them.
  • SaraTonin
    SaraTonin Posts: 551 Member
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    I think what you're picking up on is that WOMEN don't pick on obese men nearly so much as other women. We're horrible to each other.

    Men pick on men plenty. Plus they get the added bonus of needing to be strong and muscular.
  • cacrat
    cacrat Posts: 336 Member
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    I was thinking the same thing as bmonty and outer. Men have it tough too. It might not be as publicly scrutinized, but it happens. Indeed, it is harder for us to attain that "ideal" body image that we see in mags. Women can stop eating and get a lot closer. Men have to have no body fat AND muscle.
  • mrb_9110
    mrb_9110 Posts: 189 Member
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    I was actually thinking we had it harder.

    For a girl to be "attractive" she pretty much just has to be thin.

    Guys have to balance bodyfat with muscle to look good. Skinny guys aren't attractive. So all in all I feel like we have to work a lot harder.
    I personally don't find thin guys attractive, but I know a lot of girls who love that thin, skater look (eww).

    I like my guys to have bulk to them, not necessarily all muscle, but they have to be big.
  • needs_to_look_good
    needs_to_look_good Posts: 3
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    http://tinyurl.com/3jjesmy

    thats why
  • SarahofTwins
    SarahofTwins Posts: 1,169 Member
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    No offense to all you men out there but why is it that if a guy is fat no one cares? but if a woman is fat, she is judged, made fun of, and automatically written off as disgusting and stupid.

    im not terribly overweight by any means, but i get rude comments about being fat all the time. if there were a man with my exact body type people would think he is slender.

    .... this just frustrates me.

    You're right it can be a double standard at times, it makes women more self concious about themselves too. I think its the way society portrays women to be these thin models whereas guys are just average or overweight. I know the rude comments can affect you but I look at it as fuel to my fire! Give them heat! :D
  • sweetheart03622
    sweetheart03622 Posts: 928 Member
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    I was actually thinking we had it harder.

    For a girl to be "attractive" she pretty much just has to be thin.

    Guys have to balance bodyfat with muscle to look good. Skinny guys aren't attractive. So all in all I feel like we have to work a lot harder.

    I kind of agree... I've also found that if you're a woman and someone gives you crap (makes a joke, comment, etc) and you throw it back in their face and stick up for yourself then you're better respected. Seems like men can't catch a break from that.... either way, we both have various struggles that the opposite sex isn't aware of...
  • Begood03
    Begood03 Posts: 1,261 Member
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    When I was fat, I heard about it all the time. From just about everyone.
  • jeffrodgers1
    jeffrodgers1 Posts: 991 Member
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    I don't think it matters whether you are a man or a woman.... Somebody calls you something uncomplimentary and it is gonna hurt.

    I got called Fat#$$, Porky etc when I was obese... that's part of what drove me to lose weight and get fit.

    I'm still afraid to go without a shirt... and I've lost almost 100 lbs and can run a half marathon.

    Poor self image affects us all regardless of gender.
  • 1FitMom326
    1FitMom326 Posts: 228
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    I think that for women it is a smaller window between being the "ideal thin" and overweight due to media and men are given a little more flexibility between what is ideal and obese. I think women are also judged by not only men but other women when they are overweight or even when they have lost weight. It's sad but most women are very competitive with one another and look for flaws rather then the positive.
  • Spayrroe
    Spayrroe Posts: 210 Member
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    I was actually thinking we had it harder.

    For a girl to be "attractive" she pretty much just has to be thin.

    Guys have to balance bodyfat with muscle to look good. Skinny guys aren't attractive. So all in all I feel like we have to work a lot harder.

    I beg to differ. I <3 the geeks, not so much into the overly built guys. In any case, I think it's all kind of in the eye of the beholder. Some people are just miserable and want to make everyone else feel miserable so they can feel better about themselves. Though I will say, i had a boss who was a partner at a firm I worked for. He was a highly successful man who made a very big income, and weighed over 400lbs. No one saw this as a problem, and in fact, most of the male partners looked like that. However, the very few women that were partners at that firm were all trim and thin. /shrug/ I found a guy to marry that doesn't care at all that i've put on over 100lbs since we got married. I'm losing the weight for me so that I can feel better about myself, and he supports my efforts to support me. If I said I was fine with the weight I was at, he wouldn't care either.
  • mkennedym
    mkennedym Posts: 253 Member
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    all fat people are judged.
  • ashahl
    ashahl Posts: 81
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    See I have the opposite problem to this. I am very thin, like ten pounds underweight and people are just awful to me sometimes. Mainly other girls but guys too. I've gotten facebook messages telling me that "I'm ****ing disgusting" or "hideous". It hurts so much. From where I am it only seems that guys like girls who have extra weight on them, big boobs and *kitten*. I am trying to gain weight mainly because of all the comments. So being skinny doesn't help much either. Everyone gets made fun of and picked on.
  • 6Janelle13
    6Janelle13 Posts: 353 Member
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    I think it is our perspectives and honestly we women are nurturing. How many of us still love our teddy bear men or support our husband and love how they look despite how he sees himself. nothing makes me feel worse than when my skinny hubby stands there and pats his stomach (that has a baby six pack and little to no fat) and says he wants to be buffer and he is tired of his fat. Meanwhile next to him, i look and feel like santa claus.
    We pick apart ourselves and what is hot in men's world tends to be a little fake in women's world. There are times I doubt I will ever live up to my husband's ideas of the perfect sexy wife unless I get a boob job and never have kids. Which isn't gonna happen.
    He on the other hand also compares himself to other men and thinks he knows what i find sexy. funny thing is for me sexy is being sweet, kind, a good husband and father, etc.
    men and women are just wired differently so trying to compare body image and sticks and stones isn't accurate or fair.

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