Male Body Standards

I hadn’t really thought about the concept of “Male Body Dismorphia” before I saw Ryan Hoover’s posted question on the subject. Probably in response to articles like these… however I can’t really find any newer ones. At the same time, I have also had conversations with a couple of people I coach about similar subject matter. Specifically their desire to take their shirts off during a workout or at the pool but not feeling comfortable doing so, mainly due to them comparing themselves to other’s physiques.

How are we ‘as men’ affected by the social influence of the super hero body archetype?

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Couple of things on my radar lately… – – Reading a bit about how Marvel is responsible for fostering an environment leading to “male body dysmorphia.” Have a look at the photo in the top left corner of the collage, for reference. All of the other photos in the collage are of leading actors of the 80s (and beyond.) Additionally, Facebook apparently finds before and after transformations antithetical to “fostering a positive global community” (scroll to the second pic to find a screenshot of an ad denial.) – – I have plenty to say here, but I’m curious to hear from anyone (men particularly) who grew up in the 80s or 90s, who feels like the prominence of these actors (and/or popular cartoons, like He-Man, TMNT, G.I. Joe, etc.) had a detrimental impact on their mental, emotional, and/or physical well being. – – If you aren’t comfortable sharing publicly, feel free to email me at ryan@fittofight.com.

A post shared by Ryan (@ryanhooverftf) on Dec 16, 2019 at 7:43pm PST

I think what’s probably kicked this up a notch most recently is the addition of actor Kumail Nanjiani to the Marvel Universe.

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I never thought I’d be one of those people who would post a thirsty shirtless, but I’ve worked way too hard for way too long so here we are. You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain. I found out a year ago I was going to be in Marvel’s Eternals and decided I wanted to transform how I looked. I would not have been able to do this if I didn’t have a full year with the best trainers and nutritionists paid for by the biggest studio in the world. I’m glad I look like this, but I also understand why I never did before. It would have been impossible without these resources and time. So big thanks to @grantrobertsfit who started working with me at the beginning of the year and made me understand true physical pain for months and months. Then, once we started shooting, a massive thanks to @davidhigginslondon and his team (@ellispartridge, @thebeardypt, @tomcheesemanfitness) for training me almost every day and making me strong, limber and injury free. I can almost touch my toes now. (And thank you for forcing me to do cheat meals David.) Matthews Street Catering for their delicious and healthy meals. And finally, the biggest thanks goes to @emilyvgordon for putting up with me complaining and talking about only working out and dieting for the last year. I promise I’ll be interesting again some day. #thirstyshirtless (Photo by @markupson.) (edit: I left off one very important person: @lancecallahan who trained me for 6 years and helped me build the foundation I could use to do this. Thank you!)

A post shared by @ kumailn on Dec 16, 2019 at 8:10am PST

Granted it is super refreshing to see him keeping it real, with saying that the only reason he’s been able to achieve what he has is because of the resources he’s been availed due to the way the Marvel movie setup works. Cool.

What’s happening?

I’m not entirely sure how close or far off the mark this stuff is, i’d love to get some conversation going around the subject. For me, seeing these guys in the 80’s and early 90’s inspired me to get off my butt and train. Especially in the Martial Arts. What do you think?

Social Conformity

I do take exception to Facebook actively going out of their way to block a before and after ad showing someone’s body… It’s a before and after set of photos. How else are you going to show how someone has made progress on bettering themselves…? There is a much deeper conversation we have to have as a society about what a healthy person is; physically and mentally. We don’t need Facebook or any other social network dictating this for us based on some room full of project managers or developers own definition or personal feelings on the matter. That goes beyond physical fitness for sure but it’s what this particular post is about…

Inspiration

I shared some quotes and concepts for helping to deal with some of this in the episode, so those are as follows:

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Meditations. Book 8.47

A post shared by Daily Stoic (@dailystoic) on Nov 21, 2019 at 12:01pm PST

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Next week’s texts are all about judgment and the effect judging has on us. Google Doc link texted to you at the end of the week that goes deeper. Click my bio link if you want in. . Subscribers, this text was not distributed to everyone. It was just one I made to post.

A post shared by The Angry Therapist / John Kim (@theangrytherapist) on Nov 9, 2019 at 6:56am PST

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Wisdom is gained when what another thinks no longer triggers us because we realize their thoughts are just a reflection of themselves. Triggers are a beast that we’ve been taming since the beginning of time. When I focus and diminish my own triggers then I’m able to reflect positivity back to another when they’re projecting theirs on me. And sometimes this may mean it’s time for me to walk away. #liveliketoumeanit #shifttodaywithalison #notmycircus #micdrop #wednesdaywisdom #triggers #reflection #yoursnotmine #positivity #holdyourpower

A post shared by Alison Schuh Hawsey (@alisonschuhhawsey) on Nov 6, 2019 at 3:49am PST

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