Inspired partly by this thread to give it some counterbalance, but also by a conversation I overheard in the gym last night.
If we men were to believe magazines and advertising as correct representations of reality we might be forgiven for thinking that if we don’t have a perfect six pack and/or muscular physique and be over 6’0 we should stay inside where no-one is forced to look at us. Advertising particularly seems to have reached the point where they’re not even trying any more - if in doubt, just shove a perfect looking man on the screen and that will do (as happened when I saw the latest advert for Paco Rabane in the cinema a few weeks back, it was just an underwear model guy in a black and white desert setting looking smoulderingly into the camera). And of course then there’s the front cover of Men’s Health, and as a fair haired guy who’s around 5’8 tall I’m NEVER going to look like that even if I were to move into the gym permanently.
As a gay guy I’m in the slightly atypical situation of desiring a male body and also possessing one, but I also have lots of female friends and we talk about this issue. Similar to the notion of “all men like skinny girls” I think the idea that we all like tall and very athletic men and nothing else is pretty clearly false. I mean, have you seen some of the guys (both celebrity and in the real world) with good looking women hanging of their arms who couldn’t exactly be described as catches?
So what say you doper dames and gay guys? Does the Men’s Health cover model work for you aesthetically? Is this the kind of guy you’d want to date in reality? If not what are your own tastes?
To answer my own questions - yes I like the look of a tall and athletic guy, but in reality I’m attracted to lots of different kind of men (some of whom I’m sure would NOT be described as conventionally good looking). I’ve dated a variety of men, slept with an even bigger variety, and you would struggle to discern a pattern there. Aesthetically I prefer guys taller than me (6’0 is about perfect but I’m happy with 5’9 upwards - 6’3 and beyond is a bit too tall) and I like fair guys too. In terms of body shape I’m all about the face, body second, but would prefer someone who is in shape, but they don’t have to be ripped by any means.
Hm. The ripped guys are nice to look at, but I wouldn’t want to date someone who spends twice as much time on their personal appearance as I do (and is prettier than me!). All I really require is a brain, a sense of humor, a laid-back attitude, and some decent personal hygiene. Overall, I’d say I prefer big burly guys, like the guy who played Little John in Robin Hood: Men in Tights, or the guy who plays the guitar for the Jolly Rogers. Someone I can climb, and snuggle on the couch with, and go fishing with, and talk with.
Fortunately my husband is just such a one. If I could only get him to stop watching Fox News.
Celebrity-only, while I see what you describe, I don’t see the reverse quite as often.
Depends on the cover model of the month, and the other models they have inside. Sometimes they have overly ripped guys, sometimes they have ripped, but not exagerated, men posing. I like the later.
I like a fit athletic body. I don’t find beer bellies or love handles attractive. I like gymasts, some swimmers/divers (Louganis in the 80s… yummy!), runners, basketball players… Guys who work out and are lean and fit. That have some muscle showing, but not much…
Last fall at the gym there was a guy who went regularly and worked out in front of the running track. Tall, slender, with every ab, every muscle tight and well demarcated but not huge… Sigh A black Adonis, and my inspiration to go there every day and see him!
Which is another reason I like capoeira. Even if I don’t get to do anything with them, my eyes are enjoying the view of fit agile young men with nice tight bodies moving to the rhythm…
And while I’ve been lucky in that most of the guys I’ve been fit that category, those that do not fit that part DO fit other things I find attractive (sense of humor, dancing ability, personality, etc.).
I don’t believe that I’ve seen a cover of Men’s Health recently. It’s certainly not something I look for. What’s more, I’ve never cracked open an issue.
I think that ripped and ultra ripped men don’t look human any more. I’m into science fiction, but I draw the line at lusting after/having sex with something that looks like it’s from another planet. In the case of ultra ripped men, I also suspect them of abusing steroids and other goodies, so I wouldn’t want to get involved with them anyway.
I like guys to look human. Fit and trim is nice to look at, but there’s got to be something going on inside the skull, too, or they’re just not attractive at all. Case in point, I used to like Tom Cruise’s looks, but ever since he opened his mouth and let all the Scientology BS flow out, he has lost all his charm. I can’t look at him and enjoy the view now, I’m too busy shuddering. On the other hand, there are guys who are simply not my type, looks-wise, but are so witty and charming that I’ve come to enjoy their looks as well.
When I see a super ripped guy, I think “high maintenance.” Like Marlitharn, I don’t want to spend time with someone who spends so much time & effort on looks. Heck, I don’t even like girlfriends who have to have two hours to get dressed/put on makeup/do their hair before we go out for a drink. (Granted, nowadays I’m not often in the position of actively waiting for people like that, but back in college & roommate days there always seemed to be some chick who thought it was fine to keep the rest of us waiting for an hour while she meticulously styled every single hair on her head or something.)
That said, I can’t say I don’t like a bit of muscle on a guy. But the kind of muscle you get from being moderately active, which is typically not described as “ripped.” I like a guy to be taller than I am, but I don’t need 6’ or anything.
Being a straight guy (6’2", maybe 200-210 pounds), I’ll just pass along my wife’s views on the matter.
Shortly before we started dating (we’d been friends for a few years already), I started lifting. She didn’t care for the 6-pack I developed, and also thought I was putting on too much muscle.
Then, this past summer/fall, I spent a few weeks building a wood shed and then filling it with firewood (saves us ~$1000 in heating costs). 8-10 hours a day of construction, chainsawing, and log splitting toned and bulked me up quite a bit. She didn’t care for it very much (although she did comment specifically on liking my stronger hands).
She says she much prefers my current 4-pack (:)) – says it’s much nicer to snuggle with.
I’m not keen on ripped guys, even just to look at on the cover of a magazine. I do prefer the beefier man; the ideal is someone in reasonable shape but a bit soft round the edges.
Also, ripped guys in magazines tend to be hairless, and I love me some hair on a man. I think it’s sexy and virile. And the best sexual partners I have had…well they’ve all been hairy. Like animals. I see the ripped hairless as a bit sexless.
I do like tall men, I find it very protective and sexy. My current squeeze is tall, but quite a bit slimmer and more athletic than I would normally go for. However, he is hairy. He’s not ripped - no six pack, no bulging muscles, and I think he is extremely sexy.
What I really like is seeing a little bit of muscle that’s there due to lifestyle. Frex, MrWhatsit is a mail carrier, and since he started this job, his arms have become a little more muscular. I like looking at that. (Although, honestly, I liked looking at MrWhatsit quite a bit even before, obviously. It’s just a little bonus, ya know?)
Guys who are “ripped” a la the covers of men’s magazines do nothing for me. They don’t really look real, or human.
This is Mike Mahler. He’s a strength and conditioning coach and a vegan. When I look at him, I’m impressed by not only his physique and level of fitness, but for mastering the nutritional aspect (possibly the hardest part of building an impressive physique) within the limits of a vegan diet. He looks strong and healthy; he looks like a man. When I work out, my priority is to make strength and conditioning gains and to push myself. I’ll never have an underwear model body because I’m 5’8", I have kind of a blocky midsection, I like to eat, and I can’t devote all my free time to fitness. But I can develop the best physique I can achieve for myself as a pleasant by-product of working out, which is fine by me.
I don’t really think men get hung up on the advertising vision of what a man should like like the way women do.
Brad Pitt has pretty much the ideal body in my opinion. As far as Mike Mahler, I appreciate the skill and effort that went into his body, but I don’t find it aesthetically appealing. Too much bulk.
There is a line between fit and muscular and overbuilt. We had a previous thread on this where there 4 pictures for comparison and the OP was shocked to discover that the preferred photo (by like 4-to-1) was lean with natural musculature without any attempt at “beefing up”. The OP protested that this body type was only possible for young men, 20 or under and this made women’s preferences “unfair.” To which I, as a women, could only think “oh, cry me a river.”
To be fair, I don’t exactly have “brad pitt” as my minimum for attractiveness. If anything, its a maximum that can only be achieved through a lucky combination of having the right genes and having “being beautiful” as your full time job.
Generally, I’m not a big fan of the guys on the cover of Men’s Health. And really can’t see dating someone that would most likely blather endlessly about the carbs I was eating or how a margarita has so many calories.
Not to mention that as others have noted, prefer a guy with some fur on him (although not required) - it appears that most of the guys on MH have some body hair allergy or something.
I spend a lot of time at the gym - partly to make up for eating carbs and having margaritas :D. But, I’m an ectomorph at heart, and will never bulk up the ways those guys have. The partner Slip is a little shorter than me, hairy, and more of a mesomorph. It works for me.
BTW, never heard of Mike Mahler before this thread. He’s very hot.
Although have to say to the OP (as I stand six foot and am fair) … how you doin’?
Oh no kidding! Men are supposed to be hairy. I can’t imagine jumping in the sack with a guy who shaves his chest. That would take all the fun out of it.
I don’t actually read it any more - last time I bought it was about five years ago. The workouts they suggested were always too complicated or required equipment my gym didn’t have. Also I don’t enjoy having pages and pages of beautiful men shoved in my face with the prevailing undertone of “if you don’t look like this then you’re a failure” running through it. If I want to look at pretty men I watch porn, thanks.
ETA I’ve had a LOT more success with guys since I started removing the hair from my torso. Whilst there are definitely gay men who dig body hair, it would appear the vast majority don’t.
I don’t read it online for the pictures, and many of the guys in the mag are too ripped for my taste. I read it for the articles. It’s like Glamour is for women!!!
Personally I don’t dig very hairy guys. I had an ex who once asked me what I wanted. For some reason he thought he was hairy ( )…
In real life I prefer someone with a bit of softness. Still lean and fit, with obvious muscle definition, but a hint of a six-pack rather than the super-ripped stomach that you see in magazines.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Men’s Health, but based on your description I’m gonna say NO. The pinnacle of masculine pulchritude is tall and slim, thankyouyerymuch. Slender, even. No “ripped” (ick!). Also, in defiance of the other ladies posting, no hairy (likewise ick!).
I’m 5’10" so I may be a little biased on the “tall” issue, but I have never liked muscle and, God willing, never will. Hello Again’s Brad Pitt pix is a bit bulky for me. MOIDALIZE’s Mike Whatsisface is dog-ugly (in part due to the shaved-head-and-sunglasses combo… triple ick).
In practice, on the other hand, “smart, funny and fun to be around” beats all of that.
To be honest, I kind of think that the ripped muscles look is something guys do for the benefit of other guys, for vanity reasons. Very few women find it attractive - as noted above, it screams ‘high maintenance’ and isn’t pretty to look at, either.
I’m all for a man being stronger than I am, but that’s a long way from wanting him to look like a freaky pile of muscle-on-muscle. Mike Mahler’s build, as linked above by **MOIDALIZE **is okay… I don’t find Maher’s muscles attractive, but they’re not freakishly over-large either. Brad Pitt definitely scrubs up well, but even then the muscles don’t do anything for me.
So as you can imagine, any man who is mega-muscled is a major, major turn-off for me.
But that hair TICKLES! I prefer a clean look. Pubic hair is OK, as long as it doesn’t look like the guy might be able to host some small rodents in there or something. Minimal or no pubic hair is OK with me, too.
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