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The Ideal Male Physique — What girls want & what guys want to be

Posted by W. Shane Duquette

Filed under Blog, Dating, Fitness & Lifestyle

Not surprisingly, the male and female perspectives differ — a lot! Turns out a typical athlete or amateur gym-goer wants a body that women don’t even find attractive, let alone ideal. If we want to be hotties, and honestly on some level most of us do, we’re totally clueless. Should that matter? I don’t know. Is it interesting? Definitely.

There are some surprises for women, too. Ryan Reynolds was one of the top picks when they were asked to write in the most ideal celebrity body… but even the girls that wrote in his name more often than not didn’t select his body (no heads were present) in the line-up. The body they selected in the line-up wasn’t even all that similar. So all of you guys thinking that you’ve got to have Ryan Reynolds’ body to be the handsomest hunk at the bar, or studliest stud on the beach… we’ve got some good news. What girls want is actually much easier to achieve. Brad Pitt ‘s headless body (as Tyler Durden in Fight Club), on the other hand, kicked some serious aesthetic ass in the line-ups.

And this isn’t all about aesthetics — don’t worry. We’ve tried to find out what girls want when it comes to looks, fitness, health and attitude in general. Don’t care what girls think? We’ve also found out what guys find the most impressive, and what guys aspire to achieve.

Lesson #1: Fit beats Freaky

We’ve got Brad Pitt in first place with 72.5% of women finding his body the MOST attractive and 86.7% of women being attracted to his body. In second place we’ve got the musician Henry Rollins (at his smallest) with 11.8% of women finding him the most attractive, and 41.8% of women attracted to his torso. The MMA heavyweight comes next with 9.8% liking him the best and 37% finding him attractive. In last place with 1% we have three time Mr. Olympia winner Frank Zane — famous for shifting the bodybuilding world away from mass and towards aesthetics. Evidently there’s still some shifting to do before he lines up with what women find aesthetically pleasing!

No big surprise that the Fight Club sex icon took #1. What DID surprise me is that the healthy looking musician took #2 — outperforming the athletes and bodybuilders. And even the starving sex icon Ville Valo beat out Frank Zane, the king of bodybuilding aesthetics. Looks like a life devoted to achieving the “perfect” physique gives you the worst body according to women. Yikes.

To make matters worse, 50% of the men that completed the survey (keep in mind these men are interested in physiques, or they wouldn’t have taken the survey) want to look like Frank Zane (last place), vs the 40% that want to look like Brad Pitt. Woah.

*Notes

If we filter the data by girls that self-identify as athletes, Brad Pitt drops to 53.8%, the heavyweight jumps to 31%, and Frank Zane the bodybuilder jumps to 15%.

If we filter the data by girls that self-identify as creatives, artists or musicians the opposite happens. Brad Pitt goes up to 73.3%, Henry Rollins goes up to 16.7% and the heavyweight build only gets 6.7%

If we filter by girls that self-identify as fashionable, Brad Pitt drops to 66.7%, the healthy looking Henry Rollins goes up to 22.2% and the emaciated Ville Valo goes up to 11%.

Lesson #2: Flabs aren’t Fab…. But Neither is Skin ‘n Bone

Anthony Ketis from the Red Hot Chili Peppers takes home the prize here with 58.3% of women preferring his bodyfat levels and 81% of women finding his body attractive. Gerard Butler Came in third, albeit on an off-day, with only 15% of women preferring his bodyfat levels. Poor Christian Bale, emaciated for his role in the Machinist, came in dead last with 0 votes.

Lesson #3: Healthy Trumps Hulking

We asked women to check off, based on words this time, what what was important to them about their man when it comes to fitness/health/physique (multiple checks allowed). Here are the significant results:

89.2% of women say that a man taking care of his health is important to them
74.5% of women want a man that’s stronger than they are
61.8% of women want a man that can protect them
60.8% want their man to look his best
58.8% think it’s important for their man to have bigger arms than them
38% want him to be strong and muscular.
38% are cool with average
2.9% want him ripped ‘n muscular like 50 cent

Lesson #4: Get the Results but not Obsessively — And Enjoy it.

There’s no doubt that women want a healthy man that’s strong and able to protect them. Aesthetics aside, girls want a guy that can effortlessly carry them around and make them feel safe on the streets at night. Who wants the fat guy with no energy that’s a slave to his cravings or the sickly scrawny guy that’d break like a twig? So let’s say you’ve somehow ended up either chubby or scrawny… well you’ve got to change your lifestyle and attitude, not just your body. Women want a guy who’s lifestyle and choices result in a great body — not the guy who stares at himself in the mirror all day while doing bicep curls and sipping protein shakes:

56.9% of women want him to enjoy doing physical things and naturally look that way
37.3% think that men should look good naturally without any effort

When it comes to health:
49% of women want absolute health, but not obsession
42.2% want him to be naturally healthy
5.9% just don’t want him to be sickly
and only 2.9% think being a health nut is okay

Hmmm. Looks like hitting the gym is out unless you enjoy it? But they do want the health/strength/protection/body… so you’d better enjoy it or you’re in trouble. Luckily, Jared and I have discovered, once you start heading down the healthy path it really does become enjoyable. And once you stop obsessing over the muscles that sprout up it really does transition well into effortless maintenance. It’s only the changing that’s hard.

Lesson #4: Don’t love your body — have a great body, but save the loving for her’s

When asked to pick how much confidence, shame, indifference or narcissism a man should feel about his body, here’s what girls answered:

61.8% believe in modest confidence
27.5% want him to like his body
7% want him to love his body
3% expect indifference
1 girl voted for insecurity (but I wouldn’t want to date that girl)

Lesson #5: If you’re chubby and they love you… they’d still like your body better if it were fitter

We said “Let’s say you have a boyfriend that is naturally chubby, like the photo of Gerard Butler on the left. All else the same, would you prefer if he were fit, like on the right?”

78.4% of women answered yes. They would want him to look fit.
20.6% of women said they didn’t care.
1% liked the chubby version.

Here‘s an article on how to lean up the healthy way.

Lesson #6: If you’re skinny and they love you — even if they tell you they like skinny dudes — they’d still like your body better if you at least upgraded from skinny to slim/fit/svelte.

We said “imagine you had a boyfriend that was naturally skinny, like Christian Bale on the left. All else the same, would you prefer if he became fit, like on the right?”

82.4% of women said yeah, they’d prefer him fit.
8.8% of women were indifferent
8.8% of women said if he’s naturally skinny they’d prefer he stay that way

Another no-brainer. If you’re scrawny 82.4% of women, as a girlfriend/wife, would want you to bulk up. I’m guessing that percentage would be even higher if you’re looking to date and haven’t already ensnared a vixen.

Here‘s how to add muscle to your too-skinny frame.

Lesson #7: A healthy appearance and a great physique won’t ever hurt your chances. A bad one will hurt your chances (although perhaps only incrementally) 96% of the time

When looking at a suitor or date here’s what the girls said:

34.3% of women answered that they prefer active healthy guys, but personality is key as well.
18.6% would love to date a really fit guy, but only if he isn’t narcissistic
12.7% are okay with an okay body… but it can’t be obese or emaciated
8.8% think it shouldn’t matter… but they want him to look naturally strong
6% think aesthetics trump all
2% think it shouldn’t matter but want a naturally slim guy
1% say it shouldn’t matter but want a naturally chubby guy
1.1% think it shouldn’t matter and don’t mind a fat or emaciated guy

So, 96% of women want a good body. Only 1.1% of women claim that they really don’t care. If you’re fat or emaciated you can certainly win a girl over based on a myriad of other attributes and have a wonderful relationship despite of it… but only 1.1-3% of women won’t have cared at all about it when selecting you.

Lesson #8: You don’t need to be THAT big or THAT lean. In fact, if you get too muscular or too ripped girls don’t like it as much

When presented with these four “sex icons” 63.2% of women chose Bob Harper, the personal trainer from The Biggest Loser. Up next, with only 24.2% of votes is the coveted Ryan Reynolds body. Up third is Men’s Health / underwear model Scott Herman. Even with the “best abs on the East Coast” title under his belt he still can’t hold his own against the far smaller and far less defined Bob Harper. Why? Because Scott Herman looks like a model with a contrived body, and Harper looks like a fit man with modest confidence. Adrien Brody didn’t do so well either. I suppose he’s a little too small and defined, giving him that too-much-effort unnatural look.

We asked girls why they made their choice. Here’re some of their answers:

Because it’s at once lean and muscular. Not too muscular.
Fit but not overdone.
Greatly fit, but not overly muscular.
I don’t find particularly defined abnominal muscles nice looking.
I don’t like overly defined abs, its less natural looking,
He isn’t disgustingly ripped.
It looks the most natural/normal.
It seems most proportional.
It’s not.. too much…
Not excessively ripped!
Not too overboard in fitness
health, tonned but not too much… the others are a little too intense
it looks healthy, and not overdone!
looks healthy, young, and not overly defined
muscles well-proportioned
not as defined – i don’t like too much muscle, but i dont like skinny either
not obsessively or overly muscular
not over the top muscular
not too buff not too slim, jussstt right
The abs don’t pop out as much, it looks more like a body of someone who is fit because of a sport as opposed to someone who does it for looks.

All of the answers say basically the same thing. Girls like fit looking guys. If your super-chiseled abs looks like you eat low sodium plain boiled chicken breasts and unseasoned broccoli all day… well… that just isn’t as sexy.

Ironically, of course, the body that girls selected is famous for being a fitness guru. His body/health is obviously a huge priority to him.

We asked the guys the same question (which body do you think WOMEN find the most attractive). 60% guessed Ryan Reynolds, 22% guessed Scott Herman, and only 14% guessed correctly with Bob Harper. Guys have no idea that women don’t want to be dating a Men’s Health model.

Lesson #9 — If you really want to go overboard and get the Arnold physique you won’t have a problem with the babes

There’s a subset of girls out there that adore bodybuilder bodies. There aren’t many, but since there are so few bodybuilders out there, those guys have plenty of girls to choose from. In order to get that effect though, you really need to be absolutely freakin’ enormous. If only 1% of girls (as our bodybuiler question indicates) want a freaky huge man… you’ve got to be bigger and freaker than 99% of guys. And if you’re bigger than 99.9% of dudes, well then you’ve got 10 girls competing for you.

Bonus Lesson (because we were curious) — Here’s what women think about grooming and manscaping:

Girls like guys that wear their hair medium and messy (39.2%) or short and carefree (39%). Sadly, it looks like only 7.8% of women dig my “long and wild!” haircut. I like to tell myself that girls like that I don’t care what they think about my haircut though.

Chest hair? 45% of women say keep it natural unless you’re a werewolf, and 36% say tame it. 4% like super hairy men. 15% like guys with shaved chests. I’m not sure how my naturally rather hairless chest fits into the mix here. Do I get points for being natural, tame AND shaven? That’d be pretty rad.

When it comes to facial hair 60% of women say scruffy and manly. Right on. 29% prefer ‘em smooth. 6% dig beards… but less than 1% dig the massive Hell’s Angels style beards… so don’t go too crazy! And mustaches and goatees collectively got 0%. Looks like we didn’t poll enough hipsters.

The hair down under? Manscaping? What do girls want? 85% say tame it — the 70’s are gone. 7% don’t like pubes and want ‘em shaved. Hopefully they don’t also prefer children. Yikes. And 8% think the 70’s are still on. So you’re allowed to have hair… just keep it, you know, clean.

Lesson #10 — Summer’s here. The Ultimate beach bod:

Once again the fit-but-not-freaky looking one takes the lead.

And the ultimate ideal perfect sexiest male body?

When shown all of the photos at once 23% of women chose Brad Pitt’s torso, 19% chose fitness guru Bob Harper, and 15% chose the bangin’ beach bod from up above. There’s a pretty well-defined “range of perfection”. You need to be muscular, but not too muscular. Being slim and well muscled is perfect, and so is being a little muscle-bound, so long as it looks natural and healthy. You can be lean like Brad, or muscular but with no abs like Mr. Speedo and girls love both. You’ve just got to be and look healthy. That’s harder for some than others of course. Some people find themselves “naturally” overweight or underweight (like Jared and I were) and it takes some work to get into that healthy and fit range (our transformation). Once there though, it’s a blast, and pretty easy to maintain without getting all obsessive about it.

What do men think? They preferred Zyzz’s body (right) — the body that didn’t even register on the females’ radar because of its too-swollen muscles and too-chiseled abs.

I like the survey results. Looks like the ideal male body is the one that visually exudes health and energy. Does it suck that emaciators, chubsters and steroid monkeys aren’t on an equal playing field? Not really. Perhaps it’ll encourage the unhealthy to become healthy. Many girls face the pressures of trying to get the underfed model look that runs rampant in the high fashion circles and pop culture magazine covers. Do guys really want a scrawny woman? I don’t. Similarly, it looks like girls don’t want the juicing giants on the covers of Men’s Health and bodybuilding magazines. Luckily, it seems, if guys act based on what the girls pressure them to be, they’ll end up healthy and active — and have a body that reflects that.

Have an opinion? Drop us a line in the comments below!

And if you’re on the scrawny side of things and thinking “man—I need to build some muscle!”, check Bony to Beastly out.

Update: inspired by the results of our survey, and intrigued by the comments demanding a more science-based approach … we’ve written up a new article based on dozens of studies. Check this article on aesthetics out.

Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

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105 Responses to “The Ideal Male Physique — What girls want & what guys want to be”

natalie
September 7th, 2011
4:42 pm

Ooh awesome. Very interesting, is there one for what guys like about girls??
W. Shane Duquette
September 7th, 2011
4:58 pm

Sadly not yet, no! After our Lean to Mean bodybuilding experiment we wound up with a lot of male followers that were interested in this kind of thing. But now that this post’s out maybe we’ll create a survey about women? We’ll see if the demand is there
Karanime
September 11th, 2011
10:19 pm

I’d like a post about what kind of female body guys like best.

I’m kind of at a loss, because they don’t like skinny girls, a lot don’t like girls with big boobs, and I’ve heard over and over that athletic girls look scary.

So yes, a poll would be nice.

/<3
W. Shane Duquette
September 11th, 2011
11:00 pm

Looks like we have more female followers than I thought! Right on. I’ll create a survey like we did for this one. I have a feeling the result will be the same: a fit and healthy looking woman with a positive and confident attitude about her physique will take the prize. We’ll see!

PS an athletic skinny girl with big boobs doesn’t sound so bad to me
MISC
September 14th, 2011
4:42 pm

Zyzz
W. Shane Duquette
September 15th, 2011
1:42 pm

Our research actually indicated otherwise, surprisingly!
Neil Skywalker
September 15th, 2011
5:37 pm

Excellent article, i cant wait to hit the gym again once i return home from travelling.
Jon
September 17th, 2011
3:34 am

What a waste of my time! This is the worst experiment Ive ever seen! Im a guy and I could pick these numbers! Honestly who wouldnt rate the Frank Zane worst or the Anorexic last or second to last? Anyone who watches fuckin movies could see that the first rated picture belongs to Brad Pitt… And no duh that they pick the fit version of Gerrard Butler or Christian Bale vs the skinny or fat version of him. Do you guys really think girls pay less attention to media and movies than guys do? Honestly?!
W. Shane Duquette
September 17th, 2011
11:43 am

We surveyed guys, actually, and they couldn’t. If you look at #8 they incorrectly guessed what women wanted. The men thought women wanted quite muscular guys with very low bodyfat — not the case. If you check out bodybuilding forums you’d be surprised at the number of guys that think that the bigger you are the more mainstream appeal you have. We actually have a bit of a backlash in some of them, because people think that our survey is wrong — that women actually like far bigger guys.
But you have a point! Doesn’t take a genius to realize that Brad’s got the bod that women want!
Paladin
September 18th, 2011
4:51 am

Very interesting!
(r)Evoluzione
September 20th, 2011
11:47 pm

Interesting, but it would be great to perform the study with a bit more science-y rigor, because there are some clear errors of study design.

One of the worst: Body language and position can affect people’s perceptions strongly. In Lesson #8, the lowest ranking picture has his hands crossed in front of him. There’s no coincidence there–crossed hands indicates anger or aggression.

Also, lighting, clothing, and tattoos can also subconsciously influence viewers.

So, interesting study, but if you repeat it, you’d need torso photos in the same posture, clothing, and lighting.
THEN you’d have some science.

Oh, and, uh, I forgot to tell you: you can’t believe what women say they like. Sometimes they don’t even know. The only way you can tell for sure is to check to see if their vaginas get lubricated. Pussy wetness uber-alles: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/25/magazine/25desire-t.html?pagewanted=all

Actions speak louder than words.. when I go out with my bodybuilder buddies who have 18 inch biceps and sculpted, bulky pecs and delts, I see the looks they get. I’m fit, athletic, and muscular, but in a button-down shirt, you can’t tell.
MiscBrah
September 23rd, 2011
2:29 am

This study is crap, haha.

Girls like Brad Pitt. Real women like real men. Like Zyzz.

And even girls be mirin Zyzz-bodies. U mad?
Paul
September 23rd, 2011
6:07 am

This study is flawed in so many ways, its useless. Women do not respond just to muscularity and fat levels.. the tattoos are a huge influence, and deciding to use celebrities shows that the editors decided, ahead of time, a desired result, and picked images to reach that goal.
Too bad, could have been a useful article.
john do
September 23rd, 2011
7:48 am

real women like real men like zyzz? so real women are necro’s?
hmmmm
ScottR
September 23rd, 2011
7:17 pm

Could have been more scientific, but at least they showed what they showed. Had they not shown the pictures they used it would be a lot harder to evaluate the merit and come to our own conclusions.
And sure lighting and positioning plays a role, but it looks to my like the bodybuilders have some pretty favourable lighting going on and some pretty well practiced poses.
BP
September 23rd, 2011
7:20 pm

BPIFC for the win
Trev
September 23rd, 2011
7:22 pm

Sure if you take some photos and put them next to one another the guy with the Brad Pitt body might win. Put that guy next to Zyzz in a bar and girls will go for Zyzz. Why? Because Zyzz has the status. He has hte power.
Willem
October 19th, 2011
3:26 am

Maybe the brah’s should decide to actually read the article instead of just looking at the photos (they are pretty). Why does it matter if Zyzz has more ‘girls mirin’ his body, or that it is obvious that brad pitt is the ‘celeb hottie’?

Bringing the entire article down to these few points is probably distilling it a bit too much, so READ the article:

Be fit and healthy and ENJOY it
Be CONFIDENT but not Obsessive
Be CONSCIOUS of your fitness and your body

This has some great tips on how to approach fitness, and life in general. Thanks!
What Body Type Do Women Want? (Article Included)
January 13th, 2012
12:48 am

[...] like you obsess over your appearance or look unnatural and you'll be in the ideal range for women. Foxhound Studio I thought it was interesting that the "Male Choice" at the very bottom right of the [...]
JohnnyChristian
January 14th, 2012
11:33 pm

lettuce be reality

Zyzz’ body is better, the girls who voted against it are just fat and don’t want to feel insecure around the great god Zyzz.
Im Fuckin Zyzz Brah
January 15th, 2012
12:10 am

“Women don’t know what they want until it’s right in front of them”-GymShowerNap
KingOfAesthetics
January 15th, 2012
12:13 am

Guys who lift for girls are failures to begin with, Zyzz has the perfect body regardless of these results. Lol at brad pitts body being the ‘ideal’. That takes 3 months to achieve.
OPisa
January 15th, 2012
12:29 am

Awesome pics. Great size. Look thick. Solid. Tight. Keep us all posted on your continued progress with any new progress pics or vid clips. Show us what you got man. Wanna see how freakin’ huge, solid, thick and tight you can get. Thanks for the motivation.
ZeezPrah
January 15th, 2012
12:30 am

ZYZZ
AwareBrah
January 15th, 2012
12:36 am

Whales, good luck with your unaesthetic-seeking goals of 2012.
sally randolf
January 15th, 2012
12:40 am

Brad Pitt does have the sexiest bod! Bob harper is great too,and he is such a good role model on the Biggest Loser!<3

I would never even consider dating one of the steroid munching micro penis losers lol.
Myron Gaines
January 15th, 2012
12:59 am

@sally randolf
I do the same thing, laugh with my boys when fat girls like you think we are checking them out. Jakes on you.
sally randolf
January 15th, 2012
1:01 am

@myrongaines

lol hun referring to yourself as “alpha” that’s so cute.

I am far from fat you little insecure nerd.
Myron Gaines
January 15th, 2012
1:02 am

Sally I accept your apology.
ScottHermanFitness
January 15th, 2012
1:18 am

Wowza! I beat out Zyzz huh? Pretty big honor! Thank you to all of you beautiful women! *wink*
MiscBrah354362
January 15th, 2012
2:07 am

WTF so the people who win are ‘do you even lift?’ers?!

the fuck man,.. the fuck?
Taleen
January 15th, 2012
2:27 am

There have been studies done looking into the choices certain subjects make, and how they are based on their own personal insecurities. I don’t know the name of the journal article off the top of my mind, but it was released in 2009, I believe, in a major Psychology journal.

The data and results were overwhelming, and I can no longer take surveys seriously without looking at the subjects themselves.

I hate to say it, but I’m pretty sure that the majority of women didn’t go for the ideal male physique because of insecurities and short comings. I’m confident you will find a correlation between the choices the women make and their own physical appearance; i.e. confident/attractive females would be more likely to choose fit and defined body types (Reynolds/Zyzz/bodybuilder tpye) as compared to less attractive women who would choose more mediocre/average fitness/less fit bodies.
Anonymous
January 15th, 2012
3:13 am

Whales gon whale
Strongmiscpresence
January 15th, 2012
4:08 am

Any unaesthetic ganga who filled out this survey would cream herself if she saw Zyzz a few feet in front of her.
george
January 15th, 2012
9:06 am

this is moronic at best. Guys shouldn’t work out for what WOMEN desire but for themselves. Define your surroundings don’t let them define you or else you have no personality. Who cares what women think ? At the end of the day it is about smarts, personality and wit. I work out to have a healthy body, to be stronger and to feel like i am setting myself goals and accomplishing them it makes me feel awesome to excel in something, looks are just a bonus. Innate insticts drive women towards funny and intelligent guys (it shows good brain function, essential for survival/success) and fit guys (good brain function, also essential for aformentioned) Notice how every constatation based on physique associates a personality to said guy ”looks like he tries too much”. It shows all that matters in the end is PERSONALITY, therefore intelligence.
ZyZZisKing
January 15th, 2012
9:07 am

Wimenz dun goofd. Zyzz is God. dealwithit
lolmisc
January 15th, 2012
11:40 am

Should redo the survey by taking the opinions of women guys want vs the opinions of women who weigh more than 300 pounds
Long live the Father Of Aesthetics
January 15th, 2012
12:08 pm

listen here man. I don’t know who you think you are. I really don’t, but you are really killing me inside. Killing me to the point where I just don’t want to see your face anymore. You have taken everything from me. My family. My girlfriend. My fkin cat. What the fck else do you want? MY SOUL MAN? MY SOUL? Get out of my face. Get out of my life, because I just can’t take it anymore. I can’t take the constant pain that you provide. I can’t take being without it.
Umiringainsbrah
January 15th, 2012
5:16 pm

ZYZZ IS THE KING.
ZYZZ HAS AESTHETICS.
RIP ZYZZ THE GOD
blacksnake
January 15th, 2012
10:50 pm

I would love to know how the results would change if the girls had to choose if they had those bodies in front of them. Something tells me Zyzz’s body would more than register on their radars.
truth
January 16th, 2012
1:07 am

this really depends on the girls that were surveyed.. hot chicks love muscular guys, fat chicks dig equally fat guys, and lazy skinnyh chicks love athletic guys
anonymous
January 16th, 2012
12:19 pm

Just watch women when a ripped guy enters the room… Although they would never admit it. Because they cant speak as open about their desires as we do or they would be considered slutty.
Therefore you would have to test it like in that NYT article with their vaginal arousal. Cant LIE there.
Ed
January 16th, 2012
11:57 pm

Lol at this, girls are just intimidated by the Zyzz physique, he tops everyone else (no homo). Zyzz>Everyone
Fah ken zeezbrah
January 17th, 2012
12:51 am

Why would we care about the opinions of whales again?
Fawkin Joocy
January 17th, 2012
8:48 pm

#$%&* be crazy
W. Shane Duquette
January 21st, 2012
6:04 pm

Ahahaha looks like we’ve confirmed at least some of the results of the survey — men do indeed prefer Zyzz!
Zyzzforbrains
February 11th, 2012
6:52 am

If Zyzz got so many women with his body, why did he have to fly to Thailand to get laid like every other loser?
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March 24th, 2012
5:51 am

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SoCalMuscleBeach
April 10th, 2012
7:10 pm

Most men will not understand women and vice versa. But the writing is on the wall. MOST women (of all types) do not like overly muscled unnatural looking men. Those that DO are other bodybuilders and homosexuals. Simple.
For most men, shrink your waist and increase your shoulder width. The proportioned V taper is what women find attractive. If you take steroids you are an insecure wimp who once they go off their cycle have the same testosterone level as a 12 year old girl. Steroids make you LESS of a man.
Zeezbrah
June 15th, 2012
12:23 am

I’m fawkin zeezbrah… saw this on Tmisc. Strong article is strong.
zyzz
June 15th, 2012
3:40 pm

lol @ caring what women think.
Miscer
June 16th, 2012
5:54 pm

Son of Zeus. Brother of Hercules. Father of Aesthetics. ZYZZ
JawoftheGods
June 16th, 2012
8:35 pm

lol what women say they want and what they want in practice is very different.

Just look at all the bishes Zyzz pulled with no effort

Also who listens to women anyway?
OPishomosex
June 17th, 2012
6:44 pm

ITT: 85% of girls asked were fat as phuck and therefore cannot comprehend Frank Zane’s aesthetics.

oh, and everyone knows women don’t have a fukin clue of what they want.
OPishomosex
June 17th, 2012
6:46 pm

edit: strong MISC presence ITT
Hugh Ghaines
June 17th, 2012
7:57 pm

I am demanding that you question us males and do a male survey, so that women know what to fix on themselves. Women are far too picky and the average female is either let themselves go or just plain unfit, they’re idea of “fit” is a swimmers build that requires little to no muscle development just fat loss.

Regards,

Hugh Ghaines
Zyzzforbrains
June 17th, 2012
10:30 pm

@Zyzzforbrains Watchout your comments mate. Why the hell would Zyzz go to Thailand of all places to get women? Have you not seen the women mirin him at festivals and in malls.
CellTek
June 17th, 2012
10:59 pm

I’m pretty sure if they saw zyzz right in front of them, the ladies would just melt down and try to rape him on the spot. I would like to know which women took this survey.
zyzzbrah
June 17th, 2012
11:07 pm

lol @ acting like females actually know what they want. brad pitt = good looking celebrity with status and money, they already know him, of course they would pick him. but put zyzz brah in a room with these ugly ass chicks and i guarantee they will wet themselves (no nuthugg)
kalso jenhu
June 17th, 2012
11:43 pm

Most of these chicks being tested were probley over weight, tbh, they know they can’t hook up with a guy like that so they stoop to lower standards, afraid of the man looking better then themselves.

Yes my jimmies are rustled
TROLLOLOL
June 18th, 2012
2:59 am

Anyone who lifts to get chicks is a beta
Sigmund Freud
June 18th, 2012
3:52 am

It’s called cognitive-dissonance.
Biuriful
June 18th, 2012
3:47 pm

Brother of Hercules.

/discussion.
Myron Gainez
June 18th, 2012
3:54 pm

asking women what they want in terms of aesthetics? that’s a horrible idea.

obviously women are not going to pick the most proportionately aesthetic man, aka Zane or Zyzz. Not saying that some do have their personal preference, but i think most answers come from either their own insecurities or from a fear of coming off as shallow to the person conducting the survey.

moral of the survey, Zyzz and Zane win. every time.
Glen Buterol
June 18th, 2012
4:26 pm

The percentages only add up to 57%, so Zyzz won with 43%? IM FAWKIN ZEEZ BRUH
I lift
July 15th, 2012
11:13 am

Man. So much guys got sooo mad here.

>2012
>lifting for women

>2012
>thinking you know what women want.
Dan
July 15th, 2012
11:35 am

This just proves how dumb some women can be, 8% they would prefer christian bale stay as an aushuwitz level of skinniness? being that underweight is dangerous, not healthy.

Also, lifting for girls is not a good reason to lift in the first place, lolz curls for the gurls.
Gotta target that bicep from 30 different angles for wiminz.
Tapioca
July 15th, 2012
12:48 pm

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/25/magazine/25desire-t.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all
W. Shane Duquette
July 23rd, 2012
11:39 am

Very interesting article. We love that stuff. Thanks for posting it
GymGuy
July 27th, 2012
3:40 pm

Problems with this study:

1) Tattoos. They affect the score, many girls like them.
2) Celebrities. You should have used similar photos of total strangers. People recognize Brad Pitt even without the head. Even girls do.

Also the women that voted came most likely from all walks of life. But the fact is, that the hot girls with a fit and sexy bikini model body prefer more muscular guys. Fatties and nerds don’t. So if you want a hot girl, better get ripped. Not too much of course, pro bodybuilders and steroid monsters go too far.
Steve
August 17th, 2012
7:58 am

How would you define short, medium and long hair?
W. Shane Duquette
August 18th, 2012
8:10 pm

I’d say short would be a buzz cut, medium would be a shag, long would be anything beyond that, and mine would be very long.
Mirin
September 5th, 2012
2:37 am

See, your average girl can’t really tell the specifics of fitness, musculature, and body fat among males.

“What do men think? They preferred Zyzz’s body (right) — the body that didn’t even register on the females’ radar because of its too-swollen muscles and too-chiseled abs.”

And proves my point exactly. Women don’t know anything about male fitness beyond a certain point. No self-respecting male who’s been lifting longer than 1 month would ever make Brad Pitt his goal body; everyone knows that pic is no muscle and just low bodyfat. The difference between Zyzz and Brad Pitt is that Zyzz had even lower body fat, and much more muscle at a height taller than Brad Pitt, which makes Zyzz’s accomplishments even more amazing.
Boominghs
September 5th, 2012
11:42 am

Women want tall men:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22gtSCJd9jA

END OF STORY.
tinaweena
September 5th, 2012
11:50 am

I didn’t recognize initally who Ryan Reynolds was until I googled him. It’s his face. That’s it. He’d handsome but in an approachable way. Really his body is almost a contrast to his face.
Zippy
September 5th, 2012
1:11 pm

Shit poll because no Zyzz #1 king of aesthetics
Erin Gaeile
September 24th, 2012
8:30 pm

As a woman, and yes, a fit in-shape one. My question to all you men insulting women is, why on earth does it matter what size a woman is? Does that make her stupid? Does that change what she finds attractive in a male body?

Please, go tell one of your female friends, if you have any, that a woman’s waist size dictates how intelligent she is. Say it to your mother, or grandmother. Say it to a college professor, and see what they have to say about -your- intelligence.

I think this study is spot on, and I eagerly look forward to seeing one about what men want in a female body as opposed to what women think they want.

I sincerely hope the comments by women there are as flattering to men as the comments here are to women.
Neil Skywalker
October 1st, 2012
7:00 pm

Lots of guys here seem to have a boner for zyzz. Dude was ripped and popular, now dead. Get over it.
JOBRAH
October 9th, 2012
4:37 pm

U MIRIN
Onikaze
October 17th, 2012
5:09 pm

Interesting how the images with the winning physiques for women also featured men with tattoos or, in the case of Brad Pitt’s image, in a context of something rough, dirty, and even a bit bloodied. To even approach something akin to an empirical study, the researchers would need to remove external modifiers like the “bad boy” vibe those images convey because those elements create the potential for bias towards one image over another due to factors that are outside of what they were trying to assess. Not that I’m suggesting the more athletic yet less gym-obsessed look isn’t more pleasing. I’m just pointing out that there are still other biases that may be swaying the numbers.

As GymGuy pointed out, they would need to use models that do not have tattoos and are not identified as a celebrity (you’d have to have lived under a rock not to recognize that Fight Club image even without the head (I’ve never even seen the movie and I recognize it)) to level the playing field in a way that would make the numbers a little more reliable. Better yet, use digital models based on real models so you also remove other variables like skin tone/condition/etc. Simply showing photos of torsos does not lead to a study that sufficiently eliminates uncontrolled variables in a way that generates numbers that could be considered reliable and unbiased in any way other than the bias the researchers were studying.
El cuerpo ideal para las mujeres « Soltero en Madrid
October 30th, 2012
10:01 am

[...] tiempo fué publicada una encuesta hecha por la gente de Foxhound Studio acerca del tipo de cuerpo masculino ideal tanto para las [...]
Bryan
November 18th, 2012
9:43 pm

Women do not know what they want. Nor do men; nobody does.

For example, if you Google “hot guy” you will get pages and pages of pictures of hairless guys.

Yet in the survey women say they prefer the natural look unless you are super hairy. Wrong. They do not prefer that. That is what they say they prefer during a survey. Where are all the models with chest hair? Nowhere to be found. During a survey question about manscaping, women do not want to choose the man who seems like he works too much on himself. But when presented with a line up of guys, she’ll choose the hairless ones because she is not thinking about whether the guy engages in her ideal of not shaving and being perfectly hot naturally. All she is thinking about is who is hottest.

Who am I to say that people are wrong in their own answers? A student of economics who knows that people are frequently drastically different in their revealed preferences vs what they are surveyed on.

Remember to look at people’s revealed preferences as your more reliable guide to action.
Jon
December 22nd, 2012
1:59 am

Lol at at the bros and roid heads that want confirmation on their gross ideals, despite clear evidence otherwise. This study is right inline with any male that doesn’t have low-esteem or isn’t brain washed. I bet girls have the same reaction to articles that show skinny is grosss. lol. Still going for a Zyzz+ look though, just not doing it to get laidddd. Losers.
Cheek E. Kuntz
December 30th, 2012
4:55 pm

>2012
>Women knowing what they want
>lulz pick one
Cheek E. Kuntz
December 30th, 2012
4:56 pm

Oh and…Zyzzbrah not being #1 pleaseeee
Misc sent me here lol
December 30th, 2012
5:06 pm

Honestly comes down to the fact that if you are doing it for girls than you probably are the same phaggot that never squats or train legs. In the gym for the wrong reason and should quit while youre ahead. people should start worrying about themselves than about what other people think. Is that narcissism? I guess so but I would rather put myself first than some bish I want to “please”. There’s lots of bishes in the world anyway and it’s fact Zyzz pulled some of the hottest gangas so there is no argument. Girls don’t know what they want so Potatoes gonna potate.
Chris
January 1st, 2013
11:46 am

Boy, it’s confusing. As a male I wouldn’t want to look like some jacked bodybuilder…just not my thing. I appreciate the work they do and their achievement. It’s just out of step with how men naturally look. Even the Brad Pitt bod is a reach for most, but somewhere just off that would be good. Typically guys don’t want to starve themselves to stretch their skin that tightly.
Mi
January 1st, 2013
4:51 pm

Basically this research and string of comments brings me back to square one— Your body type is more about personal identity than it is about what random women think looks good. Just have the type of body which you can identify with most and are comfortable in. There’s always going to be women in a so called ‘percentage zone’ who will like you, yeah even if you are on far ends of fat, skinny, or built. It’s all about identity.
Toby
January 25th, 2013
10:10 am

Zyzz had insane success with girls, much of it documented in pictures or videos. As a guy with the Henry Rollins body I will gladly admit adult women prefer Zyzz’s physique. That’s why we all wanna get big and ripped like the god of aesthetics himself.
Jeff
January 29th, 2013
4:19 am

Lulz, bishes don’t know what they want.

Zyzz>anyone

/Website
Michael
January 31st, 2013
8:44 pm

I’m not surprised at all that the women love Brad because of his sex appeal and extreme attractiveness on women.

But us guys can’t complain of what women like and pleasing women especially in this era is extremely impossible. You may think you’re a 7 or 8 on a scale of 1-10 but women would rate you an 2 or 3. According to women us guys highly overrate ourselves.
Body Shame Bowl XLVII: Advertising Cultural Ideals Does No One Any Good | Adios Barbie
February 11th, 2013
9:43 am

[...] Polls on what both men and women consider the ideal male body (WARNING: images may be triggering for readers in ED recovery) reveal in no uncertain terms that the “women should order the salad, men can do whatever they want” mentality is as big a lie as Manti Te’o’s girlfriend. Men are expected to fit the Christian-Bale-as-Bruce-Wayne physique: broad shoulders, narrow waist, abs so defined they look like the individual compartments of an ice cube tray. Still, that same poll points out the Catch-22 of the ideal body: 86.7% of women surveyed think the ideal man needs to be as muscular as Batman, but 91.2% think that an obsessive workout regime would be a turn-off. Is there another way to look like Christian Bale? I’m thinking not so much. Even Christian Bale would tell you that he wasn’t born looking like Christian Bale. Calvin Klein’s Ad “Gears” [...]
Ophelia
February 16th, 2013
5:51 pm

All this article does is move the goal-posts for what is the standardised beauty norm.
Some people love “emaciators, chubsters and steroid monkeys” (way to body-shame), and some women (and men) don’t care what their partner looks like because human sexuality and relationships are diverse and complex.

Your stimulus photos are biased, anyway, because they are pictures of actors, body-builders and musicians who are a They’re a product of this weird idealised idea of what humans “should” look like, because their image is what they are “selling” to the consumers in a homogenised mainstream market.

This article just perpetuates the same attitudes that cause people to feel inadequate about their bodies. Why can’t we just go back to the primary-school level of human sociology and remember that everyone is different and special in their own way, and that everyone likes different things?
Body Shame Bowl XLVII: Advertising Cultural Ideals Does No One Any Good | The Body Pacifist
February 18th, 2013
3:31 pm

[...] existence of polls on what both men and women consider the ideal male body (WARNING: images may be triggering for readers in ED recovery) reveals in no uncertain terms that [...]
MJ
February 20th, 2013
4:42 am

Women – They think something looks good on paper, but in real life they want something totally different. RIP ZYZZ <3
O físico ideal Masculino — O que mulheres querem e o que homens querem ser
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12:39 pm

[...] vou traduzir um artigo grande da Foxhound Studio, que fala sobre o que os homens querem e o que as mulheres querem… é bem bacana!! Vamos [...]
Bryan M
March 22nd, 2013
1:36 am

From what I’ve heard from girlfriends and other women, this article is pretty on point. Women don’t want scrawny guys but they also don’t like guys that are massive guys that look like they’ve been cycling roids. If you don’t care what women thinks do what you want to do, don’t bitch about it and call women fat. Just because a women doesn’t like you doesn’t make her a lesbian either.
Kat
March 24th, 2013
5:27 am

Girls don’t find the excessively muscled guys attractive because they look weird and fake like the stick thin, plastic surgery, fake tan, fake hair, fake face girl equivalent. It is an outward expression of gender/sexual identity problems and also demonstrates an excessive emphasis on aesthetics and an obsession with themselves and as shown here, how other people look too. Being excessively muscled is very bad for your health and does not make you fit, it is purely an aesthetic achievement. That’s why women said in the survey they preferred a natural looking man, because it is impossible to have a relationship (where you relate to each other) when someone is obsessing over themselves like body builders do.
miscr
April 14th, 2013
3:46 pm

@Kat
That’s a stupid thing to say, body builder’s don’t obsess over themselves. We care about our muscles the way girls care about their clothes. You want to make sure your outfit matches, we want to make sure our legs are proportioned to the rest of our body.

An excessively muscled guy worked hard for his muscles and looks, it’s a life style, not some 30 minute make up routine. To compare muscles to plastic surgery or fake face girl is beyond idiotic. It’s not bad for your health unless you’re referring to cycling. Which even then if taken at the recommended dosages isn’t bad. You’re just perpetuation a misconception about steroids. Anything in excess is unhealthy, but body builders in general are not excessively muscular.

I agree females and males have different perceptions of beauty, but I have to agree that this study is flawed. Too many variables that were not accounted for.
Finally no more looks debate!
April 21st, 2013
3:43 pm

[...] look how we are all clueless about look and no women do not like xyzz or whatever his name is: Foxhound Studio Reply With Quote « ADULT Content: Female Hypergamy: The [...]
John
April 29th, 2013
1:49 am

According to what I actually see in real life, when I go out to a club with my friends or we’re at the beach..It’s the ripped muscular guys who get all of the stares, attention and phone #s. None of my friends or my self look like we shoot roids, we’re far from being “competitive bodybuilders”, but we do look fit..Pull up our sleeves and we have large forearms, large biceps, flat stomachs, women love that in spite of whatever this study suggests.
aab
May 2nd, 2013
5:26 pm

Ooh awesome. Very interesting, is there one for what guys like about girls??

– T & A
Tom Bahven
May 3rd, 2013
4:24 pm

Great info thanks you waiting for more
jeremy
May 12th, 2013
1:34 am

Girls want the zyzz body type
Guys want the zyzz body type
everyone wants to be zyzz

fuck off op with your phaggytiem article, Zyzz > everything else
Scott
May 16th, 2013
1:30 pm

ZYZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ Brah? U sickKnts MiRin?

`Foxhound`

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