The August issue of Oprah’s O magazine has an article titled, How Men Really Feel About Their Bodies. (The entire aritcle is not available online, but large chunks are.)
It’s well-written piece by a guy, Ted Spiker, who’s also a regular contributor to Men’s Health magazine.
“At six feet two and 215 pounds, I’m not huge. I just carry my weight where women do—in my hips, butt and thighs. And I hate it. I hate the way clothes fit. I hate that friends say I use the “big-butt defense” in basketball. I’m not the only man who wishes his body looked more like Michael Jordan’s and less like a vat of pudding. A recent survey showed that only 18 percent of men are happy enough with their physiques that they wouldn’t change them. While women get there first, they don’t have a monopoly on stressing over looks.”
Spiker takes risks with this piece, revealing much about his own struggles with his body image.
But it’s more than a little ironic that the article appears in Oprah’s O and not in Men’s Health. Evidently it’s still not safe for Men’s Health to run a piece that’s emotionally revealing. And Spiker says nothing about how men’s magazines like Men’s Health have contributed to the male obsession with looks with their abs-only covers and plethora of articles and promotions dedicated to it.
Of course, that would be biting the hand that feeds. And, truth be told, my essay “The Sweat, the Moonlight, and the Lace” was rejected by Men’s Health earlier this year. Had it been accepted, I’d also be reluctant to criticize them for contributing to the problem. Hmmm. Maybe I should submit my piece to O?