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Are ‘Dad bods’ sexy?

I just found out that I’m sexy. Now, looking at that big, round, bald, apple pie face smiling out at you from the page, you’re probably thinking, “Yeah, that’s totally what I imagine when I think of the word ‘sexy.
Steven Hill
Columnist Steven Hill

I just found out that I’m sexy.

Now, looking at that big, round, bald, apple pie face smiling out at you from the page, you’re probably thinking, “Yeah, that’s totally what I imagine when I think of the word ‘sexy.’”

And y’know, your sarcasm is so not appreciated.

Luckily, sexy people don’t respond to sarcasm.

And, it’s true. I am sexy… or at least my unexercised, beer-bellied bod is, according to the Internet.

You see, the “dad bod” is apparently not only a thing now, but it’s what women want… but I don’t really buy it either. The last time a woman looked at me with hunger in her eyes, I was holding a Snickers bar.

The whole thing started in April, when American university student Mackenzie Pearson wrote an essay called “Why Girls Love the Dad Bod,” which went viral and began a worldwide conversation on men’s physiques.

According to Pearson’s essay, the dad bod “is a nice balance between a beer gut and working out.

“The dad bod says, ‘I go to the gym occasionally, but I also drink heavily on the weekends and enjoy eating eight slices of pizza at a time.’ It’s not an overweight guy, but it isn’t one with washboard abs, either.”

Her thoughts touched off intense interest around the globe, and the topic has since been covered by Time, New York magazine, GQ, The Washington Post and other publications.

Much of the talk has been about how there has never really been a discussion about how men – just like women – are made to feel bad about their bodies by the media. Sure, we are absolutely not under the same pressure as women to conform to society’s unrealistic standards of “beautiful,” but the pressure is still there.

However, if anything, the dad bod debate, in its own soft and love-handled way, has shown the “subtle sexism” of our perceptions by giving guys an excuse to feel good about looking normal, while women are still expected to look thin and perfect.

Want proof?

On May 11, when Pearson penned a new essay called “The Mom Bod: When We Love Our Bodies, So Will Society,” nobody seemed to take notice, and we kept right on talking about flabby daddies.

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