We all have in our minds what an attractive body for men should be. The attractiveness of the male body is not defined by how heavy it is. Rather, it is defined by the shape of it. It is for this reason that an attractive body for men could be effectively measured by using the waist to shoulder ratio. The shoulder to hip ratio is another popular measurement but may not be optimal to define an attractive body for men.

These series of articles discuss on how one could have a better well-defined body. Part 2 of this series was “How Science Defines A Beautiful Body for Women”. We discussed in Part 1 why the weight scales and BMI do not help anyone achieve a well-defined body, except for obese individuals.

Attractive body for men – What comes to your mind when this is mentioned?

We all have an idea of what a beautiful female body or an attractive body for men should look like in our minds. If you look harder at the picture in your mind, you will realize that you can only see a particular body shape that looks attractive to you. Nobody sees a weight number in their mind. As mentioned earlier, an attractive body is not defined by weight but by its shape.

A lot has been written about what the ideal male body should look like. It depends on what a man himself wants and to a certain extent what women find attractive.

In a study done in Cambridge university in 1993, 700 women aged between 19 and 65 were interviewed to assess what women looked for in a man’s body. They were shown diagrams depicting 30 male body types and asked to rank them for attractiveness on a scale of one to five.

Pear-shaped bodies were quickly discarded, as were skinny ones. This left the those who have lean hips, trim waists and broad shoulders, making a “”V shape, the body which women found the most attractive.

Most people agree that the “V” shaped torso is the most attractive body for men.

The misguided obsession with the scales

When someone is extremely obese, the obvious goal would be to lose weight. This is perhaps the only time when the weight scales come in handy. This is because an obese individual carries so much fat that any weight loss would most likely come from fat loss. We define Correct Weight Loss as weight loss that comes from losing fat while maintaining muscle mass.

As one sheds more fat, the weight scales become a very inaccurate compass . One is not able to assess what percentage of the weight loss is fat and what percentage is muscles. A continued focus on achieving a certain target number on the weight scales could result in a considerable loss of muscle.

With all the emphasis on BMI and ideal weight range, we are made to believe that a particular weight number could help us achieve this shape. Nothing could be further from the truth.

When the result desired is a target number on the weight scales, muscle loss is collateral damage. But it is the muscles that give a woman the hourglass shape and a man a macho “V” shaped torso.

“V” Shaped Torso – Measuring it

A “V” shaped torso cannot be measured in terms of pounds or kilograms. A “V” shaped torso

In the last article, we discussed about the ideal body shape for women. In this article, let us discuss about what science defines as an attractive body for men.

We have always advocated a “V” shaped torso as the end goal for men when pursuing a weight loss program. Depending on where a man starts,the end goal should be a “V” shaped torso. A man could stop anywhere in between but with the goals clear, the efficiency of getting results increases.

The waist to shoulder ratio has been advocated by scientists as a measure of a well-defined an attractive body for men. It is really a measure of how much of a “V” shape the torso has. The smaller this ratio, the more distinct tehe shape of the”V”.

The best way to take these measurements is to take a photograph of yourself and then measure the width of the shoulders and waist with a ruler. With the availability of digital photographs nowadays, this should not be a difficult task.

Consistently, men with a waist to shoulder ratio of 0.75 or lower are viewed as considerably more attractive than men with more even waists and shoulders.

As such, use the waist to shoulder ratio of 0.75 as the ultimate goal for men going through a weight loss program. A man moving his body towards a waist to shoulder ratio of 0.75 is undergoing Correct Weight Loss.

In the next article (Part 4), we discuss on “How to measure a Beautiful/Attractive Body for Men & Women.”