You eat like a girl!

Before I get started, I wanted to provide a little context for this and other posts that get into man-weight loss…  One of the reasons I decided to start writing this blog was to take the opportunity to explore weight loss from a male (i.e., my) perspective.  While I do not claim to represent all men (I think that requires a majority vote of the population, not to mention getting a petition signed and perhaps an act of Congress), I do think that not enough men talk about this subject.  Based on my personal and professional experience, we are a tad bit touchy talking about both our weight and weight loss.  If in some small way, I can be a contributing voice to the nascent movement of the diminishing center of the man (e.g., the midsection), then maybe that serves some small useful purpose.   To further my aim of describing my own mannish perspective on weight loss, I may from time to time rely on hyperbole, self-deprecation and politically incorrect sensibilities to attempt to illuminate the topic.  I mean no offense resulting from any inadvertently offending statements. 

With that out of the way, I do, in fact, kind of eat like a girl.  And truth be told, I am sometimes a little self-conscious about it.  So what do I mean by “eat like a girl”?  Well perhaps the best way to illustrate this is to focus on stereotypical man-eating behavior.  Perhaps a brief review of some favorite cultural icons is in order:

• Fred Flinstone.  Need I say more?  I’m curious if anyone has ever tried to calculate the POINTS value of Brontosaurus ribs?  Anything large enough to tip your car over can’t be a proper portion.
• Henry VIII seemed to be a big eater and proud of it.  And he had a bunch of wives. 
• Most Roman aristocracy were not afraid of big banquet.  
• Dagwood had his shockingly large sandwiches. 
• Bluto from Animal House.  Remember the cafeteria scene?  “That boy is a P-I-G, pig!”  Of course, that slight didn’t go well for her, thereby creating a new use for mashed potatoes. 
• More recently Mad Men.  Always eating their steak, yet they never seem to gain weight.  Totally unfair.  
• “Real Men Don’t Eat Quiche”.  OK, maybe this isn’t a good example, as quiche really is incredibly fattening and caloric. 

It seems that society continues to expect us to eat in a particular way. 

• Our mothers and mother-in-law’s become visibly upset not only if we fail to clean our plate, but if we don’t ask for seconds. 
• We are expected to order steak whenever possible. 
• We are expected to lunch on burgers and fries. 
• We are expected to consume large quantities of full-test beer. 
• If we watch what we eat, we may find ourselves being accused of anything from metrosexuality to prissyness.

So does it matter?  Maybe, maybe not.  I have to admit that I still feel a little self-conscious when I’m having dinner with a bunch of dudes and I order a lightly prepared fish with grilled vegetables while they are metaphorically killing, skinning and eating small animals with blood dripping down the cheeks.  If there is anyone who really shouldn’t feel strange about eating in a careful way, it’s me:  I work for freaking Weight Watchers!  Of course I have to watch what I eat!  But it does make me wonder how other guys who are trying to shift to a healthier lifestyle deal with unstated (or stated) peer pressure. 

Interestingly, these days if I order first (or early in the lineup) at dinner, the fellas who follow me often start ordering fish and lighter dishes too.  It’s as if they were given license to take their foot of the fat absorption accelerator pedal.  I can almost hear their cries to have me take them to a fern bar. 

I do think that male stereotypes around eating are and will continue to change.  There is too much at stake with obesity for them not to.  Obesity has all of the same health consequences on men that it has on women.  The bottom line is that we are all supposed to be eating the same things:  fruits, vegetables, lean meats/proteins, whole grains and low/non-fat dairy.  We are all supposed to be eating sane portions, and we are all supposed to be getting regular activity.  Those guidelines were not written for women in hopes that some men would get a clue.  They were written for all of us. 

So don’t judge me for my newfound love of salad, scallops, yogurt and fruit salad.  Just because I don’t finish everything on my plate doesn’t mean I have stomach flu.   Just because I didn’t order the steak doesn’t mean I don’t like movies where they blow things up.  My masculinity is unbowed no matter how many courgettes I order. 

Cheers,

dk