Do we all need abs?

It is fair to say that my time as a Cover Supervisor has been an interesting one. I've met some characters and I feel that my voice is starting to go as I raise my voice and remind them all to shut up and get on with their work. Ah, the life of a teacher.

Last Thursday, I covered a Year 7 Technology lesson, and they had to design a Mood Board based around what a certain age group would like. Teenage boys would like football, teenage girls would like AJ from Strictly. This quickly became chaotic as girls would call out 'Sir, Sir, look at him! He's so beautiful!'. At least they were staying more or less on track.

He's only 23... what a guy 

There was one boy, however, who didn't complete any sort of work. Rather, he had spent the whole lesson looking at ways to get a six pack. At one point he even asked me if doing burpees is good for your body- especially in the abdominal area. Bear in mind that this kid is 11 and is concerned about getting a six pack. 11!!

This kid should have been focusing on so many more relevant things to his age. Seriously, when I was his age I was more concerned about how to beat the Elite Four in Pokemon, or whether I would have enough time to fit watching Doctor Who around my new schedule of schoolwork and rugby. Tough times for 11 year-old Ben.

My doppelganger, according to some

This got me thinking about male body image, and how the younger generation now feel like the only way to succeed in life (especially when attracting a female, or male, companion) is by being buff. They are constantly exposed to well-built men in tight underwear, and see how girls their own age swoon over the sight of these apparent gods.

It's horrible, and I totally understand why they would feel like that. Even after my painful but oh so worthwhile journey of weight loss, I am still self-conscious about my body image when I see Ronaldo tear his shirt off and flex his way to the Ballon d'Or. He's a great athlete, but the fact that he is ripped certainly helps get his face out there. I doubt a beer belly would bring in all that money.

Great footballer, bit of a knob

Now it's commonly assumed that only girls are concerned about their bodies, and that men are content with sitting on their arses and gaining some mass around the waistline. But times are changing. An article in The Guardian on 31 July 2017 includes statistics from NHS Digital claiming that hospitals diagnosed 818 cases eating disorders in over 19 males between April 2015 and March 2016 . That's a rise from 418 cases in 2010-2011.

Yeh, that's one hell of a rise. From the same article, statistics from the Home Office's crime survey found that, in the past year, there were now 19,000 new steroid users in the category of 16-24 year-old males. This shows how far people are willing to go in order to obtain 'the perfect body'. Frankly, it scares me.

A dangerous risk

So an exposure to social media, and probably a social climate of 'gym-monkeys', have made the young males of today's society extremely self-conscious about the way that they look. Gone are the days when you could just be beautiful on the inside. Now everybody needs a six pack and muscles that put He-Man's to shame. That sucks, since being a somewhat likeable person is my only good trait.

No one can be like He-Man

I'm happy that there are people out there who take their health seriously. Modern life gives us the liberties to have cheap food at a moment's notice and complex social plans can be made without any real face to face contact. A golden age, in a way. But there is a limit, and people are suffering as they give themselves unrealistic expectations when losing and maintaining weight.

So I'm gonna give some advice. Set goals that are manageable and doable, and remember that a small blip in the diet won't totally ruin the ultimate fitness goals. Dieting can actually be pretty fun, and you find yourself eating a massive variety of food. It's awesome! But remember to enjoy it, because otherwise your mental state will start to suffer.

Fat Ben approves this message

Also, if you do feel self conscious, then you have nothing to be sad about. None of us are perfect, and perfection is impossible (IMHO). But don't feel bad about that. Just don't push yourself to the point of starvation. Nobody wins then.

Ben G 😁 xo

P.S. Wembley was beautiful on Friday night. Always love a chilly match day in November, watching a bunch of English kids hold Germany to a 0-0 draw. Nothing to be ashamed of.

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P.P.S. It's 100 years since the Russian Revolution, so Heskey decided to dress up. Enjoy your day comrades.

Cuddliest communist on the planet