LDS lbs: Do Mormon newlywed men gain weight due to less sexual tension?
So here's a theory I've been thinking about lately, and sciencey people out there might be able to help me explain it. I have noticed that, at least among people I know, when LDS guys get married they tend to gain weight. At first I thought that it was just the settling down that made them less active, but then I thought about it and I realized that most of my friends weren't really that active before marriage anyway. Actually, most of them started working out more after marriage (maybe because they noticed they were gaining weight, chicken or the egg right?). My wife has suggested that maybe it has to do with the diet of newlyweds, we tend to eat whatever is fast and easy, which isn't the most healthy. She also suggested that it has to do with the fact that there are only two of us to eat whole meals and when we were at home there was the whole family spread the calories around.
So Saturday I am playing in a ward basketball game against the singles ward in our stake and I noticed that they seemed super aggrassive compared to our team. I started to think that maybe there is some sort of sexual tension factor in that and I connected it to the weight gain question too. I know I feel a lot more laid back being married, without the stress of dating and all. Is there some kind of relation between sex drive and the metabolism? Do non-LDS people also gain a lot of weight when they get married? Does this happen to women too? Anyone have any insights that either support or cut down this theory? I have noticed that with a lot of diseases and drug side effects lower sex drive and weight gain go together.
posted by Chris M. G @ 3/15/2006 02:55:00 PM
7 comments
7 Comments:
Ha! Love your post, Chris.
Women gain weight once married too, but we have a full-proof excuse: birth control. Those little pills add 10 lbs easy.
It's a good question, Chris. I have been told that gaining weight after marriage is part of the plan of salvation :)
I have friends that are not LDS that got married, they don't seem to have gained weight- so I don't know.
But I'm right with Janelle- those pills will do it to you!!
A scientist I am not, but I do have a theory on the newlywed weight gain phenomenon.
Males hit a point in their mid to late twenties where their bodies change. I think it could most accurately be characterized as the point when we realize that we'll never be superheroes. At that point, our once super metabolism gives us a kick in the pants (or stomach as the case may be). Suddenly, the average meal of two biggy sized double quarter pounders with cheese becomes a weeks worth of caloric intake. The phenomenon is also characterized on the movie “Big Daddy” when Adam Sandler complains that if he drinks a chocolate shake, his butt jiggles for a week.
The difference between Mormons and the rest of the US population is that we tend to marry at younger ages. This means, that while other men get to go through the awkward, “my body doesn’t work like it used to” phase on their own and devote more time to the gym, we Mormon guys are already married. With time and all eternity on our sides, what motivation does that give us to change?
I gained more weight during my mission than I have during my marriage.
Posted by Kim Siever
Gee, I'd have to mention that my wife's cooking was a heck of a lot better than my own, and after marriage I ate much more regularly.
Posted by Stephen M (Ethesis)
i think steve's reason "i ate much more regularly" is probably the best answer...
I've thought several times about what would be different with life if I were married, and "regular meals" was very close to the top of the list.