Are You Happy with The Way Your Body Looks in Midlife?

Abstract

Purpose: The years between 40 to the early 60’s in the human life span is referred to as the Midlife period. It is also considered as an important period in one’s life, referred to as the transition period. By this age it is generally assumed that a person would have more free time in their hands, as they get settled/established in their career and with the children hitting their teens and no longer demanding a lion’s share of their spare time, one is free to socialise, introspect, explore new avenues etc. Traditionally it is believed that people are more fixated or obsessed with their outwardly appearance up until their 40, s and as they hit their midlife, they tend to become more relaxed on their outward appearance and physique. In the current scenario where people are locked up indoors due to the Covid19 pandemic. Working, Socialising, recreation is facilitated by some or the other social media platform. The issue here is that these platforms not only show us the other person, but you see yourself also on screen. Seeing themselves on screen is not something that the people in their midlife are used to. This over exposure of the unfiltered self, pitched against the others on screen make them conscious of their haves and have not’s. The massive boom of the beauty /fitness industry along with the new age/gen Selfie revolution has put a massive pressure on the human psyche to look perfect and flawless in every frame. People have become very aware of their body, body type, flaws and assets. 

Objective:  This research was done to Understand the extent to which the people from a fitness group and who follow an exercise regime are conscious about the appearance of their specific body parts. 

Design/Methodology/Approach: Quantitative analysis with pre-established tool of body comparison scale.

Findings/Results: Results showed that contrary to the general understanding that people become relaxed towards their appearance during their midlife, both, males and females were bothered about their physical features and appearance. Both the genders were equally concerned about size, weight, waist, physique and overall shape. Males were more bothered about the muscular attributes while females were shown to be more conscious about non muscular physical attributes. Hence the results clearly indicated that due to social media influence, people in midlife are really conscious, comparative and critical about their physical attributes and body, irrespective of their gender. 

Originality/Value: The study points out at how comparative the social circles make us towards our own bodies. 

Paper Type: Quantitative Analysis