Last night while celebrating Colton’s fitting exit from American Idol, I was wasting time researching online. As part of that research, I Googled myself. Yes, I know that probably disappoints some of you to learn that I, too, have an ego that occasionally needs fed. You see, not long ago, when you Googled “Middle-aged Mormon Man” you would get just a few hits – most of them bad or anti-Mormon. But now, you get thirty-eight thousand hits of goodness and light. Yep, that’s me, cleaning up the internet, one post at a time.
So last night when I Googled myself, (stop grinning) I forgot the quotation marks and came up with a link:
“Religiosity and Physical Fitness: A Study of Middle-aged Mormon Men”
written by Janette Olsen as her Master’s Thesis at the Lord’s University (BYU) (link here)
I thought, “Ooooh, science.” Then, as I began reading I thought, “Oh goodie! Another study that lets us gloat about how Mormons are healthier than everybody else.” So I read the entire study. First, Ms. Olsen surveyed Mormon men to determine how religious they were – she based it on things like attendance, tithe paying, serving in callings, etc. Then she checked them for fitness levels – things like BMI, oxygen intake, etc.
Simply put, she wanted to see if the more religious we are, the more fit we are.
After Ms. Olsen all the data, she came up with her conclusion, and I quote:
“A substantial amount of research supports the association between high religiosity and increased health benefits….(skipping to the last paragraph)… Fitness and religiosity appear to be related among Mormon women but, based on our findings, not Mormon men. Therefore, an increase in religiosity may be associated with improved physical fitness for Mormon women. However, no association can be made for Mormon men.”
So basically she found that when a woman gets more religious, her fitness level goes up. But not for men. What?
Well that sure smack of sexism, right? All you fit, righteous women are now probably thinking “Hah! We are rewarded for our extra righteousness!”
Meanwhile we men are thinking, “Hah! I can be fat and righteous!”
Now I don’t know why the exact reason for difference between the sexes. But I do have a few thoughts about why this might be the case:
1) Women are less well-equipped to see a pint of ice cream as a single serving.
2) Relief Society Zumba parties.
3) Mormons have more kids than the standard population = wife running around and picking up, as the husband “ponders”.
4) The “High Priest Belly” comes with the office.
5) In the surveys, men are arguably more humble dishonest about their level of religiosity.
6) Men pray that their wives will be skinny more than wives pray for their husbands to be skinny.
Whatever the reason, it is obviously not fair, and something should be done about it. I read the entire thesis with the intent of answering one specific question, but could not find the answer I was looking for. The question?
When you order a Superstar burger at Hardee’s, why do you have to add cheese? Shouldn’t the cheese come automatically?
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Since I am always trying to figure out who you are/where you live, I looked up “Hardee’s” because I had never heard of the place. Well, I see that it only exists on the eastern half of the US, I believe it’s called Carl’s Jr. over here. (CA//San Diego) I think that this increases the likelihood of you living on the east coast. I always feel like Sherlock Holmes when I figure out anything to do with your location, even if I’m wrong.
Just thought I would inform you of this discovery, I have no idea how accurate it is.
~Larkin
I tried the “why are” google search and I’ve never come up with anything about mormons. I got:
Why are finnish people so
Why are smart people usually ugly
Why are finnish people so ugly
Why are white people called caucasian.
And if I type “Why are mormons” I only get this:
Why are mormons successful
Nothing about hotness or thinness.
As for you blog post, I have no answer 🙂 Just wanted to say something and let you know that I came across your blog a few weeks ago and immediately became a huge fan! I love it! Always makes my day! And I need to get a bin of doom.
Sirpa! You made my day! I am so excited to have a Finnish follower. When I was in 6th grade I did my country report on Finland, and one of my best friends went there on their mission. I have always wanted to go there. Thanks for making a comment!
I shared the theory about working hard on your mission = hotter wife with my husband. He sighed and made some under his breath smart aleck remark about hindsight being 20-20.
So hilarious!!! It’s so funny because I actually know wards that have RS Zumba parties! 🙂
I hadn’t heard “the harder you work on your mission the hotter your wife is”. Maybe I’ll share that with my soon to be missionary.
Curiosity made me google “why are”….I got, “why are mormons afraid of magnets”… sadly, I didn’t read the article, so it’s still a mystery.
Great post and interesting study. I loved the 6 possible reasons you offered for the results of the study.
I’m still having a hard time getting past you celebrating Colton’s leaving A.I. I was so excited to finally have a Popular Christian music singer (not gospel).
That being said, I ate movie theater popcorn this morning (yes, for breakfast) while I read my scriptures.
Sorry ’bout that, but the way he whined his way through ‘September” was criminal. (I did think he was really good the week before.) Now if they can just get rid of that Joshua dude, all would be well.
Movie theater popcorn? For breakfast? With scriptures? Fabulous! You are definitely hanging out at the right blog.
I’m wicked. Pass the ice cream.
Atta girl!
I am not at all surprised by the study based on my observations in our ward.
I am now trying to catch up to my Lovely Wife in this area, too — since Christmas I’ve already reduced my BMI to the level where my insurance company no longer threatens me with higher co-pays.
Burgers are better without cheese…. unless it’s bleu cheese.
I think that makes you a “cheese-ist.”
lol My husband used to encourage me to “Honor my Temple” more and work out and stuff he is very fit and athletic I am not so much. some people say i seem more outwardly spiritual and for the “do everything my way” part of our marriage I even thought I was more spiritual than my husband but he really has the unwavering Faith thing down as where I struggle more and need logic and such to see me through. The point is there is no real way to judge someones spirituality I don’t even know my heart sometimes though I strive to keep up every appearance of righteousness in hopes that my head and heart align but there is just no way to tell how spiritual someone is only God can tell that one so the study is VOID in my brain, I need to go put my kid down for a nap now so she won’t see me eating ice cream in the middle of the day
“I need to go put my kid down for a nap now so she won’t see me eating ice cream in the middle of the day.”
Hey, it’s five o’clock somewhere…
I used to work at Hardee’s. I got out before it ruined my faith or my waistline.
Interesting blog post/article.
Not sure I have any answers for you, but I have to mention that as I read, I couldn’t help but notice – over and over again:
“MMM – now with bacon…
I love the Church. I love Buffalo Wings. One thing matters…“
I never claimed the disparity was a BAD thing!
The REAL anser is Comparative Religious Studies. Women compare themselves to other FAR too often. Especially in our religion. Therefore, if they aren’t keeping a spotless house, raising at least 5 perfect children, hosting 3 different clubs per week, President of the PTA, making beautiful clothing for the entire family (matching of course) for every special (or imagined special) occassion, working out 6 times per week for at least an hour each time… Shall I go on? I think you get the point. Fitness is because they compare their worst to others best, and that’s one everyone can see. Men simply don’t care. They do what they want and are happy.
On a positive note, I suddenly want to have an ice cream party with my friends where we each have our own pint and dig in!(It’s TOFW tonight so it’s “slumber party” time.)
Isn’t that all just a fancy way of saying you think that women are driven by their vanity?
Also, what’s with TOFW on “Date Night”? That’s messed up!
The wife runs around while the husband “ponders.” I love that. I think I found the answer to your question. I’ve always heard that the harder you work on your mission, the hotter your wife will be. There you go. The men in the survey weren’t lying about their righteousness. They are righteous, and they worked hard on their missions, hence the disproportionately thin and hot wives. PS “Why are mormons so hot” was the first choice on google for me too. I think I may have answered that question too.
I think you have hit upon the correct answer. Now I just need a Conference quote to back it up.
If I type in “Why are Mormons..” I get:
Why are Mormons so nice?
Why are Mormons not Christians?
Why are Mormons advertising?
Why are Mormons a cult?
and then..
Why are Mormons so hot.
I doubt the Church would publish anything on the subject, so as not to detract from the real purpose of missionary service, but I’m sure if you asked any Apostle, they wouldn’t deny the connection.
I’m using Google Chrome in Utah, which may affect the “Why are mormons so hot” rankings.
Think #5 is the big cause !
I am clearly not as religious as I should be.
#1 seems to be where I lack in femininity
Oh man. I can’t stop laughing. Who thinks we ladies can stop at a single serving of ice cream?! Your EC really IS a saint if she can do that whole “1/2 cup” thing. Do they really think that will suffice?!
I take on every pint as a personal challenge. And I am in love with Haagen Dazs Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough right now. If you haven’t already, give that pint a shot. In one dose…
Can’t do it. I’m still boycotting Haagen Dazs.
http://middle-agedmormonman.blogspot.com/2011/06/lets-raise-pint.html
I’m with you, actually. Dazs is a very rare treat when I happen to find one while traveling. We usually go for the store brand or whatever is on sale. I’ve been sick this past week, and rainbow sherbet has made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Don’t worry…I’ve already read your pint post. It’s one of my favorites, though it’s hard to pick most days!
Did you know that when you start typing WHY ARE into the Google search bar, one of the first automatic answers that comes up is: WHY ARE MORMONS SO HOT. I think this deserves some attention and might be vaguely related to this post, but I’ll leave it up to you to figure out how.
I tried it and came up with:
Why are manhole covers round?
Why are flamingos pink?
Why are yawns contagious?
Why are the Kardashians famous?
Of course there is no answer for the last one. But I got nothing about hot mormons. Maybe it’s from your own search history?
LOL, actually it was pointed out to me by several other people, as well as by the fearless leaders in the online missionary department.
Why is the sky blue?
Why do cats purr?
Why are mormons so hot
Maybe just try WHY. And stop googling the Kardashians. 😉
I had to try it, and sure enough – “Why are Mormons so hot” was first, followed by “Why am I so tired” and “Why are smart people usually ugly” which I thought was an interesting juxtaposition – lol!
I’m pretty sure the constant guilt a Mormon mom feels about everything she thinks she’s not doing well enough burns a lot of calories, too.
Well, I’m either not as religious as I think I am or else I’d be a heck of a lot fatter if I weren’t religious. ºÜº
#6 must obviously be the correct assumption. Or at least it’s the funniest.
#4 Can be backed up by this study: Women with more kids live longer although apparently we are bad for the environment. At least I’ll get to live to see the fruits of my destruction!