Daddy, Cub, or Bear? How Muscle & Fat Shape Your Look in Gay Culture
Introduction
When most gay men want to get more toned or defined, they instinctively begin doing more cardio. The problem is that cardio alone doesn't create a lean, muscular look. On the flip side, if someone was looking to become a muscle bear, they might start eating more takeout. But eating more calorie-dense foods alone usually won't create the strong, muscular, cuddle-worthy look they want either.
The truth is that wherever you would like to land on the gay body type spectrum:
Twink (slim with little muscle mass)
Lean / Athletic (moderate muscle mass, lower body fat)
Cub / Bear (moderate or high muscle mass, moderate or high fat)
Daddy / Zaddy (mature, moderate muscle mass, moderate fat)
Muscle-Top / Muscle-Bottom / Jock (moderate muscle mass, moderate fat)
-or anywhere in between, it all comes down to one thing. The single thing that defines your physique in gay men's fitness is finding the right amount of muscle mass and the right amount of fat.
This post will:
Show you a roadmap from where you are to where you want to go
Break down how the balance shapes how others define you
Go into how to train for the body type you want
Muscle & Fat
Here’s how I like to explain it.
I’m 6’4”, 250 pounds. In this analogy, clothes represent levels of body fat.
At 10-12% body fat, it's like wearing a t-shirt. You can clearly see my muscle and a lot of definition.
Around 15% body fat, it would be like wearing a hoodie. This is a completely normal and healthy amount of body fat for men. You would still be able to see that I am muscular, but the lines in the muscle wouldn't be as clear and the veins may become buried.
Once you have over 20% body fat, it's like having on a "puffer jacket". No matter how big you are, no one looks jacked in a "puffer jacket". The muscle you have is buried underneath the fat.
The hard truth is that most gay men don’t have as much muscle mass as they’d like for the physique they want. Said differently, even with lower muscle mass at the healthy hoodie stage (~15%) you won't see much definition.
This is why two men can have the same body fat percentage but look completely different: the one with more muscle mass still looks athletic, while the one with less muscle looks soft. In gay culture, this is the difference between a twunk having defined abs and a cub not having them be as visible. They both have the same amount of fat but have different amounts of muscle.
The Gay Fitness Spectrum
Different mixes of muscle, fat, and features create different looks, and gay culture has a label for nearly all of them. Here's a breakdown of some of the more commonly used ones. My goal is not to label you, but to help you understand what each term means:
Low Muscle + Low Fat = Twink
A slim build with little muscle mass and low fat associated with younger people (since many fall into this category as a default by becoming an adult and not working out or engaging in sports that require strength training).
Low Muscle + Moderate Fat = Skinny-fat
A person that looks healthy and sometimes even slim in clothes, but is beginning to carry some additional fat around the stomach. They have less visibility of their abs. Typically happens around 30s as the person has more disposable income and becomes more sedentary.
Moderate Muscle + Low Fat = Shredded / Lean / Athletic / Twunk / Muscle-Top or Bottom
Muscle has been added while keeping the amount of fat low. Definition of muscle is visible without the person being "too big".
Moderate Muscle + Moderate Fat = Slim-Thick / Cub / Muscle-Top or Bottom
Enough muscle has been added where the person has abs at healthy amounts of body fat, though they may not be as defined as they used to be.
High Muscle + Low Fat = Bodybuilder
Usually has too much muscle to model at this point, but is very impressive to look at. High amounts of definition and veins showing. Is "too big" for some.
High Muscle + Moderate Fat = Built / Rugby Player Build / Muscle Daddy
Not always, but this build is more common in mature men. Usually they've built muscle and have relaxed into being viewed as strong and experienced rather than optimizing for leanness.
High Muscle + High Fat = Powerlifter / Bear
Larger amount of muscle and fat. They are also excellent to cuddle with.
Why Strength Should Be Focused On More Than Cardio
Muscle is the base that gives you different physique options. More importantly, the effects of building muscle compound over time and keep you away from a lot of health issues in the future and reduce the chance of ending up in an assisted living home when you're in your later years. One of the biggest reasons people end in an assisted living home is that they don't have enough energy to get off the toilet on their own.
The mistake most gay men make is thinking that cardio alone will get them there. It won't. Cardio helps reveal muscle, but doesn't create it. Strength training gives you the foundation.
Becoming
At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how you like to show up. The truth is, the more muscle you have, the better you will look and feel, even at higher levels of fat. The less muscle you have the more every pound shows on your body, and the more health risks you face as you age.
If you want to feel confident in whichever “category” you land in, the smartest move is to prioritize strength training first, cardio second. Cardio trims the hoodie; muscle makes sure what’s under the hoodie is worth showing.
Want To Learn More?
If you would like to learn more about this for free I made the Clueless to Cut guide and a free training video to assist you: https://b.link/c2cdaddy
Built For You
If you would like a more specific plan built to account for you, your life, your obstacles, and your goal, buy a training program. On your onboarding call, we will see you came from this post and take you down a different process to build something specific to you.
To get a program click here: https://b.link/daddybear
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