I Refuse to Celebrate 'Dad Bod', Until We Appreciate the 'Mum Bod' Too

If a "dad bod" means having a protruding belly rather than washboard abs, then a "mum bod" involves having stretch marks, cellulite and a little tummy. But instead of accepting our bodies, we berate ourselves and push unobtainable beauty standards onto other women.

This weekend the term 'dad bod' started trending.

The word, which describes a man whose body is somewhere "between a beer gut and working out", is not new but was popularised after a student's article went viral.

She says that young women like men with "dad bods" because it's a sign of things to come. "We know what we are getting into when he's got the same exact body type at the age of 22 that he's going to have at 45."

While there is nothing wrong with having a "dad bod" - I know many guys who have one - this is one trend I refuse to get on board with.

Why? Because there has never been an appreciation of the "mum bod", where women are celebrated for being "normal" - whatever that means.

If a "dad bod" means having a protruding belly rather than washboard abs, then a "mum bod" involves having stretch marks, cellulite and a little tummy.

But instead of accepting our bodies, we berate ourselves and push unobtainable beauty standards onto other women. We refuse compliments, we diet, we scrutinise ourselves in front of the mirror.

Imagine if we started to accept ourselves as we are. If we started to reject unrealistic photoshopped images of women - not just send an angry tweet about it, but boycott the brand. If we stopped buying beauty products that promise to tun back the clock or stopped going under the knife or having other cosmetic procedures. Imagine how much time - and not to mention money - we'd save and how much happier we'd be.

Ironically, we don't even accept "mum bods" on mothers, for God's sake.

This weekend, ironically at around the same time that the "man bod" article was picking up pace, the Duchess of Cambridge emerged from hospital looking immaculate less than 12 hours after giving birth to her second child, Charlotte Elizabeth Diana.

Like clockwork the world started coo-ing at her perfectly blow-dried hair and her cute white and yellow shift dress, and we were all seriously impressed by the fact that she was wearing heels.

It turns out she had an army of helpers to get her looking that good, and why? Because she and her PR team knew fully well that she would be criticised for looking anything less than perfect.

Nobody was coo-ing over Prince William's appearance. I doubt anybody would have even noticed what he was wearing.

I'm happy to celebrate "dad bods" but only once we start celebrating "mum bods", too.

This Is What A 'Dad Bod' Looks Like (According to Instagram)

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