*Men Only*
10Â My beloved is all radiant and ruddy,
    distinguished among ten thousand.
11Â His head is the finest gold;
    his locks are wavy,
    black as a raven.
12Â His eyes are like doves
    beside springs of water,
bathed in milk,
    fitly set.[a]
13Â His cheeks are like beds of spices,
    yielding fragrance.
His lips are lilies,
    distilling liquid myrrh.
14Â His arms are rounded gold,
    set with jewels.
His body is ivory work,
    encrusted with sapphires.
15Â His legs are alabaster columns,
    set upon bases of gold.
His appearance is like Lebanon,
    choice as the cedars.
(Song 5:10-15)
One of the countless errors of Churchianity (and boy is it a long list) is that it teaches men that physical appearance and fitness are inconsequential. This has many negative consequences for men. For one, it hurts them in their question to find a wife, as physical appearance is a criteria women consider in mates. I quoted from the Song of Songs to emphasize that point. Second, it deprives men of a good healthy way to build confidence. Third, it leaves men weak, and thus less suited for task involving strength or endurance. Fourth, God created us to establish dominion:
26Â Then God said, âLet us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.â 27Â So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
(Gen 1:26-27)
Physical strength has as much a role to play in that as mental strength, even in this day and age.
[Now, I suppose not all of the various Churchian strains are like that. There might be some that are even friendly to the idea of men being fit. But from what I can tell it sure seems like most are not.]
All of this leads to my point: one of the hallmarks of a truly masculine man is being in good shape. That doesn’t mean that every man must be an Olympic level bodybuilder or athlete. But it does mean that he needs to be fit. No doubt there are plenty of different criteria out there for what constitutes fit. This is where you, my readers, come in. I know a number of you have some experience, and possibly even expertise, in this area. So feel free to use the comments below to provide your thoughts on what would constitute “fit.”
[Edit: To clarify matters, as a general rule these posts are meant for men, and only male commenters are allowed. If a woman wants to contribute, she can send me an e-mail and I might post it myself. The sole female comment has been deleted, with a follow up posted by myself.]