What Women Like In Men

by Janis Cortese

Despite the constant messages we all get that women like brawny, beetling browed men covered in muscles, most women can tell you that the musclebound weightlifter isn't their style. While it may be the ideal male body type to men, women frequently like something quite different. A whole lot of somethings, as a matter of fact.

For example of what "quite different" can entail, read on below. It may open your eyes as to just the variety of body types women want most -- and even to the fact that women do have specific body types that they prefer.

There's two types of men that really appeal to me: toothpicks and bears. I like skinny men, tall or short, who I can actually lift off the ground without difficulty, whose bones I can feel when I give them a light hug. And I like big plump men with potbellies and beards and lots of body hair, who are nice and soft and padded. (My boyfriend happens to fall into the latter category ;-).)

No strong preference on hair color, though I tend to prefer either very dark hair or very light hair, and I don't particularly care for red. Puppy-dog eyes and a cute innocent expression are both very strong plusses. Glasses are absolutely necessary.

I'm not strongly attracted to women, but my hormones do find small-chested women with large shapely buttocks quite interesting . . .

Let's see... my perfect man... since is going to be tough to limit myself to the physical since the man inside can make the skin he wears unimportant. But I'll take a stab at it. :-)

I like dark hair. It can be short or long, but I tend to prefer short (Adrian Paul is an exception to the short hair rule -- it looks great on him). Expressive eyes of any color. I like eyes that laugh. I like a face that shows he's lived in the world some. Not that he has to be weather worn or anything, just not model pretty. I like to see some character in a man's face. I'm attracted to both tall and short men, so that's not really an issue. I don't like bulky muscle. Strong is good, but not overdone. A dancer or a runner, but not a weight lifter.

As to what I like physically, I'm fairly predictable and have been gaping at and drooling over the same kind of guy since I was 6. Basically, I adore men who look like me and women who look nothing like me at all. Weird, but there you go.

For men, that means long hair, big eyes, sharp features, and slim, bordering on skinny -- gracile would be a good word, and slightly shorter than me. As well as the physical type, I like men to be a bit femme (more than a bit, I suppose). I love graceful, beautiful decorative men with long hair and pretty, neotenic faces. (A minor fetish of mine is also clean legs. I adore shaved legs on a man.) I tend to like brunettes, but my first serious indicator of myself as a serious boy-toy fetishist :-) was a slightly strangled gasp at the tender age of 11 when Luke Skywalker leaned into the wind during "Star Wars." (Fifteen years passed before I realized that that gasp translated as "I want to visit pleasure upon that until it moans like a girl." :-)) Musculature should be absolutely no more than an active athletic type thin man should have -- buff guys make me want to puke. Oh, and dark hair is a definite plus.

The women I like are diametrically opposed and also very predictable. Round and redheaded, in short. Shortish hair as well. I much prefer a woman with shoulder length hair and a man with as much hair as he can possibly grow.

So basically, I like the sorts of guys and women you're likely to see at Renaissance faires -- gracile beautiful young things with long hair and smooth bodies, and round redheaded women. *drool*

The feature I notice first on a man is torso/chest/shoulders. I prefer the classical look, like all those Greek statues -- well-muscled but NOT bulky. David has the right shape. I go for all kinds of skin types, but Indian (from India) is my favorite. That lush warm brown that makes the whites of the eyes stand out. I also have a weakness for red hair. And it should be short hair, and never flopping in the eyes. Tall or short doesn't matter, just broad shoulders and a shapely chest. Not too much hair, but not hairless. No stubble.

As for women, my eye is caught by slim athletic types with short hair. Some muscle -- not bony like me -- but not well-padded.

Both men and women need to be somewhat dextrous, almost catlike. No heavy stepping. Gentle, with a sense of the body-- not just throwing the bones around or making quick jerky movements.

While I can appreciate just about any healthy, happy-looking man or woman I might see, I do have....oh, just a few...preferences.

Very tall men and women are cool to look at, but I'm only 5 feet tall, and I do get cricks in my neck. So, I'd rather hug or kiss someone under 5'8", where if I stand on my tiptoes I'm pretty comfortable. This applies more to men than to women, as the average male height in the U.S. is taller than the average female height. I'm less likely to notice height on a woman.

I'd rather hug a swimmer, runner, bicyclist, hiker, then a weight-lifter or football player. Some muscle definition, but not so big they can't fit through doors.

Skin color only enhances beauty, whether you're pale or dark.

I'm not terribly picky with hair. If it's long or short and not well-kept, then I won't admire it.

I like a face with character, and evidence of personality. Laugh lines. Smiling. Humor is very important to me.

I'd rather talk to someone interesting, than admire someone pretty. And some of my nicest afternoons have spent talking to an interesting person, while watching the pretty girls and boys go by.

It's really a gestalt thing. She can be short, red-haired, healthy but not athletic, and I might go for her. Or plump with long blond hair in a French braid. Or well-muscled and strong. I do like strength in a person, particularly women - possibly because I sometimes get left feeling like a bull in a china closet when I'm around really thin, fragile-seeming women. I'd be afraid to be in the same room with Kate Moss.

Frequently, Asian men meet many of my preferences: slim, yet strong, not too damn tall, clear skin and well-trimmed hair. For me, it's just an added perk of working for a Japanese company.

But, above all, if you ain't got the smarts, chances are, I won't be interested.