Budden Timothy, Dimmock James A, Smith Brett, Beauchamp Mark, Rosenberg Michael, Jackson Ben
School of Human Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Australia.
Department of Psychology, College of Healthcare Sciences, James Cook University, Australia.
Psychol Sport Exerc. 2020 Sep;50:101750. doi: 10.1016/j.psychsport.2020.101750. Epub 2020 Jun 30.
In Western countries, such as Australia and the UK, a significantly greater proportion of men (relative to women) are overweight and obese, yet relatively few weight loss interventions have been developed that sufficiently target men. This lack of male-focused programming may be in part because 'traditional' weight loss programs are unappealing for what is considered a 'hard-to-reach' population. One program that appears to have such appeal for men is the MAN v FAT Football (MVFF) program, based out of the United Kingdom, which is designed for men with a body mass index of (or greater than) 27.5. MVFF encourages men's participation in a community-based weight loss program that incentivizes weight loss through participation in a football league, and since 2016 MVFF has supported the weight loss efforts of several thousand men. Using MVFF as an exemplar, our aim was to derive insight into how men experience a male-only competitive, sport-based weight loss program. We recruited twenty-seven players ( = , SD = 9.93), and ten coaches ( = 31.8, SD = 11.55) from program locations throughout the United Kingdom. Using semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis, we identified several appraisal aspects of the program that players and coaches considered important, including the appeal of sport, competition on a level playing field, being part of a team, camaraderie, accountability, men sharing issues with other men, gender-sensitized environment, likeminded and similar men, and perceptions that traditional weight loss programs are tailored towards women. Player experiences (i.e., competence and enjoyment) and functional supports in the program (e.g., player handbook, weight loss coach) were reported to drive outcomes of effective weight loss and program retention. Interventions aiming to target men may be more successful working with rather than against formulations of identity such as masculinities, and this can be achieved by tailoring program content (e.g., messaging), settings (e.g., among men sharing similar characteristics such as body-type or goals), and mode of delivery (e.g., through organized sports, and leveraging competition to drive healthy behaviours).
在澳大利亚和英国等西方国家，超重和肥胖的男性比例（相对于女性）显著更高，但针对男性的减肥干预措施却相对较少。缺乏以男性为重点的项目可能部分是因为 “传统” 减肥项目对被认为是 “难以接触到” 的人群缺乏吸引力。一个似乎对男性有吸引力的项目是英国的 “男性对脂肪足球”（MAN v FAT Football，MVFF）项目，该项目针对体重指数为27.5（或高于27.5）的男性设计。MVFF鼓励男性参与基于社区的减肥项目，通过参与足球联赛激励减肥，自2016年以来，MVFF已经支持了数千名男性的减肥努力。以MVFF为例，我们的目标是深入了解男性如何体验一个仅限男性参与的、基于运动的竞争性减肥项目。我们从英国各地的项目地点招募了27名球员（平均年龄 = ，标准差 = 9.93）和10名教练（平均年龄 = 31.8，标准差 = 11.55）。通过半结构化访谈和主题分析，我们确定了球员和教练认为该项目重要的几个评估方面，包括运动的吸引力、公平竞争环境、团队归属感、同志情谊、责任感、男性之间分享问题、性别敏感的环境、志同道合且相似的男性，以及认为传统减肥项目是为女性量身定制的看法。据报道，球员的体验（即能力和乐趣）以及项目中的功能性支持（如球员手册、减肥教练）推动了有效减肥和项目留存的结果。旨在针对男性的干预措施，如果顺应而非违背男性气质等身份构成，可能会更成功，这可以通过调整项目内容（如信息传递）、环境（如在体型或目标等特征相似的男性群体中）和实施方式（如通过有组织的运动，并利用竞争来推动健康行为）来实现。
