If you are any college student anywhere, you have likely heard the phrase “dad bod” uttered, ironically or not, at some point in the past year. For those of you who may be unfamiliar, the reputable urbandictionary.com defines dad bod as: “A guy who has kids and was once in shape and still has guns that can crush beer cans but also with a belly that says I drank those beers and I can eat six slices of pizza in one seating.” This definition implies that this phrase applies to actual dads, however, many students have appropriated the term for other young men. But more on that later.

Recently, a collegiate girl published an article about “why girls love the dad bod”. It discusses how girls go crazy over the dad bod, "somewhere between a work out physique and a beer gut. The reason being that it doesn’t intimidate us girls, we like being the pretty ones, it makes for better cuddling, it implies lots of eating on dates, and you know exactly what you’re getting." Who could argue with such sound logic?! Surely, I cannot. So instead, I will take this study even further. Because why stop at dad bod? Let’s talk about why everyone should love the mom bod!!

Let’s start with the reasons laid out by the aforementioned article. Girls aren’t intimidated by the dad bod. I interpret this to mean that guys with dad bods are not stereotypically attractive, so as a female, I do not need to fear rejection. That is an inherent paradox, because if girls love the dad bod, then I’m clearly up against a lot of competition. So instead, I found some other reasons to be intimidated by men. But anyways, no worries, this isn’t an issue when it comes to MOM BOD. If a girl doesn’t conform to typical beauty standards, then there is no way that she will reject you.

So what about all the girls who like dad bods because it makes them look good in comparison? Well mom bods can do that too, but even better! Masculinity can be pretty fragile, so most guys could use the ego boost that mom bod can support. So guys, you’re welcome. You’ll always be the hot one when standing next to your mom-bodied slampiece, leaving us all wondering if she "has a good personality." Now, as for dad bod leading to “better cuddling.” Think about some of your fondest memories from childhood. How many of them include cuddling on your mother’s lap with your favorite stuffed animal? Clearly, moms are great cuddlers. BOOM. Dad bod implies lots of eating? Urbandictionary specified that a dad bod implied that you could eat six slices of pizza after drinking six beers. After six beers, I tend to eat a whole box of mac’n’cheese and 10 chicken nuggets. Mom bods for the win.

And with the dad bod, you know what you’re getting. Well I guess I can’t argue with that. Naturally, anyone with less than perfect physique is going to look that way their entire lives, so yes, it is best to find that out early on. I would hate for the romance to die later when the dad-bod sets in.

Finally, I promised that I would come back to that point made in the UrbanDictionary definition, that a dad bod was someone who actually had kids. So all ridiculous jargon aside, it stands to reason that someone with mom bod would also have kids. For the sake of parallel structuring, let’s say it’s a woman who has kids and can pound a bottle of wine while going ham on a wheel of brie. So far, so good, it sounds like a woman who has her priorities in order. Regardless, the most important part of that definition is that mom-bod implies someone who has kids. And that, in itself, is the greatest reason to celebrate the mom-bod. Mothers are badass. They help raise children. Moms are awesome people who deserve as much celebration as dads. However, when a woman actually has a child and is a literal mother, she is praised for losing her "baby weight."

And therein lies my issue with the concept of a “dad-bod.” This term is rarely used to reference actual fathers. In my opinion, the only time you should use the phrase dad-bod is when referring to the body of an actual father. Because I don’t actually have a problem with the shape of anyone’s body. People are free to look however they like and I hope that they happily attract whomever they wish. What I do have a problem with is labeling bodies, and celebrating certain body types while shaming others. We love the dad-bod on men of any age, which is fine. But we actively discourage mothers from developing a mom-bod.

In Pearson's article, she says that "fraternity boys everywhere" are rejoicing in this "trend." And why wouldn't they be? We have created an aesthetic standard for men that did not previously fit into our ideal image of a man. We have not done the same for women. If you are not "hot" you are average or plus sized, or maybe "curvy" if we are being sensitive. I still see articles like Pearson's, commending dad bod, or "Hollywood's Hottest Dad Bods", which praises this trend for allowing men to be hot while still enjoying a "good slice of pizza." Yet I never see anything about how hot it is when women look like humans and eat food. Which by the way, just makes you human. We are celebrating men for looking and acting like humans. So perhaps the joke is finally over. As I have pointed out, a woman's body can do everything that we are praising the dad bod for, they are just expected to look hot when they do it. It is time to get rid of these gendered labels, because all bodies, whatever gender and shape, are capable of pretty cool things.