Couples In A Loving Relationship Tend To Gain Weight Together
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Have you wondered why you’ve suddenly been adding on the pounds after you and your partner started seeing each other? Well, according to science, you’re not the only one! Relationship weight gain is a stark reality for a lot of people. Researchers believe this phenomenon can’t just be attributed to one explanation, yet rather an accumulation of certain practices and mindsets. Basically, you’re bound to make bad food choices when your loved one is in the picture.
Here are two interesting studies that prove love can sometimes make you put on the weight and that adults in happy and loving relationships end up gaining weight together.
“But I’ve Been Watching What I Eat! How Is This Possible?”
In a study conducted by Central Queensland University in Australia involving around 15,000 adults, out of which 3/4th were in a loving relationship with their partners, researchers found that couples in loving relationships tend to make healthier lifestyle choices like quitting smoking, drinking less, and picking up exercising.
However, despite all of these, they’re more likely to have a higher BMI level than those who are single. According to the lead researcher, this is due to the fact that once people get involved in a relationship, they don’t bother going out of their way to look attractive or slim as they would whilst being single.
Due to this, they end up feeling more comfortable and eating food with a higher content of sugar and fat. Affectionately referred to as ‘Love weight’, it is common for people in a loving relationship to gain weight during the first two to three years of their relationship. The average age of this study was about 52 years old and showed that singles were less likely to gain weight than couples. This data was collected over a nine-year period from 2005-2014 (1).
In another study conducted by The New England Journal of Medicine showed that if one spouse gained weight, the odds of the other spouse gaining weight was a staggering 37 percent. According to the lead researcher in this study, this was due to the fact that satisfaction is positively associated with weight gain and that spouses who are more satisfied have the tendency to gain more weight, and spouses who are dissatisfied tend to gain less weight (2).
The conclusion of this study stated that it is easy for obesity to spread through social ties. This is often why a sibling is around 40 percent more likely to gain weight if the other sibling is obese or gaining weight. But before you go over to your sibling’s or partner’s house, pitchfork in hand, ready to play the blame game, identify where exactly your dietary habits have changed or what lifestyle changes might have caused your exercise routine to take a backseat. After all, health should be one of the topmost priorities in a person’s life.
So What’s The Biggest Cause?
Well, we can safely say that eating out for dates can cause the scales to slip to the heavier side. Of course, whilst courting and wooing the object of your desire, you would want to look your best and make healthier choices, but once the two of you have latched onto each other, things can take a turn for the heavier side.
It is an unspoken rule in relationships that once you’ve found a better half, it’s okay to ease up on the gym schedule a little bit. A study by the University of Glasgow found that newlyweds gained an average of 4 to 5 lbs in their first year of marriage (3).
It’s not just people in relationships or newlyweds who gain weight. Studies show that even couples who’ve been married for a long time and have children together tend to gain weight or are overweight. Despite the fact that they’d be eating healthier home-cooked food rather than takeout, parents will often be tempted to finish their kids’ leftover meals or secretly snack on their junk food. Similarly, recently married couples are also at a high risk of gaining weight as they plan out a life together.
Of course, what’s a few pounds if the trade-off is a loving relationship, right? Better a relationship where you’re happy and thriving and gain weight together than a toxic or abusive one. However, the couple who feed each other must also stick to a healthy exercise routine together. The best part of being in a relationship is company. You and your partner could plan and cook healthy food together with meal prep or even hit the gym together or go for long walks and jogs. Not only would this boost your mood, but it would also increase your confidence, and the endorphin rush from being active would be an added bonus.
At the same time, a lot of experts’ advice following an individual health plan based on your own specific needs and that you shouldn’t depend on your partners’ choices to get healthy. The earlier these habits are formed, the longer they last.
Tell us your thoughts in the comments below. Have you noticed any changes in your weight since you started dating someone? Do you believe in this study? Tell us how you and your partner stay fit?
