(This is my response to this article found here….MUST READ FIRST)
Beauty on the Outside counts too, boys
I’ve noticed a disturbing trend among men. On Facebook and in conversations with boys, I’ve heard boys embrace supposed masculine liberation and tell us that they’re handsome no matter how they look. Before I have to dodge a flurry of thrown wing tips, let me clarify: Yes, you are handsome. You’re a son of God, and don’t let anyone try to convince you otherwise. But . . . you shouldn’t let the “beauty on the inside” argument hinder your quest to achieve your physical ideal. Some boys I know tell themselves it doesn’t matter how they look because they’re handsome on the inside, and then they just . . . well, let themselves go.
If you are truly happy with the body you have, I’m glad for you. We should recognize that none of us is going to have a perfect body, at least not at this stage in our eternal existence. (Or maybe you already do have a near-perfect body. Congrats. You should still keep reading.) Men, we gals will accept that not all of you are body builder models if you accept that few of us have managed the physique of any of the models in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition.
I’m sorry if I come across as harsh. There are also plenty of people who go the opposite direction and become Ken dolls with personalities as bland as the plastic dolls they so resemble.
President Kimball said, “How nice and easy would it be if we had a magic wand! But we haven’t. You might take a careful inventory of your habits, your speech, your appearance, your weight, . . . and your eccentricities. . . . Take each item and analyze it. What do you like in others? What personality traits please you in others? Are your pants too short, too long, too revealing, too old fashioned? Does your weight drive off possible girlfriends? Do you laugh raucously? Are you too selfish? Are you interested only in your own interests?”
See boys, a prophet of God told you to hem your pants, get with the latest fashion trends, and stop driving off potential girlfriends with those ugly mugs (it’s called a facial…you have no right having imperfect skin). Stop being so interested in only your interests and start being interested in what we women are interested in. Geeze, boys.
President McKay said, ‘Even a barn looks better when it’s painted.’” Hear that, men? Paint your darn barns already.
Boys, a little regular exercise and some healthy eating habits will be a good start toward becoming that reasonable paragon. Go running. Take a racquetball class. Get off the couch and stop eating Cheetos and instead pick up a book and use it to do some weight lifting. I think you’re capable of filling in the rest of this list yourselves (but if you’re not I’d be happy to offer more suggestions). I really believe that once you set your physical goals on something that we women will approve of and if you work to reach them, we both can be satisfied with the hot stud you’re becoming.
What do you think? Am I off base? Do I have unreasonable expectations for boys?
IRON DAISY 
Actually I have the same response to your take on the article as I had to the original article. The premise is sound – that you (male of female, committed or single) should treat your body as a gift from God and keep it well-maintained and healthy. The part where I diverge from the original message is the part where our society (our media-driven, corporate-controlled, sexist, weightist, wealthist society) gets to decide what qualifies as well-maintained and healthy. That's where a true follower of Christ ought to be able to look beyond trivialities like fashion, make-up, accessories, and even weight, and look to the true beauty underneath. Clean skin and hair, modest clothing, engaging intellect and a tender spirit ought to be what we encourage in each other. Thanks for the thought-provoking article. Love you.
Jennifer, I completely agree with everything you said. When I read things like this that are so focused on one gender, I tend to switch the pronouns around in my mind. I believe if it's offensive to one gender (like how I felt the original post was to women) than it's offensive if it's applied to both genders. Which is why I switched it around. I was offended that this man would try to use words of prophets and manipulate Gospel principles to instruct women to try to be more physically beautiful to please men like him. Like we don't hear those messages enough from the world. We don't need to hear them in church related contexts too.Obviously I don't believe anything that my parody says. I would never write anything to incredibly sexist towards men, nor do I believe it. And what's that scripture, the the Lord looketh on the soul of man? While the world looketh upon the appearance (if I was a better Scriptorian I could get the correct verse and quotation). I believe, like you said, that God does not judge his children based on the current standards of the Western culture of today. Every culture has it's unique brand of what it considers beautiful. And while it is important to treat our bodies respectfully, to engage in healthy physical activities and eating habits, what's most important, is the beauty of our soul. It doesn't matter how "beautiful" I am on the outside if I treat people like crap, am selfish, lie, cheat, steal, and use others. Conversely, it doesn't matter how "unattractive" my physical body is if I am a true disciple of Christ, treat others like they want to be treated, serve my fellow beings, am honest in my dealings, and try to do good. Love you too.
I don’t remember reading this way back when, but I love it. Thank you Risa for your gender-flipping eye-openers. I also love that the OP wrote a disclaimer at the top – looks like he might have had a tiny feminist awakening to his privilege. On the other hand, there is this little instruction at the end of his post “Please remember to be kind in your comments. The writer of this article, whether you believe his opinions are correct or not, has feelings too.” Because I can write about how you womenz aren’t being your prettiest for me and hurt your feelings all I want, but when you call me out on my cruelty you must be nice about it because I has the feelz…
I’m having a hard time finding the talk Pres. McKay gave when he said, “Even a barn looks better painted.” Do you have a link to that talk or the actual name of the talk. I’ve looked off and on for some time with no luck finding it.
It’s oft quoted, but not oft cited. The generation before me remembers it well, but it’s hard to find on lds.org.