What's the psychological reason why a man might be attracted to a woman with muscles?

I have tried to come to a conclusion concerning my own reasons. The first time I saw my pretty 2nd grade teacher brushing her hair, I was awestruck by the size and shape of her biceps. From there I watched circus TV shows, hoping for a glimpse of their arm muscles. All the way through school and into my early 20s, the only females I wanted were muscular ones. Sadly I didn't find one until my first wife at 26 years of age. That was also my first experience at being with a very strong woman as well as a muscular one. I was painfully thin and weak, way back then, so I experienced being overpowered, quite easily by my sexy ex-wife. A whole new thrill emerged...at least at that time. I think I was just wired this way?

Well I've had some time to ask myself this very question, and in my case it has to be caused by an everlasting feeling of insecurity that pushes me to seek the submissive role in any given relationship. And indeed, what I appreciate about muscular women is their strength, their imposing stature and their ability to challenge men physically. Now why am I not gay idk, I'm still primarily attracted to muscle girls because they're women in the first place, and muscular men don't impress me as much. Also doesn't help that I'm naturally gifted at cardio, which comes at the cost of a frail build that added to the insecurity. So in the end, I'm just a frail and insecure guy looking for a strong figure to protect me ig.

As they used to say about jazz, "If you have to ask that question, you won't understand the answer." :)

As they used to say about jazz, "If you have to ask that question, you won't understand the answer." :)

👍....and that is the short, direct, answer.😂

I think it's more likely to have to do with personality/upbringing. I think most if not all of us have experienced some strong girl or woman in our childhood who attracted us. That is the 'what,' the 'why' would have to do with our psychologies, and that's all been mostly theorized already throughout this thread.

I've never seen even slightly muscular woman IRL until I was 14 or 15. My attraction started much earlier than that, I watched FBB competitions on TV even before I was sexually awakened. And it's certainly not my upbringing, my closest family members couldn't stop bashing the look and exclaiming how ugly they were. Unless it is some reverse psychology thing.

[[[ And it's certainly not my upbringing, my closest family members couldn't stop bashing the look and exclaiming how ugly they were. Unless it is some reverse psychology thing ]]]

...@M76, same here. I started a little collection of muscular women in the 1960s. Circus trapeze women, a female jockey with great arms, Olympic diver Cindy Potter, some gymnasts, different Orrin N Heller type stuff. My mom found my stash, trashed it, scolded me and told me how manly and ugly those women were. It didn't sway me away from my secret love for muscle girls but I questioned myself many times on why muscular women drove me crazy.

I always get annoyed by this stigma around muscular or fit females being a fetish.

That is because it literally and by definition is also a fetish.

This is an interesting discussion, I think there is relatively large variation based on what in particular one likes (strength, aesthetics, being dominated, ect). From my own experience I always liked tall girls from birth and then when I knew muscular girls existed I liked that too. I assumed it was because you know bigger = more to love and muscle is way more aesthetically pleasing than fat. But in reality it is more than that which draws me to it. Maybe its also tall + strong = powerful and I am attracted to a powerful person, but its purely physically and mostly looks not strength so the theory kind of falls apart.

I always get annoyed by this stigma around muscular or fit females being a fetish.

I really hate this also. But logically it walks like a duck and talks like a duck so its a duck as far as the majority of people are concerned.

I think its important to distinguish a few things for this discussion. First of all, by definition a fetish is harmless. People have them for breasts, eyes, hair, and one of the most common is feet. If a fetish escalates to a paraphalia -- resulting in negative life consequences then it becomes a problem.

Secondly, the two fetishes most common here are cratolagnia (strength fetish) and sthenolagnia (muscular size fetish). My wife and I did quite a bit of research for the origins of these fetishes in our book Iron Beauties but there was no conclusive answer.

My wife and I did quite a bit of research for the origins of these fetishes in our book Iron Beauties but there was no conclusive answer.

No conclusive answer to what question? Their origins?

I was just remembering something funny. Aside from many things that I think are related to my atraction to muscular woman, my father used to use an expression that in my country means that some woman is very hot, so you say that a woman "is strong (indeed)". So aside from the many triggers and formants, I think this kind of make me think about desiring a woman with kind of body that exploted with size, strengh, curves.

I think being conclusive is a red herring.

There's also an aspect of being triggered.

I guess it wouldn't be unlike the feeling of nostalgia some people get when they hear an old song, especially when that song holds special meaning to them. The intensity of the emotion would depend on the intensity of the past trauma.

Idk for me its more that I am attracted to how big they are not really strength. Idk if its trauma that would cause that, more of like a bigger the better mentality.

Earliest recollections... 7 years old, saw my female 2nd grade teacher's peaked biceps. Same year, was wrestled to the ground and pinned by my neighbor, a girl, one year younger than me. She flexed and actually had a noticeable lump in her arm. Maybe a year later, saw two circus trapeze ladies flexing their biceps at the big top entrance in Tampa Fla. I've been enamored with muscles on girls, my whole life. I just can't seem to come up with a reason, or life event. I wouldn't trade my love for muscular females, even though for many years, I thought something was wrong with me.

Brain Glitch? All I can think of at this point.

I can only speak of myself, but I don’t think there was anything that happened in my life that made me attracted to muscular women. When I was a kid, I just naturally gravitated in interest toward women in American Gladiators, and in the bodybuilding and fitness shows ESPN used to broadcast.

I can only speak of myself, but I don’t think there was anything that happened in my life that made me attracted to muscular women. When I was a kid, I just naturally gravitated in interest toward women in American Gladiators, and in the bodybuilding and fitness shows ESPN used to broadcast.

Me too. I stumbled upon a picture of a muscular woman on the internet and that's what started it for me.

The intensities of past and current events often diverge.

In the here and now different women correspond to different intensities.

I think it's more likely to have to do with personality/upbringing. I think most if not all of us have experienced some strong girl or woman in our childhood who attracted us. That is the 'what,' the 'why' would have to do with our psychologies, and that's all been mostly theorized already throughout this thread.

I agree. I don't think there are any specific reasons. Everyone has a different reason or trigger. Mine was feeling the very big and hard bicep of a female relative that made me become attracted to muscles on a female and she was gorgeous to boot.

Because she has muscles ;⁠-⁠)

Specific reasons are a red herring.