Japanese Men Worried About Getting Fat

Reuters ran a story yesterday about something that has been a popular news topic in Japan for some time now: apparently the Japanese are becoming fatties. Here’s an excerpt:

Japanese men worried about bulging bellies now have another option to cutting back on beer — slip into a boxer brief girdle or T-shirt with tummy-control panels.

Overweight adults are still far rarer in Japan than in the United States, but the trend is definitely up for men, especially the middle-aged. Many suffer from metabolic syndrome, a condition characterized by excess fat around the abdomen.

While some Japanese men are trying their hardest to battle the fat by exercising, eating healthy, or drinking special oolong tea that supposedly makes one’s belly smaller, others have embraced their tubbiness. One such man is this performer, who has created a skit called Metabolic Japan:

Some of the geographic features/events represented in his performance:

• The Japanese Alps
• Mount Fuji
• Oceanic Trenches
• Earthquakes
• Weather Reports
• Cherry Blossom Blooming
• The Sinking of Japan