Nowadays men are no longer proud of having a beer belly, generally seen in the past as a symbol of their manliness, a survey showed.

It suggests that men are as body-obsessed as women - a third of respondents said they hated their stomachs and a quarter had issues with their entire bodies.

The phone poll of 500 men, for Norwich Union Healthcare's "Mr Vain" study, found men felt pressurised to measure up physically to their sporting heroes. And one in four said their partners put pressure on them to keep in shape.

The survey suggests pressures on men to look good are so extreme that they can end up fooling themselves and others about their levels of fitness.

A quarter of those surveyed said they lied to their partners or friends about how often they exercise. And a third exaggerate how much they can lift, while one in five lie about their weight.

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