The Viral Tik Tok Challenge Where Men Are Falling Flat on Their Faces

Women are killing it.

Ya, this is happening and men are falling flat on their faces making a fool of themselves and also embarrassing them at the same time. Apparently, the “center of gravity” is a thing they say.

While men understand the gravity issue way better than the ladies, this is another area they are being ripped apart. If holding something up wasn’t a challenge itself, this came as a nail in the coffin proving we men are struggling in a few departments. Not so macho after all.

While a few may argue about us living in a patriarchal society, women have an upper hand here for sure. While we all were mostly in our chairs and beds for 2020 and even yet, it was 2019 that brought embarrassment to men when the chair challenge went viral on Tik Tok. The crowd went berserk with influencers and couples posing their chair challenge videos to prove a point.

Well, not to prove something, but to get a fair share of the audience clinging onto their profiles for their daily dose of watching men fooling themselves and ogling. Bite me in the ass or wherever as I never understood this stuff and do not intend in future too.

Just to keep my sanity meter checked while taking a nap rather than making a video myself if my wife asks, I am one rigid and stubborn nut. I won’t crack easily, definitely not gonna fall flat on the face. The only thing I am gonna put my face down for is a story for another day.

Anyway, what is this trend and what’s in it for you?

The challenge is utterly simple( till your macho self fails at it) to do — in theory.

Start with getting on all fours (No, not that)

Then put your elbows on the ground and hold your chin up on your hands. Now, the trickery starts. Remove your elbows from the ground and put both your hands behind your back.

Easy, eh. Ya, but not so. The men are falling. They are falling like a boulder whose support got taken away. Looked simple to me till I saw tons of videos of men going down.

Since more and more men continue to face-plant their way through this challenge, the internet is at it. Why? Because the internet loves a conspiracy theory. All people have is time. The time to solve some mystery murder, kidnap, and just about anything under the sun. How could a viral trend escape the scrutiny and go not judged?

The TikTokers team of scientific research and development(you wish) have profoundly projected this as the latest win for women in this ultra-macho society quoting a better (different) center of gravity of women as the reason they are beating men hand’s down (read face).

While science may be a reason here, some have also come up with their final judgment as women being better at balancing than men. And why not? Women are better at balancing. Consider how they manage everything from home to keep an eye on their husbands and boyfriends to prevent their gravity stations from going haywire, it is credibility at best.

But while it’s delightful to witness that women are getting their due, even if it’s through their balancing skills, but is there any truth to this? Are women winning this battle with men completely hapless and clueless to come up with a better challenge or nailing this one better?

Why are women gaining all the traction and succeeding at this mindless new internet trend?

I did some little research of my own and found this.

There is a center of gravity or an imaginary point in our bodies matter that concentrates the total body weight. By the feel of how it seems, this defines our balance and how we will hold our overall weight and body.

Britannica mentions it as the imaginary point while science suggests that there indeed is a center of gravity for the balance that helps in walking, running, sports, and general upkeep.

Fact is, some studies have found that women have a lower center of gravity than their macho counterparts. According to one paper published in the academic journal Theoretical Biology and Medical Modelling, center of gravity for women is 8 to 15 percent lower than a man’s.

I quote as it mentions:

“It is well known that on average women commonly have an 8–15% lower longitudinal center of gravity (COG or center of mass relative to height) than men. This anatomic differentiation has been speculated to have arisen evolutionarily during the development of bipedal locomotion as a means to provide better stability in females during pregnancy and infant carriage.”

So, I’d say take that calculated risk (8 to 15%) since you are inclined to attempt it for the sake of it. While women had this gifted for better stability and balance to support pregnancy, we men don’t have the luxury. Try balancing beer mugs between your mouth till you are blessed. Do as many as you can till you fall flat. At least, you’ll be too stoked to know what happened.

Watch below

References and links

Summers RL, Platts S, Myers JG, Coleman TG. Theoretical analysis of the mechanisms of gender differentiation in the propensity for orthostatic intolerance after spaceflight. Theor Biol Med Model. 2010;7:8. Published 2010 Mar 18. doi:10.1186/1742–4682–7–8