Almost one third of men feel pressured by women to have the 'perfect body'

The recent furore over a recent ad campaign by weight loss supplement brand Protein World that asks the question "Are you beach body ready?" highlighted what a polemic topic body image is for women. But now it has been revealed that men, too, can often feel self conscious about stripping down to their bathing suits.

According to a recent poll by the market research app OnePulse, only eight percent of men feel "very happy" with their bodies, while 11 percent are unhappy with their physique and a further 11 percent claim they "hate" the way they look.

And while 22 percent say they don't feel any pressure to have the perfect figure, almost one third of respondents (29 percent) feel the pressure to look good thanks to women. It seems male pride has much less influence when it comes to looks, with only 16 percent claiming to feel the heat from other men.

Yet despite feelings of dissatisfaction, some 20 percent of men claim to lack the motivation to "work on their body." With summer around the corner, 33 percent are willing to dig out their gym gear ahead of beach season, while 22 percent have the impetus to take care of their physiques all year round.

The news flies in the face of the recent 'Dad bod' phenomenon, which saw 'everyday men' gain sex appeal in the eyes of the media and womankind for their "non-threatening" and "cuddly" physiques.

But the survey results were even more dramatic for the women polled, with just three percent of female respondents describing themselves as "happy" with their bodies, and a huge 39 percent admitting they would feel "unconfident" wearing a bikini. The overwhelming majority (41 percent) of women polled cited a flat stomach as the body improvement they most covet, followed by toned legs (20 percent), a small waist (15 percent) and toned arms (12 percent).

The poll surveyed 400 males and 500 females aged between 16 and 65 from all around the UK.