The couple shares a unique love story

Everyone dreams of falling in love with someone who is “their type”. But life is full of surprises and soulmates come in all shapes and sizes.

Liza Thomas, 25, is 170 pounds and two inches taller than boyfriend Brandon Gim, 26, and the couple couldn’t be happier.

In 2022, American jeweler Shane Co. surveyed 1,000 adults and found that one in two Americans said body shape was the most important attribute when looking for a lover. The results also showed that 39 percent of women preferred a man who was 6 feet or taller.

But for Liza and Brandon, physical attributes are not the focus. But it wasn’t always like that for Brandon, who admitted he didn’t like bigger bodies before he met Liza.

The nurse had never thought of dating a plus size woman before, especially since she grew up in a Korean family where, according to Statista, women weigh an average of 127 kilograms.

comment NewsweekBrandon said, “Korean beauty standards are not open to diversity. Women are pushed to be thinner, even if it’s not healthy, and it doesn’t allow them to be their best selves. I’ve always been drawn to Liza’s sense of humor , values, personality and how he moves in the world.

“Physical attraction came with a bit of a learning curve myself,” she said. “I had to start practicing to appreciate the beauty of different people, which is not always celebrated in traditional media. Now I have no inhibitions in appreciating Liza.”

Brandon is 5’11 and weighs 130 pounds, while Liza is 20 and weighs 300 pounds.

“It’s not every day you see a married couple of mixed weight. I weigh 170 pounds more than my boyfriend,” said student chef Liza. Newsweek. “You don’t see couples like us in movies or in public, so I think it’s only natural that people stare.

“We understand that it’s unusual to see a skinny guy with a big girl. Never mind that they’re from different ethnic backgrounds,” he said. “Once we saw an Asian guy and a black girl and even we were shocked. Society isn’t used to seeing couples like us, but I think that’s slowly but surely changing because of social media.”

Of course, they’re not the only couple with a weight difference. Previously, Newsweek shared an article about a man who used to hide his girlfriend because he weighed 396 kilos. However, now the couple is happy to show their love for each other online.

On TikTok, the hashtag “mixed weight” was viewed 17.3 million times. Liza, who posts under the handle @oliverdalst0n, often uses this tag when sharing clips with her boyfriend. One video, in which Brandon stands shirtless next to Liza, has 505,400 views, pretending to take part in a cross-dressing challenge with a partner.

Liza is now comfortable enough to mock their differences, but she was once insecure about them.

“We look a lot weird and it really bothered me. But I got a thick skin,” she said. “I’m with the one I love so I don’t mind anymore. Sometimes I get rude comments from trolls on the internet saying I’m going to break the bed, but I ignore them.”

“Focusing only on physical attributes is shallow”

Los Angeles contact coach Treva Brandon Scharf said Newsweek set type doesn’t necessarily hold singles back from finding love. But a closed mindset certainly is.

“The rigidity of attributes not only limits your options, but also closes you off from potential encounters. Open-mindedness and anti-type dating can lead to unexpected surprises, not to mention true love that is not based on appearance – which, by the way, fades away after a while” – said Scharf, its author Ready to Be Single: A Late Bloomer’s Guide to Love.

The aforementioned Shane Co. survey revealed that 28.8 percent of Americans do not prefer any traits, and 1 in 10 respondents said their partner does not have ideal physical characteristics.

“Focusing only on physical attributes is shallow and completely misleading,” Scharf said. “Chemistry is key, but the hot blondes you’re always attracted to, or the guys you seem to be attracted to, can be total duds. However, there is a ‘standard’ for the people you date. It serves a purpose. Looks matter, but so is the character, so give it equal weight. Along with the hot body, look for a good heart and soul.”

Liza and Brandon hope their story will inspire people to be open when looking for love.

“Putting potential partners into a box can be very limiting,” Liza said. “Our story proves that love has no boundaries and that an open mind can help people find something beautiful like we did. There may be backlash or strange looks if you go against the ‘norm’, but it doesn’t matter if you’re happy.” “

Scharf advises those struggling with “mismatched” couples to ask themselves the following questions:

• Why the verdict?
• Why does it bother you?
• Why do you envy two people who “don’t match” you, but are actually a perfect match?

He added: “They say love is blind, but to people who look alone, I say it’s not blind enough.”