MOST GUYS TREAT WORKING OUT much as they do calling Mom. It’s a good thing to do regularly, but skipping it once in a while isn’t going to cause irreparable harm. If, on a Thursday night after a 10-hour slog at the office, you have a choice between putting on your sneakers or ordering takeout from that new panini place, who’s going to blame you for selecting the activity that doesn’t involve sweaty socks?

But a growing number of guys, it seems, think that missing one day of exercise, or even cutting short a workout, will suddenly make them frail or—far worse—fat. Among their ranks is the guy who can’t sleep nights because he’s too amped-up about the training he’s going to do at 5 a.m. If his trip to the gym isn’t up to snuff, he’ll log another in the evening, making excuses to blow off work or a date. And then there’s the guy who feels compelled to ride the stationary bike until he has burned off every last calorie from lunch (“You’re paying the price for that slice of pizza,” he tells himself). And if these workout junkies can’t exercise—if they spend a mere 24 hours away from the weight room—they plunge headlong into depression. Keep reading.