The objectivity of women continued as millions of men and women were tuned in to the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2011 on CBS.  American men watched nearly naked supermodels walk down the runway with the support of their wives or girlfriends. Where is the opposition?

Sex appeal and lingerie yet again seduced a large male audience into watching the erotic show instead of following a primetime college basketball game between Ohio State and Duke, the only time men will choose fashion over sport. The social and entertainment value coupled with unique wardrobe creations convinced the females to sit next to their man and envision their next visit to the nearest Victoria’s Secret location.

This annual fashion extravaganza focuses on the female body and displays six-pack abs and long, toned legs framed by the sexiest lingerie on the market. Viewers were afforded the chance to watch Jay-Z and Kanye West perform their hit single “Ni**as in Paris” around a bevy of beautiful models, a performance that was aptly concluded with a Will Ferrell quote included in the lyrics.

“No one knows what it means, but it’s provocative. It gets people going,” Ferrell said while playing an ice skater named Chazz in the movie Blades of Glory. Whether the inclusion of this quote in the show was premeditated or not, it proved appropriate as many question the purpose of the fashion show.

The only answer is that the show is provocative, which is just what the American television audience craves. Behind the diamond studded bras and lace panties lie a hotbed for debate that questions physical health, social morality and consumer spending.

The lifestyle required to compete in the modeling industry has been questioned for decades as designers use the female body as a canvas for their creative yet impractical outfits. Women are motivated to shed pounds in order to hit the runway, but their methods are unhealthy and immoral.

Adriana Lima, a participant in the 2011 show, cited boxing as a popular way for models to stay fit.

Jump roping is also a popular method that works the upper body, tones the core and burns calories. Kroes completes these exercises with mechanical efficiency before beginning shadow boxing routines, however these workouts neglect the variety necessary for a healthy body, an epidemic that defines the nature of the modeling industry.

Rigorous cardio workouts are a healthy source of fitness when used as a supplement, not a focus. Unfortunately cardio is a supplement to the extreme diets that transform female bodies into abnormal slabs of bones and breasts.

ABC news reported that 2011 model Adriana Lima paired her twice a day workouts with a questionable eating regimen. Lima adhered to a liquid only diet nine days before this year’s show, depriving her body of countless nutrients and forcing it to devour the little fat left on her body. She would enter the show in dangerous condition, stretching 112 pounds across a 5’10” frame.

Such lifestyles appear to be worth the sacrifice as Victoria’s Secret models represent the epoch of the modeling world and are symbols of sex appeal idolized by both men and women. The great amount of time, energy and work ethic required to attain the figure of a runway model is unquestionably unnatural. Should it be rewarded?

At least nine million Americans agree with rewarding these unhealthy habits each year by tuning into the fashion show, and the industry as a whole provides incentive for women to drop the weight. Adriana Lima and Doutzen Kroes, both 2011 fashion show participants, rounded out the top five in earnings according to Forbes in 2009 with annual incomes of 8 million dollars and 6 million dollars respectively.

The top earning model in that year was Gisele Bundchen, a former Victoria’s Secret Angel who made 25 million dollars. Societies ideal perception of the female figure has created an industry that rewards women for sacrificing their bodies much like the professional sports industry does for males. The average American male athlete in the top fifty in annual earnings makes 28 million dollars each year.

Forbes recorded that Marko Jaric, former Minnesota Timberwolves guard and husband of Adriana Lima, makes 7.6 million dollars annually, which falls shy of the annual income of his female partner. The annual income of top models speaks to the despicable state of the industry as a whole. It is disgusting that CBS can broadcast a fashion show that costs 12 million dollars and features a 2.5 million dollar bra.

The idolization of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show contributes to the illusion that a female body should look like that of a VS Angel, when in actuality these bodies are created with a focus on fat burning cardio and extreme dieting. The modeling industry is quietly rivaling the lucrative nature of professional sports, but has been defined by unhealthy habits and moral sacrifice.

A widespread idolization of healthy fitness must be adopted so that these women can lift their heads off their pillows under their own power in the morning and eat three meals a day like the rest of us do, and are  supported for who they are and not for who sociey makes them.