Justice

Ronda Rousey Brilliantly Addressed Haters and Her Muscles in a Reddit AMA

August 11th 2015

UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion and ESPY Fighter of the Year Ronda Rousey has spoken out about overcoming body image issues in the past, and during her recent Reddit AMA, she said she will be giving back to the body positive and mental health community in a great way.

Rousey, who also coined the phrase "Do Nothing Bitch" (D.N.B.) to send the message that every single muscle in her body serves a purpose, wrote on Reddit that she will donate a portion of her new D.N.B. shirts "to Didi Hirsch 501c3 for their work in mental health services & for women with body image Issues." Didi Hirsch is a Los Angeles-based organization that provides mental health care services. Rousey is a recipient of Didi Hirsch's 2014 Erasing the Stigma Leadership Awards for trying to help eliminate the stigma of mental illness. Rousey lost her father to suicide as a child and has spoken out about suffering from from eating disorders.

"As many of you already know, I get a lot of questions about femininity and body image," Rousey said during her AMA, short for 'ask me anything.'

"Women are constantly being made to feel the need to conform to an almost unattainable standard of what’s considered attractive so they can support a multitude of industries buying shit in the pursuit of reaching this standard," Rousey said.

Rousey, who has discussed her battle with eating disorders before, answered an AMA question from an individual who used to struggle with anorexia. Rousey, who previously starved herself and purged to maintain her weight class for competitions, expressed relief that she no longer devotes so much brain space to thinking about food.

"It feels very liberating to free of the guilt that used to come with every meal," Rousey said. "And I feel like I have so much extra space in my brain now that I'm not constantly thinking about the next meal and trying to eat as much as possible every day while still losing weight. I feel amazing. I (think) I look amazing. And I just ate some bomb-ass french toast this morning. I'm so happy to hear about all the progress you've made on yourself and best of luck for the future."

Rousey candidly discussed her body image issues in a recent interview with Cosmopolitan, telling the publication that she gained weight for the 2015 Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition in order to look like the healthier, best version of herself for the snapshots.

"I felt like I was much too small for a magazine that is supposed to be celebrating the epitome of a woman," she said. "I wanted to be at my most feminine shape, and I don't feel my most attractive at 135 pounds, which is the weight I fight at. At 150 pounds, I feel like I'm at my healthiest and my strongest and my most beautiful."


It took a lot for her to feel this confident though, as she knew from a young age she didn't look like most other girls.

"I grew up as an athlete doing judo, so I didn't really have a conventional, feminine body type," she said. "I grew up thinking that because my body type was uncommon [i.e., athletic], it was a bad thing. Now that I'm older, I've really begun to realize that I'm really proud that my body has developed for a purpose and not just to be looked at ... It took a lot of time to develop a healthier relationship with food and with my weight. My mind was backward. I thought I wanted my body to look a certain way so I could be happy. But it got to the point where I didn't feel I looked good at 135 pounds, the weight that qualifies me for the weight class that I fight in. Now I only try to maintain my fighting weight for a couple hours a year — right before weigh-ins. Afterward, I maintain a weight where I'm not starving or feeling weak, which makes me happier."

During the AMA, a user asked whether Rousey believed she could defeat boxing champion Floyd Mayweather, whom she recently called out for his many domestic violence history, Rousey seemed doubtful about competing with him in a match with rules.

"Floyd is one of the best boxers of all time," Rousey said. "He would definitely beat me in a boxing match. I unfortunately don't get into 'matches'. I fight for a living. In a no rules fight, I believe I can beat anyone on this planet. Boxing is a sweet science with strict rules that I respect very much and aspire every day to improve at. But you said ruleless fight, and that's my honest answer."

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