What in the World - Looksmaxxing: Why men are going to extremes to look good

Download Looksmaxxing: Why men are going to extremes to look good

Looksmaxxing has been all over the internet lately - this is the trend aimed at young men and it’s based on the idea of self-improvement, maximising your physical attractiveness and increasing your sexual market value. It's been part of fringe reddit forums for years now but recently it’s become mainstream, with the hashtag going viral on TikTok, X and Instagram.

The trend promotes extreme dieting, obsessive body ranking and pseudo-scientific cosmetic advice - including a recent "bonesmashing" trend which has been condemned by doctors. And it has links to incel and manosphere networks. BBC journalist Thomas Morgan explains looksmaxxing and why it’s become popular with young men, as well as some of the real life consequences.

We speak to 22 year old actor Trevor Larcom about his own looksmaxxing journey and find out what he makes of the accusations of misogyny and toxic culture. And Stephen Imeh, who wanted to become the “first black looksmaxxer”, tells us about his experience.

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Presenter: Iqra Farooq
Producers: Mora Morrison, Emilia Jansson and Julia Ross-Roy
Video producer: Baldeep Chahal
Editor: Verity Wilde and Harriet Oliver

Published on Thursday, 19th March 2026.

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