Maxed Out: Looking Into the Fitmaxxing Trend—and Why More Isn’t Always Better
The “-maxxing” trend on social media promises a better version of yourself. Filipino experts explain what fitmaxxing gets right, where it goes too far, and how to approach wellness without the pressure to optimize everything.
It seems wellness isn’t just a passing trend; it’s becoming more extreme.
Take a single swipe through Instagram or TikTok, and you’ll notice a particular lingo popping up everywhere. Nowadays, almost any word can end with the suffix “-maxxing.” In beauty, there’s eyemaxxing, slang for using color theory and makeup techniques to enhance the eyes’ appearance. There’s also scentmaxxing, to maximize the use of fragrances through layering instead of a single signature scent. But among these terms, the one that went supernova—taking things to the extreme—is the looksmaxxing trend.
In a study published in the National Library of Medicine, looksmaxxing is defined as “maximizing one’s physical appearance to attract partners and receive the social benefits that accompany being attractive.” An article from Johns Hopkins Medicine describes it as “an online movement that prioritizes physical appearance through grooming, fitness, and a range of other lifestyle behaviors.”
While looksmaxxing can be as modest as lifestyle changes like opting for a healthier diet or practicing “mewing”—which means pressing the tip of the tongue against the roof of the mouth to allegedly make the jawline more prominent—other derivatives like fitmaxxing, which zeroes in on fitness, take more than just a little jaw clench to optimize yourself. Extreme diets, loaded workout routines, and even performance-enhancing drugs are often brought up in discussions.
To better understand the fitmaxxing trend, Allure Philippines spoke to licensed physical therapist Marie Danielle Mojal, PTRP, of Cancio Chiropractic, and Filipino competitive arm wrestler and sports science graduate James Rohan Cruz. These experts break down what fitmaxxing gets right, where it can go too far, and what a healthier approach to fitness should look like.
What does fitmaxxing get right—and wrong?
Illustration by Mikiyo Ricamora/Allure Philippines; Source image: Envato Images
“The ‘-maxxing’ suffix has become popular online, and generally means hyper-optimizing a particular quality,” Cruz says. “I don’t think the fundamental idea is bad. People should strive to be fit. Why wouldn’t you want to become the fittest version of yourself? The problem is when optimization becomes toxic.”
Mojal echoes this, sharing how fitmaxxing can “encourage people to take better care of their fitness, strength, and overall health.” But the concern for her is “when appearance becomes the only measure of success. As a PT, I encourage people to focus not just on how they look, but on how well they move and function,” she adds.
“At best, obsessing over minor variables might make your progress a little bit faster; at worst, it can consume your relationships, your mental health, and your life,” Cruz says. “You start chasing extremely low body fat, treating supplements as essential, stressing over every meal or night’s sleep, and pushing training beyond what you can recover from.”
The result can be counterproductive. “The irony is hyper-optimizing fitness can make you less fit in the long run,” Cruz continues.
Why looking fit isn’t being fit
Part of the problem with fitmaxxing is the assumption that fitness has a specific visual endpoint. Six-pack abs, large arms, broad shoulders, and a pronounced V-taper may be popular aesthetic ideals, but they do not necessarily indicate how well someone moves or performs. “If fitmaxxing is about maximizing fitness, then it should be about performance, not aesthetics,” Cruz says. “Fitness is the body’s ability to perform, and performance is context-specific.”
As an athlete, Cruz has seen firsthand how little physique alone can tell you about performance. “There’s a lot of small guys that can topple guys with 20-inch arms, and it’s crazy,” he says. “But then that’s just a testament to how your physique doesn’t dictate performance.”
Cruz’s own approach to training changed when he transitioned from general weight training to competitive arm wrestling. “As I transitioned over to my sport when I started two years ago, I understood that I had to sacrifice some of my physique and bodybuilding qualities in order to perform better,” Cruz says. “I changed my training plan, and I removed some of the lateral raises and some of the squats in my program just because it’s not really relevant to my sport,” he explains. “What really matters to me is performance over just aesthetics.”
Mojal explains that training the body is more than changing how it looks. “Better training can improve strength, muscle definition, mobility, endurance, posture, coordination, and overall physical function,” she explains. “However, genetics and skeletal structure also play a role, so the goal should be to optimize your body rather than completely change it.”
When does optimization become too much?
Illustration by Mikiyo Ricamora/Allure Philippines; Source image: Envato Images
Cruz is particularly cautious about taking fitmaxxing too far. “People should be cautious about taking anything in fitmaxxing too far—training, dieting, supplements, and especially performance-enhancing drugs,” he says. “There’s no shortcut or magic pill.”
He also emphasizes that practices such as intermittent fasting or supplements may have applications for certain people without being necessary for everyone.
Trying to transform quickly can also put unnecessary stress on the body. “More work isn’t always more progress; eventually you’re just accumulating fatigue,” shares Cruz.
Mojal expands on this, explaining that “The biggest mistake is doing too much too soon—suddenly training every day, drastically changing their diet, or copying advanced workouts. Your muscles, joints, and connective tissues need time to adapt.”
She adds that red flags that fitmaxxers should watch out for include “persistent pain, frequent injuries, extreme fatigue, poor sleep, declining performance, and feeling guilty about taking rest days.”
Recovery also extends beyond simply taking a day off the gym. “It can also include appropriate mobility work, therapeutic exercises, and professional treatments when needed to help manage discomfort, improve movement, and support a safe return to activity,” says Mojal. Knowing when to seek professional guidance can be especially important for people dealing with pain, mobility limitations, or previous injuries.
However, Cruz says people should consider who is providing the advice, what they stand to gain from it, and whether there is credible evidence behind the recommendation. “Asking experts for advice can help, although you have to be particularly cautious which experts you approach. It’s really driven by sales and market,” Cruz says of much of the online fitness landscape. “And I think there is a lot of harmful advice out there, too.” Approaching board-certified experts and experienced strength and conditioning coaches is one step.
Wellness doesn’t need to be maxxed out
“One of the best ways to avoid falling into the trap of being obsessed with fitness or fitmaxxing is to set SMART goals that you can actually achieve,” Cruz says. “Instead of just saying that you want to look better, which will eventually become an ever-moving goalpost, you have to be specific.”
That could mean lifting a particular weight by a certain date, developing a specific skill, or simply climbing a flight of stairs without struggling.
Mojal also recommends taking the fitness journey step by step. “Start based on your current fitness level and goals,” she says. “Include strength training, cardiovascular exercise, mobility, and adequate recovery.”
The more useful question may not be, ‘How can I maximize my body?’ It may be, ‘What does my body need from me right now?’ For one person, that could mean getting stronger. For another, it could mean improving cardiovascular health, recovering from an injury, or simply building enough strength and mobility to move comfortably through everyday life.
“Doing your best doesn’t mean doing everything perfectly,” Cruz says. “You do your best, accept the setbacks, and keep going. That’s what fitness should be. Not obsession.”
The goal isn’t to push yourself to your limits or to an unhealthy extreme. It’s to build habits that help you feel stronger, function better, and live well—and that you can actually sustain. As Mojal puts it simply, “Exercise should improve your quality of life, not take over your life.”
Frequently Asked Questions
PTRP Dani Mojal says fitmaxxing can build better fitness habits, but it turns harmful when appearance becomes the only measure of progress—or when chasing minor variables starts costing relationships, mental health, and recovery.
Mojal flags persistent pain, frequent injuries, extreme fatigue, poor sleep, declining performance, and guilt over rest days. She notes the biggest mistake is doing too much too soon, before muscles and joints adapt.
No—physique doesn’t dictate performance. Arm wrestler James Rohan Cruz says smaller athletes often beat larger opponents, since fitness is sport-specific. He dropped bodybuilding exercises irrelevant to his own sport to perform better.
Set specific SMART goals instead of a vague “look better” target. Mojal recommends starting from your current fitness level with strength training, cardio, mobility, and recovery—since exercise should improve life, not consume it.
Fitmaxxing is the fitness branch of the “-maxxing” trend—hyper-optimizing fitness through diet, training, and supplements. Sports science graduate James Rohan Cruz says the core idea isn’t bad; the problem is when optimization turns obsessive.
