Words: Beth Greenfield
ONE fitness influencer who has been making waves on social media for years, just offered up perhaps her most vulnerable post yet.
She discusses her years-ago choice to get breast augmentation and her recent decision to have those implants removed due to symptoms of breast implant illness — plus, an apology, for “unconsciously normalizing an unnatural body pattern” (sic) over the years.
“Sorry,” Maria Kang began Tuesday’s post, addressing her 300,000-plus Facebook followers, as well as her 75,000-plus Instagram followers. “I don’t like regrets, but I have some in life. As I look at my scarred, numb and deflated breasts today, I regret ever thinking they weren’t good enough. I fell into the trap of insecurity.”
She continued, “I remember the day I made the decision to get breast augmentation clearly. I didn’t research. I never thought I needed or wanted it. But, when I was told it was something I “had” to do to win — I did. No doubt. A part of me died that day.”
Kang, who has been on social media for many years now, made her first major exposure on “What’s Your Excuse?” The Facebook post about the busy mum still finding time to work out sparked quite a bit of anger to go viral in 2013. The subsequent attention continued over the years, with posts about everything from her struggles with eating disorders and her marriage to becoming fitness guru through its international network No Excuse Mom Workout Groups.
READ MORE: Lingerie store owner hits back at ‘bra shaming’ accusations.
The mother-of-three’s constant visibility has resulted in her being called everything from ‘gross’ and ‘obnoxious’ to ‘inspiration’ and ‘role model’. But this latest post, which comes after international news about breast implants – including how surgeons in the UK want to warn patients about the risk of breast implant disease, as well as worldwide recall of Allergan textured implants because of their association with a cancer called Breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL) — seems to resonate with her fans in the same empowering, appreciative way across the board.
“You encourage me to never give up and always appreciate the way I was created,” wrote one Facebook fan. Another shouted: “I’m with you. I am waiting for the day I finish nursing school and can afford to have mine removed. Thank you for sharing, you give me hope!”
Her post drew similar reactions on Instagram, where responses included: “I’ve always wanted implants, but I’ve never been brave enough to do it. Thank you for sharing this. I don’t want implants anymore. I’m learning to love myself for who I am and be grateful for my blessings.” Another wrote: “This post is beautiful but you owe no one but yourself an apology!”
Kang chose to have her breast augmentation done in 2003, she tells Yahoo Lifestyle, when she was competing in beauty pageants.
“My director encouraged me to improve as I was very thin and flat-chested from losing so much body fat. I had just won a national competition [Miss Philippines USA] and I would represent the US in a competition in Manila,” he explains.
Further, he recalls. “I always dreamed of being a fitness model in my 20s and I saw that 80 percent of magazines had a skinny model with enlarged breasts on their cover. The only difference between my body and theirs was the boobs and they were the ‘missing link’ for me.”
Instead of the surgery making her happier and more confident, Kang explains in her post, “For years afterward I struggled with binge eating, bulimia, body dysmorphia, and depression. I felt disconnected in the objectification of my body. Although they were uncomfortable, it took years to get them off… I got pregnant multiple times, built businesses and traveled frequently. But these are all excuses. The truth is, I was still scared and insecure. I was stuck in the world of social media, where fake personas are rewarded, “liked” and appreciated. I was afraid of my husband’s opinion. I liked how I looked in clothes and swimwear. I was vain. And I own that.”
Much of the pressure came from the fitness industry itself, she says. Like Vice history was noted in 2015, “In her 1998 book Women of steel, sociologist Maria R. Lowe estimates that 80 percent of female fitness and bodybuilding athletes have undergone breast augmentation. Many observers believe the number is now even higher.” Additionally, the story notes, “American culture already holds women to unreasonable body standards, and in the competitive female fitness subculture, where criteria for judgment focus not only on physique but also on femininity, these standards are even more extreme.”
But eventually, the range of physical symptoms Kang was experiencing—including severe chest pains, palpitations and exhaustion so extreme she couldn’t keep her eyes open during the day—prompted her to explore the idea. breast implant disease. Found the popular support group on Facebook, Breast Implant Disease and Treatment by Nicole, which she says helped her “connect the dots.” And then she made the decision to get the implant – undergoing surgery to remove the implants in June and documenting the journey on social media, including what she calls a “scary recovery” with “emergency hematoma surgery.”
Kang’s other posts prior to Tuesday included one from July 26, with a video of her smiling huge and an explanation that she “decided to do a photo shoot with my new female breasts.” Then on Monday, she posted images of herself from a photo shoot she did with three other women who also recently had implants, all holding implants in front of their now-normal breasts. One of the images is shown above.
READ MORE: Big boobs are back in fashion
While Kang simply had an implant, leaving her with a pair of 3-inch scars under her breasts, Sandra Augustin — who faced chronic pain and 30-pound weight gain and lost 12 pounds immediately after having her recalled textured implants removed — had also lift and transfer fat, says Kang. The third woman, Denyse, also opted for a lift when she had the implant.
“I had implants a month ago and since then my fatigue has gone away immediately. My eyes don’t feel heavy. My inflammation is down and most of all — I feel FREE. I feel ME,” Kang wrote in that post. “I feel like I’m finally letting go of the young, insecure and impressionable girl I once was and coming into the strong and confident woman I am today. When you know better, you do better.”
