Olympic Rugby Player Delivers Powerful Lesson on BMI and Health
Team USA women's rugby scored their first Olympic medal with a 14–12 victory over Australia in the bronze match during the Summer Games in Paris this week, catapulting star player Ilona Maher to the limelight. But in addition to being an accomplished athlete, Maher has also has a prolific following on social media, where she often posts messages of body positivity.
Case in point, on TikTok—where she currently boasts 1.8 million followers—Maher recently responded to a troll who left a nasty comment about her body mass index. "As long as haters keep saying dumb stuff, I’m gonna keep clapping back," the 27-year-old captioned the video, which she posted earlier this month but has likewise since gone viral on X, formerly Twitter.
@ilonamaher As long as haters keep saying dumb stuff, I’m gonna keep clapping back
♬ original sound - Ilona Maher
"I think you were tying to roast me, but this is actually a fact—I do have a BMI of 30, well, 29.3 to be more exact—I've been considered overweight my whole life," Maher explained in the clip. "In middle school, elementary school, high school, I was always considered overweight." She then recalled one instance of having to turn in physical paperwork in high school and being embarrassed that it stated she was overweight.
"So my whole life I've been this way. I chatted with my dietician because I go off of facts, and not what pops up here you know, like you do," she continued, gesturing towards her head while still addressing the commenter. "And we talked about BMI and how it really isn't helpful for athletes. BMI doesn't tell you much, it tells you your height and weight, and what that equals. I've said it before, I'm five-foot-10, 200 pounds, and I have, and this is an estimate, but about 170 pounds of lean mass."
"Do that math on your head, you probably can't," she quipped. "That's pretty crazy, right? BMI doesn't really tell you what I can do. I doesn't tell you what I do on the field, it doesn't tell you how fit I am, it's just a couple numbers put together—it doesn't tell you how much muscle I have, or anything like that."
"So yeah, I do have a BMI of 30, I am considered overweight. But alas, I'm going to the Olympics and you're not," Maher added.
She's hardly the only athlete that's been led astray by BMI. Dwayne Johnson would be technically categorized as obese by standard BMI measurements, even though the vast majority of his weight is muscle mass.
Get the ball to Ilona Maher and GET OUT OF THE WAY‼️ #ParisOlympics
— On Her Turf (@OnHerTurf) July 28, 2024
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In a recent Time profile, Maher likewise opened up about how she uses her social media platform to promote body positivity.
"I get the comments of being called a man, being called too masculine, because I have muscles," she said. "I know that it's from very sad, insecure people online. But I know they're saying it to other girls as well. And that's what I don't like."
At any rate, if living well is the best revenge, Maher is certainly coming out on top.