A looksmaxxer has opened up about how he became so disgusted by his body as a teenager that he resorted to steroids and 'bone-smashing' to improve his looks.
Ronan, who goes by the name Androgenic, stands by the extreme measures, which include using a hammer or blunt instrument to break or bruise the bones in his face under the false belief it will dramatically improve cheekbone and jawline definition.
'Bone-smashing was a thing I tried while in Covid lockdown because I had nothing to do. People were talking about it so I thought I'd give it a try,' he told Daily Mail.
'I suppose you'd say it is pretty extreme, but I think people have a warped risk tolerance, like if they lightly tap their bones it will seem catastrophically self-harm-inducing.
'Watching combat sports and street racing, which can lead to instant death, is glorified so, realistically I don't think it's a dangerous activity if you're being smart about it.'
The 25-year-old Brisbane man is the poster child for the looksmaxxing community in Australia, an online subculture where young men, typically in their teens, go to drastic and dangerous lengths to 'maximise' their appearance.
The methods range from basic hygiene to 'hardmaxxing', which can include steroid use, leg extension and plastic surgery. Forums about the trend feature a ranking system and the sharing of aggressive views about women.
Sexually successful men are classified as 'Chads', weak ones as 'betas' and involuntarily celibate men as 'incels'.
Twenty-five-year-old Brisbane man Ronan, who goes by Androgenic, stands by the extreme measures as he becomes a leading voice for the looksmaxxing community
Ronan said he began his transformation in July 2019
Experts have discouraged the dangerous methods, claiming a lot of the techniques to enhance looks are not scientifically backed and it is sending a very harmful message to teenagers.
Ronan, who did not want to share his last name, is constantly ranked in the Top 10 of the 'International Chad Ranking Association' list.
He revealed he was drawn to the world of looksmaxxing in July 2019.
'I was playing video games all day,' he said.
'One night, a friend dragged me to a nightclub, and I just felt insecure and was a fish out of water. I felt like I was invisible in the crowd,' he said.
'I went home and I instantly decided I had to change something. I was into going to the gym and being super into looks.'
Ronan also admitted to using performance enhancers in the past.
'I think that they've been a benefit, and I think there's a safe way to use them,' he said.
Ronan, who did not want to share his last name with Daily Mail, is constantly ranked in the Top 10 of the 'International Chad Ranking Association' list
Ronan told the Daily Mail he used to play video games all day before looksmaxxing
Aussie 'looksmaxxing' influencer arrested during livestream and banned from party district by police
'A lot of these drugs that are coming out, they're getting huge in America and I think they'll be the future in a lot of ways.'
Ronan livestreams his life, posts on social media, appears in nightclubs beside other male influencers in tight or little clothing, and runs a coaching website.
He went viral last month after a stranger grabbed his cap, revealing his bald head underneath a wig.
Ronan had shaved his head ahead of a planned trip to Thailand where he had booked a hair transplant and rhinoplasty appointment.
Last week, he was arrested on a livestream and hit with an infringement notice for public nuisance, banning him from Brisbane's party precinct for a month.
Ronan was questioned over footage that appeared to show him push a woman to the ground during a brawl outside a Hungry Jack's, but he claims he acted to 'save a woman' and stop her from getting assaulted.
The looksmaxxer earns money from club appearances and his coaching scheme called Androgenic Protocol.
It offers advice for $49 per month on 'facial enhancement', muscle gain and 'learning-amplification methods to improve intelligence'.
Ronan went viral when his wig was snatched after he shaved his head before a hair transplant
Pictured, Ronan (right) with high-profile influencer 'Clavicular', real name Braden Peters
On the website's FAQs, he writes that 'puberty is a better window for growth', though customers can still improve at any age.
He says he has a broad range of fans, adding that he is 'not just selling a bunch of information and telling kids to do something potentially harmful'.
University of Queensland senior research fellow Dr Timothy Piatkowski slammed the extreme methods, but argued it was nothing new for men to try compete with each other.
'Boys and men have been looking to optimise and alter their appearance for a really, really long time,' he told Daily Mail.
'Even when I was younger, we had icons and ideals around. Take (the figure of) 'Zyzz' for example.'
Zyzz, Aziz Sergeyevich Shavershian, was an Australian bodybuilder who built a cult following by posting videos on YouTube, until he died in 2011.
'You know, tattoos, tan, need to be shredded,' Dr Piatkowski said.
'(Looksmaxxing) is a continued progression, amplifying via social media things that have always been there.'
Dr Piatkowski noted that while young men have always sought ways to enhance their appearance, the rise of social media has intensified these behaviors.
'Everyone wants to fit in. Everyone wants to feel good about themselves.'
'But I don't particularly remember a time where anyone was ranking each other online or anything like that so definitely a step further.'
'And no one was smashing their face with a hammer. We need to ask, what's the implication of doing that during a time of critical growth?'
Dr Piatkowski said a significant reason the looksmaxxing movement could have emerged is because of all the unattainable images of men circulating on social media.
'We barrage them with muscular bodies. We barrage them with movie tropes around what masculinity looks like, and with actors, celebrities looking a particular way,' he said.
'We have, via social media, phones, advertising, unchecked levels of marketing and access to drugs and extreme techniques.'
'And then, we want to talk about how extreme and crazy and wild it is, or how wrong it is. If we want to blame someone, it's come about from systems we have enacted.'
Ronan addressed one of the biggest issues within the subculture: the demeaning way women are spoken about.
Women are typically classified either as a 'Stacy' (attractive and often unattainable) or a foid, femoid or 'female humanoid organism' - an insulting term suggesting women are less than human, while forums are packed with disturbing questions.
'Why do women want to be raped?', 'Do foids like rape?' and 'Why do incels worry about looking good so much? Women are disgusting.'
Idolised influencers in the space have also been tied to the 'manosphere' and misogynists - including Ronan's friend Braden Peters, who uses the name Clavicular.
Peters, arguably the most high-profile looksmaxxing influencer in the world, has been seen partying with the likes of Andrew and Tristan Tate.
But Ronan said he doesn't hate women, though he admitted previously disliking them.
'There's been past times where I had maybe more of a resentful mindset toward women,' he said.
'I didn't really see things from a woman's perspective and I wanted to be treated really well by them growing up.'
'The first woman who ever showed interest in me was when I was 19, so I grew up in a world where it felt like no woman ever respected or liked me.'
'Nowadays, women treat me better than men do.'