THE FASHION INDUSTRY IS SCARED OF MUSCLE
Courtesy Emma Henderson
By Emma Henderson
5 Minute Read
Getting strong got me dropped from my modeling contract. It was the best thing to happen to me.
Last year, aged 22, I chose to grow. I hired a trainer in February and started working out with a strategy. I had been doing lightweight workouts and Pilates, bopping around in the gym without really knowing what I was doing. My coach put me on a strength-training program and changed my nutrition to six meals a day with more carbs. Within weeks, my body had transformed. I grew muscle, and I was leaner than ever. I looked and felt amazing. Shortly after, my agency dropped me. Muscles weren’t what they were looking for.
I was a professional model, signed with a talent agency in California. I was a regular with beauty brands like Sephora and TooFaced; I was getting castings and auditions for tons of other cosmetics brands, from Haus Labs to L’Oréal. I put my heart and soul into modeling, but I often felt like it was me against my agency. I am only 5’3”, but the fashion industry favors those who are much taller. I would drive two to three hours to a casting, only to be told, ‘You’re perfect, but you’re too short. Bye.’ It was challenging to deal with. I constantly felt like I wasn’t good enough. There was a lot of rejection.
I had been looking to change things up when I met my trainer. Work had been quiet; I got the feeling my agency hadn’t been putting me forward. I realized there was a lot of opportunity for modeling within the fitness and swim categories for someone like me. Those sectors are more forgiving because you don’t have to be super tall. I wanted to give my agency a reason to champion me—to choose me. I wanted to find a way for them to put me in front of more faces and more brands. If I make money, they make money; I am entrepreneurial at heart. I wanted to create my own opportunities, but it was an opportunity for them, too.
So I started training. I had been skinny before, owing to my dancer’s physique. Almost overnight, I looked different. More than that, I had more energy. I was healthy. I felt powerful. It created a halo effect and bled into other areas of my life; my mindset altered along with my muscles. I didn’t see any other models training like this, especially within my agency. I felt like I had something that made me unique, beyond my height. I wanted them to see that I was willing to put in the work. By May, I decided to shoot another portfolio; I thought it would show them that there was a whole new market they could tap into with me. I stood out. But still, they didn’t want to put me forward. They didn’t even want to put any of my new images up on the website. I think they were scared of muscle. They don’t know what to do with it, or with the feeling of power that strength training affords young women.
My agency eventually told me that if I wanted to become a swim model, I’d need to get plastic surgery because I have a small chest. That was shocking and upsetting. I was on social media, looking at other girls modeling for brands who also had small chests. I was confused. My back was against the wall, and I felt pretty defeated. Around that time, a conversation with my dad changed everything. We were on a boat in Newport, talking about the new bodybuilding division launching—the fit model. Our family business, Wolfpak, is in this world, so I grew up around it. Right there, on the water, my dad said to me, ‘Why don’t you make the jump and try it out?’ We decided to call two professional athletes we knew, Mark Anthony and Jennifer Dory, for guidance.
Courtesy Emma Henderson
I soon realized that no one was the face of this fit model category because it was brand new. There was an opportunity. Soon, I was pitching to Jennifer and Mark, ‘What if we make that me? What if that becomes the goal?’ I told myself, I have the face, the body, the presence—the fit model is the whole package. Here, I felt confident to back myself in spite of my experiences with my agency.
Deciding I would build strength to compete to become a fit model felt like liberation. My confidence went through the roof. I was the happiest girl in the world, and I get emotional even thinking about that moment. With the modeling industry, I constantly felt like I wasn’t good enough. I worked so hard, and every rejection felt so personal. For the first time, I felt accepted and supported by those around me. They wanted me to succeed.
I went into prep, working with Jennifer and Mark to build my strength and condition my body. I competed for the first time in Texas last August and did well. I won all five categories, taking home every medal in fit modeling. When my plane landed back home following the competition, I got an email from my agency saying we were going our separate ways. It wasn’t a conversation. They just dropped me. I knew it was because I had put on muscle, and I was fit. And to them, that was a problem.
It was disappointing, but timing showed me that when one door closes, another one opens. The universe has lined up for me. Getting dropped turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to me. In my second competition, I earned my ‘Pro’ card, which I am told is rare. I’ve moved from model to professional athlete. I haven’t told many people this, but I feel like it was meant to be. As scary as it was to take a leap of faith into the unknown, I knew I had to seize the moment. I had on-camera training from the 10+ years I had trained in dance, which would help me compete, as there are many cameras at competitions, and lots of bodybuilding is about poses. Bodybuilding takes everything I have learned so far and combines it.
I don’t think the modeling industry has ever really known what it’s like for women to be strong. To stay fit while still being feminine. To be elegant but disciplined. My first coach had a similar experience to mine; she was a model who got dropped for gaining muscle. The industry’s problems are widespread. They think of muscle and immediately assume it’s big. They are scared because it’s unfamiliar. But in reality, many strong women are still very small. There is no reason strong women shouldn’t be represented. You want and need to see yourself reflected as a young girl. It’s important to me as a pro athlete to be a role model for girls and other young women like me.
I am proof that if you nourish yourself and combine effort with discipline, you can change your life in just a few months. People think I have been training for years, but this happened to me almost overnight. It wasn’t luck that brought me here. I put in the work, and I show up for myself. I want to show other young women that they can build an identity rooted in consistency, discipline, self-respect, and attention. I want to show other young women what is possible when you truly choose yourself.
As told to Grace Cook.
