SPARE A THOUGHT for the modern teenager. Where once you might have called someone ‘cute’, ‘pretty’ or ‘handsome’, you’re now more likely to hear someone described as a high-tier normie. The good-looking jock? Not just hot – he’s Chadlite. The gawky nerd at the back of class? Well, according to certain corners of the internet, he’s written off as subhuman. Although, if he can sharpen his jawline and drop his body fat percentage, he could ascend to mid-tier normie status.
Welcome to the Looksmaxxing community’s PSL scale, an elaborate, deeply online system for ranking human appearance that has quietly seeped from fringe forums onto TikTok feeds over the past few years. Dreamed up by the aesthetics-obsessed subculture, the scale claims to offer an empirical and almost clinical assessment of attractiveness.
For men, the hierarchy runs from subhuman at the bottom, through low-, mid- and high-tier normies, before graduating to Chadlite and, at the summit, the mythical Chad. These labels are shorthand for an underlying numerical score, typically out of eight, and most people sit somewhere in the middle of the distribution.
To be cast in a low tier is not to be doomed to an eternity of unattractiveness, however. Anyone can theoretically become more attractive and move up a tier, or ‘ascend’, as is the most common term in looksmaxxing parlance. How you can go about ascending varies from ‘old-school’ techniques like exercising regularly and having a healthy diet to lose weight, to looksmaxxing strategies like mewing, hunter eye exercises and neck thickening.
That’s reassuring, but then there’s the obvious question: how many of these methods are grounded in facts and how much are just pseudoscience with TikTok gloss? Below, we put some of the most popular looksmaxxing claims under the microscope to separate what holds up from what’s best left on your For You page.
1. Kiwi fruit and coconut water for de-bloating
On the lower end of the looksmaxxing spectrum – in a class that is typically known as ‘softmaxxing’ – are techniques that naturally reduce bloating. Angular, sharp features are crucial to looksmaxxers, so foods that can reduce bloating like kiwi fruit and coconut water are prized. Do they actually work though?
First of all, kiwi fruit has been shown to reduce bloating because it contains the enzyme actinidin and because of its high fibre content, which boosts digestion. A 2020 study found that daily intake of two kiwi fruits increased stool frequency without inducing gas‐related abdominal symptoms.
Coconut water, on the other hand, has a natural diuretic effect that increases urine production. Furthermore, coconut water also contain lauric acid, which is converted into monolaurin in the body and helps prevent digestive problems.
Given the scientific evidence behind these techniques, we’re willing to give them a passing grade. By improving digestion, eating kiwi fruit and drinking coconut water can indeed reduce bloating and potentially move you up the PSL scale.
Verdict: pass
2. Neck thickening exercises
@espn #F1 driver’s neck workouts to help with #gforce 👀 (via @Oscar Piastri) #formula1 #workout #gym #oscarpiastri ♬ X-SLIDE (Ultra Slowed) - 2KE & 808iuli
Ever wanted to look like an F1 driver, but only from the shoulders up and chin down? Looksmaxxers do. That’s why neck thickening exercises are a common practice in the community. While F1 drivers strengthen their necks to resist the extra G forces they experience in the driver’s seat, looksmaxxers do it for purely aesthetic reasons, as a thicker neck is supposedly more attractive.
Common neck thickening exercises include neck curls, lateral neck flexion and neck extensions. Studies have found that these exercises can relieve chronic neck pain, prevent injury and by extension, thicken your neck. Whether a thicker neck actually makes you more attractive is, in our opinion, subjective. So, we’re hesitant to give this one our stamp of approval.
Verdict: pass – if you’re into thick necks
3. Mewing
Perhaps the most well-known looksmaxxing technique of all, mewing may also be the most dubious. Its advocates claim that by continually resting your tongue on the roof of your mouth, you can improve your facial structure and get a more defined jawline. Unfortunately for looksmaxxers, any evidence that mewing actually works is purely anecdotal. There is no evidence supporting mewing as an alternative therapy to scientifically backed face shaping methods like jaw surgery.
Verdict: fail
4. Hunter eye exercises
@adixovic hunter eyes method tutorial and explanation #huntereyes #huntereye #eyearea #mog #looksmax #selfimprovement ♬ Solitude - juno & blindheart
Having hunter eyes is one of the most important aspects of a man’s attractiveness, according to looksmaxxers. Hunter eyes are characterised by deep-set, narrow, hooded eyelids with minimal scleral show (meaning no whites visible below the iris) and a positive or neutral canthal tilt, in contrast to prey eyes and a negative canthal tilt. This is one area that most looksmaxxers deem unchangeable. Though some argue that specific exercises can turn prey eyes into hunter eyes.
Most of the information on hunter eye exercises comes from TikTok, with users claiming a number of targeted movements that put strain on varying facial muscles can change bone structure around the eyes. There aren’t any scientific studies on this subject, but given that current evidence is anecdotal, we’re sceptical.
Verdict: jury’s out
5. Tretinoin for healthier skin
While looksmaxxers skew young, many of them are already taking steps to prevent ageing and protect their long-term skin health. One particularly popular method is using skincare products that contain tretinoin, which has a lot of scientific evidence backing it up.
A 2022 systemic review published in the International Journal of Dermatology assessed 180 different studies on the effects of tretinoin. It found that in all 180 studies, tretinoin was effective in reducing photoaging in terms of wrinkling, hyperpigmentation and sallowness. What’s more, it was found to be effective in as little as one month.
Verdict: pass
6. Semen retention to boost testosterone
We’re getting into the more extreme looksmaxxing techniques now, but we’re not quite at the level of ‘hardmaxxing’ just yet. We assume this theory stems from the ‘No Nut November’ trend, but it has now morphed into a very real wellness practice that has a devoted community behind it. Take the r/NoFap subreddit, for example, which has more than 1.2 million members and a great deal of anecdotal testimony, but unsurprisingly, isn’t a trove of well-researched scientific evidence.
Higher testosterone in men does have an effect on mood and has been demonstrated to improve depression and motivation. It is also linked to muscle growth and physical performance. So, testosterone is beneficial, but is semen retention the right way to boost it?
There is very little evidence to suggest that semen retention actually increases testosterone. One study found that men who refrained from any type of sexual activity for three weeks had higher levels of testosterone. The sample size was tiny, though, with only ten men tested.
Another study reported a 45 per cent increase in testosterone levels after seven days of abstinence. This was only a temporary peak, however, that soon returned to previous levels, even with continued abstinence. Other studies have actually shown that testosterone levels were higher after masturbation or sex. So, this claim is inconclusive at best and flat-out wrong at worst.
Verdict: fail
7. Minoxidil and castor oil for eyebrow thickening
@goonza_costa Castor oil for eyebrows growth #eyebrows #eyebrowtutorial #eyebrowgrowth #castoroil #castoroilbenefit ♬ sonido original - Gonzalo Costa
Minoxidil is one of the few eyebrow-thickening hacks that actually has some science behind it, but it is an off-label method. Best known as a scalp hair-loss treatment, low-strength topical minoxidil has been shown in clinical studies to improve eyebrow thickness, density and hair count over roughly three to four months.
Castor oil, by contrast, has less evidence to back it up. Despite its popularity on TikTok and beauty forums, there’s no peer-reviewed evidence showing it can stimulate new eyebrow hair growth. What it can do is condition existing hairs, making brows look glossier, darker and slightly fuller, an effect that’s easy to mistake for growth.
Verdict: minoxidil gets a pass, castor oil gets an illusory pass
8. Buccal fat removal
Buccal fat removal is often framed online as a surgical shortcut to a sharper jawline and permanently hollowed cheeks. The reality is less promising. The procedure involves surgically removing the buccal fat pads that sit deep in the cheeks, which can create a more sculpted look in some faces. But those pads naturally shrink with age anyway, meaning the long-term effect can be premature gauntness, exaggerated jowls and a tired appearance by your 30s and 40s.
Verdict: fail
9. Limb lengthening surgery
Limb lengthening surgery was developed to correct severe limb deformities or major discrepancies, not to turn a 5’8″ guy into a 6-footer. It involves surgically breaking the femur or tibia, inserting rods or external frames, and then slowly pulling the bone apart so new bone forms in the gap. Best-case scenarios can add 5–8 centimetres after months of daily adjustments, pain management and intensive physiotherapy. We saw Pedro Pascal’s character went through this procedure in Materialists, which may have contributed to the belief that this is an actual safe and reliable option for regular people. It is not. The complications are well documented, and a systemic review found that average height gains were only 6.7 centimetres. Not exactly worth a lifetime of chronic pain.
Verdict: fail
10. Starvemaxxing
Starvemaxxing – otherwise known as extreme calorie restriction – is one of the most self-defeating trends to emerge from looksmaxxing culture. While aggressive undereating does cause rapid weight loss, research shows that a significant portion of that loss comes from muscle tissue, not just fat. The landmark Minnesota Starvation Experiment from all the way back in 1945 found that cutting calories to roughly half of normal intake led to dramatic muscle wasting, slowed metabolism, hormonal suppression, fatigue, depression and cardiovascular changes. All of those effects lingered long after normal eating resumed. If you want to lose weight, cutting calories is the obvious way to do it, but not to the point of starvation.
Verdict: fail
