'You can tell fat people are unhealthy': Fit Mom stirs up more trouble during TV showdown with plus-size lingerie store owner



Fitness guru Maria Kang, 32, from California, launched a tirade against a 'selfie' photo campaign featuring plus-size women last week

On Saturday she was interviewed alongside Chrystal Bougon, the self-proclaimed 'curvy' woman who launched the project

Ms Kang told her the ladies depicted in her Facebook photo gallery 'are not how real women look like or should look like'







An exercise-loving mother-of-three who has continually made headlines with her 'fat shaming' views, has now stirred further controversy by suggesting people who 'look overweight' are clearly unhealthy.

Maria Kang, 32, from Sacramento, California, appeared on CNN this Saturday along with Chrystal Bougon, a plus-size lingerie store owner who she slammed last week for launching a 'selfie' photo campaign promoting 'real beauty'.

During a live TV showdown between the two women, Ms Kang insisted that she was not a fat-shamer, but said the ladies depicted in Ms Bougon's photo gallery 'are not how real women look like or should look like.'

Scroll down for video



Strong opinions: Exercise-loving mother-of-three Maria Kang, has stirred further controversy by suggesting people who 'look overweight' are clearly unhealthy



Showdown: Ms Kang appeared on CNN this Saturday along with Chrystal Bougon (pictured) a plus-size lingerie store owner who she slammed last week for launching a 'selfie' campaign promoting 'real beauty'

She added: 'A lot of people can just tell that [a] person is not healthy.'

Many who tuned in to watch the discussion disagreed with her standpoint.



'I'm sure this lady would take one look at me and deem me "healthy." But OH, what lies beneath the skinny surface,' one female commentator wrote.



'These are women who are obese and they're saying how real women should look like . I thought "n o, that's not what real women should look like'"



Another jokingly added: 'I wonder if she would even notice the Flaming Hot Cheetos dust coursing through my veins. Or my notoriously high gummi candy levels. Can you see my health, Kang? Can you?'

Others highlighted how ironic Ms Kang's comments were considering she battled bulimia in the past - an illness which often goes undetected for a long time because a person appears a 'healthy weight' on the outside.



Face-to-face: During a live TV showdown between the two women, Ms Kang insisted that she was not a fat-shamer, but said the ladies depicted in Ms Bougon's photo gallery 'are not how real women should look like'

Ms Bougon, 45, who sells underwear in size 14 and up at her San Jose-based store, Curvy Girl Lingerie, also voiced her outrage after hearing what Ms Kang had to say.



'You can't tell whether or not I work out. You can't tell how healthy I am by looking at a photo of me. You just can't,' she responded.



On her website Ms Bougon states that she has been 'curvy' since she was in Third grade and now makes it her mission to make other plus-size women feel 'sexy and confident' in their own skin.

Body confidence: In a bid to celebrate 'real beauty' without the magic of Photoshop, Ms Bougon appealed to women who are U.S. size 14 or up to post 'sexy' selfies on her professional Facebook page But Ms Kang wrote on Facebook last Friday that she was 'annoyed' by 'stories about how overweight should be proud of their bodies' - referring directly to the Curvy Girl Lingerie campaign (above)



Last month she appealed to women who are U.S. size 14 or up to post 'sexy' selfies on her professional Facebook page in a bid to show 'what regular women look like when they step into all of their beauty and sexy.'



Encouraging participants to step forward, she wrote: 'You never know who you might touch. Who you might help. Whose life you may change when they see they are NOT the only woman with cellulite, rolls, scars, saggy breasts or stretch marks.'

'We need to change this strange mentality we are breeding in the U.S. and start celebrating people who are a result of hard work, dedication and discipline '

But Ms Kang, who runs a fitness-focused non-profit organization from home, said she was 'peeved' when she read about the initiative on MailOnline.

She told CNN: 'These are women who are overweight and who are obese and they're saying how real women should look like.

'I was a little bit peeved because I thought "No, that's not how real women should look like."'

'There's a fine line we're walking right now, as a nation, with the obesity crisis that we're in.'

Stirring trouble: Ms Kang came to the public's attention last month when she posted this photo of her toned post-baby body to Facebook

Venting her outrage after learning about Ms Bougon's campaign, Miss Kang took to Facebook and her own website stating t hat she was 'annoyed' by 'news stories about how overweight, nearly obese women should be proud of their bodies.'

However, she was soon locked out of the social network site after her post was reported and cataloged as a 'hate speech'.

'I ' m not bashing those who are proud and overweight, I am empowering those who are proud and healthy to come out and be the real role models in our society '



Her access to Facebook was restored after two days, but her post was not.

Miss Kang – who was first accused of ‘fat shaming’ when she posted a portrait of herself in workout gear online last month along with the caption ‘what’s your excuse?’ - said she did not intend to upset people and was merely 'telling the truth.'



She wrote in a proceeding article on her website, mariakang.com, that Ms Bougon's online campaign 'normalizes being unhealthy.'

She continued: 'We need to change this strange mentality we are breeding in the U.S. and start celebrating people who are a result of hard work, dedication and discipline.



'I’m not bashing those who are proud and overweight, I am empowering those who are proud and healthy to come out and be the real role models in our society.'

Bouncing back: Ms Kang documents how she lost her pregnancy weight through a series of selfies on her Facebook page and website - she runs a fitness-focused non-profit organization from home

Breaking a sweat: The pretty brunette says that she likes to do 30 to 60 minutes of strength training and cardio every morning, five to six days a week

Despite claiming that she now has thousands of 'haters', Ms Kang also has a loyal fan base.



Writing on her professional Facebook page, which boasts 249,000 'Likes', one woman wrote: 'I don't know how many of your comments you actually get to read when you have so many, but I will say this . . . as a former seriously obese woman I am behind you speaking the truth 100%.

'Loving your body is one thing, but when you are overweight you really don't love yourself. It's impossible when you are killing yourself with every bite you take.'

And another said: 'You look amazing! I am a mother of two, fighting stage three breast cancer... its very aggressive and I am on chemotherapy.

