Ronda Rousey hoping to redefine 'ideal' female body image... 'if anyone calls me fat one more time, I'm going to kill them'

'If I can represent that body type of women that isn’t represented so much in media, then I’d be happy to do that'

Ronda Rousey (Getty)

UFC champion Ronda Rousey is hoping to redefine negative female body image in Hollywood.

Rousey is a former Olympic bronze medallist one of the most recognisable female athletes in the world and now a film star, set to star in a remake of Patrick Swayze 80s cult classic Roadhouse.

However, the 28-year-old also battled drug addiction and bulimia and in a lengthy interview with the New York Times, has admitted that she was once "afraid to show my big arms" as her body didn't match the 'ideal' she saw in magazines.

Ronda Rousey after retaining her UFC crown (Josh Hedges / Zuffa LLC)

Rousey is now hoping to change that 'ideal' and has since appeared nude on the cover of ESPN magazine and for Maxim and Sports Illustrated.

"If I can represent that body type of women that isn’t represented so much in media, then I’d be happy to do that," she said.

"When women say that going on publications directed at men is somehow demeaning, I don’t think that’s true. I think that’s one really effective way to change the societal standard women are held to."

She continued: "We seem to be in this conflicting era for women, where women are doing so amazingly and taking over the athletic world, but we’re also in a time where...How can I really put it? That women without any skills that freeload are being glorified. That’s something I was raised not to be. That you’re supposed to contribute to the world, not consume from it."

Rousey also revealed that once, while filming a TV advert, she was told she had to lose weight.

Rousey on Jimmy Falon's Tonight Show (Getty Images)

The UFC champion had planned to anyway, "but because somebody said something really rude to me, I came into the shoot purposely way heavier."

Did they question her?

"Oh, hell no and the campaign ended up being amazing, even though I was heavier just to make a point."

She added: "I swear to God, if anyone calls me fat one more time in my life, I’m going to kill them."

Should schools teach pupils about body image?