A woman has deleted her TikTok account after receiving backlash for filming men working out at the gym, and trying to catch them looking at her.
As TikTok continues to grow in popularity, it’s becoming the go-to place for the internet’s ire, contributing to the rise of the so-called “cancel culture.”
One particular trend of attempted ‘cancellation’ circles around gym video content, where gym-goers attempt to catch others being in a way they believe is inappropriate.
In the latest example, TikTok user @emily_siero posted a video of herself at the gym, calling out a male gym-goer’s behavior, and the response has led her to delete her account.
Emily told her viewers in the video voiceover: “I was doing yoga and then this guy walked across the turf, threw the medicine ball at the wall three times and then left. Gotta love men.”
Leave people alone at the gym. They should revoke your membership for this. #MYOB pic.twitter.com/L4YUolk3io
— Joey Swoll (@TheJoeySwoll) March 21, 2023
The video also showed her filming herself smiling at the camera before turning it towards the man in question.
Gym TikToker Joey Swoll hits back
TikTok star and self-proclaimed “CEO of Gym Positivity” Joey Swoll replied to the video with his own response.
“So you’re upset that this man is working out in the same area as you, and you think he’s trying to impress you, to hit on you,” he said. “Simply because he’s doing an exercise, a common exercise, where he’s not looking at you, he’s not trying to talk to you, and he can’t even see that you’re taking a video of him.
“And I think it’s funny that you say ‘he only does three reps and then he leaves’. But in that time you’re able to think about it, take your phone out and take a video of him where he’s doing two of those reps. It doesn’t make sense.
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“Stop taking videos of people at the gym to post on social media to make fun of them. Gyms need to change their policy and start kicking people out for doing this.”
Joey then called out the specific gym in Hartford, Connecticut, where this incident took place and called for them to revoke the woman’s membership. He then addressed the woman again and said: “I hope you learn to respect people and leave others alone. You need to do better. Mind your own business.”
The backlash Emily has gotten from both Joey and other TikTokers has left her deleting her TikTok account.
People now want a total ban on filming in gyms
Joey got a lot of replies after tweeting his video reply with the caption “Leave people alone at the gym. They should revoke your membership for this. #MYOB”
When asked if removing a person from the gym would be too much, Joey replied: “I think gyms should absolutely have policy today strictly prohibiting filming someone without their permission. I’ve seen many gyms start enforcing this rule over the last year since I started doing these videos. One gym actually called it the ‘Joey Swoll’ policy.”
Another person commented on the tweet, saying he’d immediately stop going to the gym if he caught someone filming someone else there.
A second person said: “Unless you’re a coach, or a training partner taking a video to go over form/technique with that person later, there is NO reason to record someone at the gym. #MYOB”