A TikTok user working out in the gym

Juliaapic/TikTok Mikael Thalen

‘What do you think?’: TikTok fitness influencer thinks man may have snuck her photo in the gym

The popular TikTok user says the man was kicked out of the gym by staff after denying taking photos.

 

Mikael Thalen

IRL

Posted on Apr 2, 2021   Updated on Apr 5, 2021, 9:02 am CDT

A female TikTok user is questioning whether her photograph was secretly taken following an encounter with a man at her local gym.

The TikTok user, known as @juliaapic or Julia, uploaded the footage last week and asked her more than 240,000 followers to weigh in.

Julia notes that the footage was originally filmed in January but declined to upload it at the time over the feeling that “it was a bit too sensitive,” according to Yahoo News.

“Was honestly gonna post this on here when it happened but it was a bit too sensitive at the time lol,” she wrote. “Genuinely curious what you guys think.”

https://www.tiktok.com/@juliaapic/video/6944736943607401733

The video, which has currently been viewed more than 14.8 million times, shows Julia preparing to perform a weighted abductor exercise in front of a mirror when the man kneels down behind her momentarily.

While it’s difficult to see what the man is doing as he is partially hidden, Julia becomes visibly uncomfortable as he lifts up his phone near her.

“He denied he took a picture which made me feel crazy for thinking it,” Julia adds. “What do you think?”

Users in the comments seemed to agree that the man did appear to take a picture and called on Julia to alert the gym’s management.

“If anything like this happens tell the staff,” @lorricade00 said. “I used to work at Planet Fitness and people get their memberships revoked or they get kicked out for the day!”

Other TikTok users recounted incidents in which they had felt harassed as well and pointed out that such behavior has forced many to seek out female-only gyms.

In a follow-up video on Thursday, Julia reveals that she eventually contacted the gym’s staff.

Julia says after being confronted by staff, the man became angry and stormed out of the gym. The man, according to Julia, returned shortly after to push back on the gym’s decision.

https://www.tiktok.com/@juliaapic/video/6946256956793392390

Julia says that although she didn’t upload the video to TikTok until recently, she had uploaded it to her Instagram on the day that it took place.

The TikTok user further claimed that the man had actually seen the Instagram post at the time and reached out to deny the allegations.

Julia says the man made several rude comments but has not heard from him since. Julia notes that she has not seen the man again either given that she has not returned to the gym where the encounter took place.

The video has stirred a dialogue on social media about the treatment of women in public.

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*First Published: Apr 2, 2021, 5:10 pm CDT