Man allegedly tosses Black women’s belongings away at the gym for using a space. Then calls them ‘violent’ when confronted
An example on why gym etiquette should be enforced.
A gym is a shared space, and gymgoers are expected to be mindful of others as they work out. But for a group of Black women, their recent visit to the gym devolved into a confrontation with a man who allegedly tossed away their belongings to claim their spot.
The incident was shared by Inemesit (@inemesitg) in a video that has since gained over 385,000 views on Instagram. Inemesit told viewers that she was at the gym exercising with five other Black women, doing a mix of weightlifting and running laps. Everything was going well—until a man started exercising where they were.
According to Inemesit, a man, whom she described as white, allegedly “forcefully pushed” past one of the women she was with to grab the dumbbells. The action immediately bothered the group of women, and Inemesit claimed the man didn’t bother to apologize or say, “excuse me.” Despite that, the women didn’t confront the man and continued with their workout, she said.
The man allegedly threatened to call the police
When the women finished running a lap around the gym, however, Inemesit claimed that they returned to find the belongings they put on a bench had been scattered everywhere and supposedly left damaged by the man—including broken water bottles, spilt water, towels by the trashcan, and bands, weights, and sweaters all over the floor.
“The man moved an exercise bench (that had some of our items on) and placed it in the center of the space we had cleared and began doing bench presses,” Inemesit said. At that point, the women had to call out the man’s alleged gym behavior. “We approached the man and said it was rude to move our personal items so carelessly. He ignored us.”
The women chose to exercise around him, but when one of them asked the man about her missing item, he allegedly responded that it “was not his problem.” The dispute then escalated to arguments over shared spaces and property damage, with the man insisting that the gym “is a public space.”
When Inemesit began moving the man’s dumbbells, the man allegedly accused them of being “aggressive” and “violent” before threatening to contact the police on them. An employee of the gym, whom Inemesit described as “Indigenous,” had tried to de-escalate the issue, but the man supposedly ignored her.
“[The employee] spoke up and said she was staff. He responded ‘disengage. Dissassist,” Inemesit said. “He continued to ignore her until he finished his set and stood up, announced he was reporting us to the police and left. This was our Saturday afternoon. This is what it means to exist as Black women in predominantly white spaces.”
There is an unspoken gym etiquette
Many viewers sided with Inemesit and praised the women for confronting the man’s alleged behavior. “God bless you queens for standing up for yourselves. He’d never do that if it were men there,” one commenter wrote. Others pointed out how frequently people use the threat of calling the police during disputes: “Typical and they love to weaponize the police. But we are making this up.”
Some suggested that the man’s actions were targeted. “This is such disgusting racism. To violate multiple women’s space and try to use the angry violent black woman trope. Vile,” a commenter said.
There were also viewers who disagreed with Inemesit and the women. One viewer commented, “Not your space if it’s a public gym, and it’s equipment you’re not using, so…” Another echoed that thought, saying, “Seems like yall occupied a bunch of space and equipment and left it occupied while you ‘ran’ laps and no one else could use the equipment with your things sitting on it. This dude overreacted.”
Gym etiquette usually dictates that belongings, whether a bag or a water bottle, should never be placed in areas that could impede other gymgoers from moving around comfortably. Not only is this a tripping hazard, but it may also prevent others from using shared spaces, per Peloton.
Healthline also emphasized not hoarding multiple pieces of equipment at once, especially during long sets. Doing so not only takes up shared space but also prevents others from completing their workouts due to a lack of available equipment. If using several pieces of equipment at the same time is unavoidable, or if you’re taking too long on an equipment, it is common courtesy to offer other gymgoers a chance to “work in” between sets—which could save everyone’s time.
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