Woman's creative hack to keep men away at the gym shows how unwanted advice can be creepy

Men approaching women with unsolicited advice seems to be an issue in all public spaces from the workplace to university campus and even the gym. It isn't uncommon for women simply working out in peace to be approached by men who insist on sharing two cents about fitness and exercise. It's a sad state of affairs that women have to get creative to keep men at bay and most only seem to leave a woman alone if she seems to be involved with another man. After receiving unwanted advice from men at the gym, a woman named Sydney aka @blackmarketbagelsociety0 on TikTok, came up with a smart hack to repel them. She created fake hickeys to ward off men and it worked wonders.

Sydney described how she used makeup for fake hickeys that successfully stopped men from approaching her and offering tips on her form that she never asked for. "Life hack - no man has tried to correct my form since smearing brown eyeshadow on my neck like hickeys," said the overlay text in her video. Sydney leaned over her phone to show two purple bruises on her neck created using makeup but were so realistic that they effectively discouraged any unwanted interaction. To prove that her unusual method worked, she flipped the camera to show herself at the gym. She looked happy as none of the men were standing close to her.

Her video has garnered over two million views and more than 377,000 likes. She captioned her video, "Guess my form is just better this week. Also, shout out to my teammate for this idea." While some viewers applauded her creativity, others voiced concern over the fact that women need to resort to such extreme steps in order to feel comfortable at the gym. Her video started a discussion on the extent to which women are pushed to for getting their own space in public areas. @sluggishhedgewitch commented, "Men will literally respect imaginary men more than real living women." @lifelikejay added, "1. That's hella creative. 2. I absolutely, with all my heart, hate that you had to go to that length to get men not to give unsolicited advice."

@rockhardbellybutton shared, "It is weird that the same people who notice the hickeys are the same people who do not notice that you wear headphones and don't want/need their help." @highfrogs said, "The fact that we have to mark ourselves like animals to get guys to stay away from us is ridiculous." @lilystarsy shared her experience, "I went to the gym with an actual hickey and no man looked at me for longer than a second." @dj_squirrel added, "It's sad that you actually have to find ways to get people to leave you alone when it should just be default."

@thenerdymeister revealed a new trick, "Another trick, work out with a look of rage and determination on your face. They will get intimidated and back away." At the same time a man @zachtalks tried explaining, "The only reason I'd correct someone is if they were in danger (weights uneven, etc). Besides that, ask if they need a spot with heavy weight and hype them up."

You can follow Sydney (@blackmarketbagelsociety0) on TikTok for more lifestyle content.