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A popular Australian gym franchise has banned tripods, as the "fitness influencer" or "gym-fluencer" trend takes off on social media.
Doherty's Gyms, with locations in Victoria and Perth, announced a ban on tripods inside their facilities on Wednesday.
The gym's owner, Tony Doherty, explained in a video on his Instagram account that privacy concerns and trip hazards were the main catalysts to the decision.
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"It seems that tripods have become just as popular as self-importance," the caption of the post read.
"Just because someone wants to film every aspect of their life, including their workouts, it doesn't mean that everyone else wants to be in the movie.
"This may not be popular with the tripod crew but everyone else will appreciate not having to deal with them."
The gym also put out a statement about the ban, saying it is in their "duty of care to provide safety, protection and privacy for all of our members."
"Tripods have become a trip hazard and a safety concern."
"From tomorrow, February 1st 2024, filming on tripods will no longer be permitted at Doherty's Gyms.
"You may obtain a media pass to film content or your workout for your social media. To find out more information you can ask our staff or visit our website.
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"If you must take a quick video with your phone while you are training, please be aware of anyone in the background and make sure you have their consent to post or share their image if they are.
"If you do not obtain consent it is an infringement of privacy- please show respect for others."
The fitness influencer evolved with the #fitspiration trend on social media and lives predominantly on short-form video-sharing app TikTok and Instagram reels.
Hashtags like #gymtips have over 200,000 posts under the tag on Tiktok, while #FitTok boasts a whopping 3.9 million videos under the tag.
While the "gym-fluencer" community has proven inspiring and helpful to some, others consider it an annoyance.
"Yes. All gyms need to implement this. Well done big man," one commenter said on Doherty's Instagram post.
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"All gyms need to ban tripods and any form of filming in the gyms… my gosh I am so tired of seeing it. What has happened to the old-fashion training session?" another said.
"Well said and wishing every gym had this rule. I personally don't want to be in the background of anyone's videos," one user added.
The gym said anyone wishing to film can purchase a media pass from staff and may film during off-peak hours.
