The gym is a place for improvement, whether physical or mental. It can be hard to stay motivated to be consistent with working out. Luckily, there are people online who post motivational content to encourage gym-goers to stay persistent in their fitness journeys.

However, the means of motivation can be sinister.

With the rise in the popularity of gym culture, many young men are becoming self-described “gymcels,” or incels who go to the gym. The term “incel” means “involuntarily celibate,” and is used to describe men who are unsuccessful in having sexual relationships despite their efforts. Some develop a misogynistic point of view and wear the term “incel” as a proud label. 

Gymcel culture gives young men searching for community a sense of purpose and an idea of redemption for past experiences, despite the fact their life has barely started. The ways of thinking promoted by gymcel culture are extremely harmful.

Instagram user @dhruvsehrawattt is one of the worst culprits behind this form of gym motivation. On Feb. 1, he posted a video to his 345k followers depicting him dropping a bouquet of flowers after seeing a silhouette of a man and a woman in a window, presumably meant to imply his girlfriend cheated on him. 

The dropped bouquet morphs into a dumbbell, followed by an edit of his physique to a remix of Katy Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl.” The caption reads “I saw love in her eyes, but it was just the reflection of mine.”

He could have just posted a video of him flexing in a mirror. He didn’t need to depict some sort of fantasy of being cheated on to a song about two women kissing to justify posting his workout videos. 

His account features video after video of him roleplaying being berated or broken down by women, a formula followed by a lot of gymcel influencers. It’s a prime example of perpetual victimhood that reinforces negativity and leads to the hatred and mistrust of women alongside deep self-loathing.

Could these men have been cheated on or scorned by a woman in the past? Sure. Does one negative experience with a person justify hatred of anyone else remotely similar to them? No. 

The repetitive use of “women” as a target for the anger that motivates these influencers and their audiences to exercise is unhealthy and leads to subconscious feelings of resentment toward women. 

But why do so many young men fall victim to this way of thinking?

It’s by design. Hatred brings clicks and views, leading to sponsorships and affiliate links. What better victims than men experiencing the vulnerability of youth and deep-seated insecurity? 

Gymcel posts are an endless stream of “Look how strong I am! Don’t you want to be like me? To look like me? To have a beautiful girlfriend just like I do? Buy this powder, take this supplement that’s linked in my bio, and DM me for one-on-one coaching!”

Gymcel culture is what happens when you mix misogyny, insecurity and orthorexia. Nothing good will come out of a mentality like this. It’s toxic and unsustainable. It hurts the individual, fellow men looking for community and women who are simply bystanders.

People should go to the gym because it’s enjoyable, not because they want vengeance on the next imaginary woman to double-cross them.