Following a stint gone wrong, a social media influencer has taken the accountability road and issued a public apology.
Upon receiving backlash from a “social experiment”, Natalie Reynolds took to her X page (formerly known as Twitter) on the last weekend of 2023 (December 30) to say sorry.
Resharing the initial clip which had stirred up some controversies, the influencer wrote: “I’ve made a severe and continuous lapse in my judgment and I don’t expect to be forgiven.
“I am simply here to apologize.”
Following her flopped social experiment where she wore painted-on pants at the gym, Natalie Reynolds issued a public apology
Image credits: nataliereynolds
Unfortunately for the content creator, many people weren’t in mental space yet to receive the apology, as an X user commented back: “You’re not apologizing because you’re sorry. I doubt you are. you are apologizing because of the backlash you’re getting. you deserve every single part of it but you’ll be fine.”
“Apologies have to come with changed behavior,” another person wrote.
"I don’t expect to be forgiven," Natalie wrote on X
Image credits: onlynatreynolds
Nevertheless, a separate individual seemed to appreciate Natalie’s sentiment, as they penned: “There ya go. If this isn’t sarcasm, was that that difficult? Everyone makes mistakes in their life. Learn from it and move on.”
Natalie had initially faced criticism after donning painted-on pants for a social experiment at the gym, leading to an unexpected clash with a man, ultimately sparking a viral debate on appropriate workout attire.
In a livestream on December 27, the 25-year-old Kick streamer decided she would partake in what she said was a “social experiment” by wearing body paint to the gym.
The social media star went on to share details about her questionable outfit, explaining: “So, I started getting this painted on me at 11:30 am and I got done at 4:15 pm.
“So, I’m sitting up for, like, five to six hours. It’s painted-on pants – so this is all paint. This is swimsuit bottoms.”
Natalie was previously confronted by a fellow gym-goer, who told her she had to leave the building due to her "inappropriate" attire
Image credits: onlynatreynolds
Confidently going to the gym for a workout, she was suddenly filmed being politely confronted by a man who called her attire “inappropriate”.
The fellow gymgoer approached Natalie and her filming team before saying: “If you don’t have clothes on, you need to be out of here, ma’am.”
However, Natalie firmly exclaimed: “I do have clothes on.” The man continued: “Not fine, I work in the industry enough to know. I work in the entertainment field.”
While the disappointed man walked away from the content creator, he also appeared to say that you’re not supposed to “videotape” in the gym.
Natalie took to her X page to post a short clip of the interaction, which has since gone viral with 35.8 million views. The content creator captioned: “Guy in the gym presses me for wearing painted pants.”
The influencer tried to shame the man, accusing him of "pressing" her for her fashion choices
Image credits: onlynatreynolds
While it may have first appeared to be a fun and lighthearted joke, many viewers went on to share their grievances.
The influencer was also slammed by X’s community notes, which enable users to add context to content shared on the social media platform.
Accompanied by a link to a Healthline article on proper gym etiquette, the note read: “The man in the video is protecting the overall gym etiquette according to which you should wear clothes suitable for exercise.
“Wearing unsuitable clothes or none at all is considered to be disrespectful towards the other. It is also a hygiene risk to others.”
"Apologies have to come with changed behavior," a person commented on X
