Fitness First Singapore has suspended one of their employees who was outed on the internet as having fat-shamed a woman for ordering something from an ice cream parlor. Going by the name Shah Cutler on social media, the fitness trainer and bodybuilding champ posted an Instagram Story that highlighted a large-sized woman standing close to a counter of what seems to be an ice cream shop. The (horrible) captions he wrote on that post:
Wtf so fat still wanna ice cream?? Disgusting
According to screen grabs of his now-modified Instagram account bio, Shah appears to be an influencer of sorts, proudly proclaiming himself to be a Fitness First Singapore elite trainer and an award-winning bodybuilder. And of course, specialized discount codes for products from supplement stores such as My Protein and ProWater.
Shamed
The tables turned on Shah after someone managed to grab a screenshot of his Instagram story and posted it online, where he was shamed for being a bully and accused of being a roided-out asshole. A netizen chided Shah in Malay, rebuking him for being a busybody and reminding him that only God can judge people.
The local outpost of the popular fitness chain reacted to the viral post as well, putting out a post condemning his “insensitive statements” and apologizing for “any distress caused”. Internal investigations have been launched, and Shah has been suspended till further notice.
“We pride ourselves on the culture of our training and the professionalism of our teams. We view this matter seriously and wish to assure the public that we do not agree with the comment made by our employee nor condone such behavior.”
On his end, Shah apologized for his actions in an Instagram post, promising to help people achieve fitness through “more appropriate ways”.
“I was too rash and understand the insensitive statement is uncalled for and offensive,” he wrote.
“As a trainer, I’m deeply committed to my duty to help people achieve their health and fitness goals and I’ll continue to do so in more appropriate ways from now.”
Unfit
Responding to Fitness First Singapore’s post, some folks believed that Shah should be fired altogether, asserting that he was not fit (hur hur) to be a fitness trainer. Someone pointed out that the trainer has been making fun of gym goers as well in previous Instagram Story posts.
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