A woman’s TikTok video showing the reactions of her fellow gym-goers to her deadlifting 425lbs (192kg) has gone viral.
Sherein Abdelhady, 25, from New Jersey, US, filmed her first attempt at lifting the impressive weight earlier this month.
After initially intending to take it easy in the gym that day, Sherein was spurred on by her friends to give the deadlift a go.
She placed her phone on the floor to record the personal record, with her friends recording from a different angle.
Having successfully completed it, Sherein and her friends watched the footage back where they clocked the reactions of nine men in the gym – with many stopping their workouts to stare in apparent disbelief.
Sherein stitched together the two videos before sharing it with her 317,000 followers, where the clip has been viewed over 28 million times and racked up six million likes.
One social media user said: “Boy in the white hat fell in LOVE today.”
Another impressed TikTok user commented: “I always love these videos! Girls are becoming stronger than guys get it girl [sic].”
“Oh They were MANgry…” joked a third viewer.
A fourth fan said: “They all look STRESSSEDDD.” [sic]
Another TikTok user said: “Can tell which ones felt intimidated lol. And the one dude in white fell in love.”
“They’re all confused they don’t whether they’re scared or want to ask you out,” joked another user.
“It’s just not as common to see a female lifting that much weight every day at a commercial gym,” Sherein, a doctor of physical therapy, told Jam Press.
“Some other people that I didn’t know also saw the lift and came up and congratulated me after.
“My friend showed me the video she took from a different angle which showed all their reactions and we thought it was really funny.
“We tried to guess what was going on through their heads through the different facial expressions.
“The lift itself was one of the most unforgettable moments.
“I was really focused and didn’t realise anyone was watching other than my friends, who were all in front cheering me on.
“Regardless of whether the reactions were positive or negative, I promised myself a long time ago that I would never dull my spark.
“I’ll never stop doing what makes me happy just because of someone else’s opinions or doubts.”
Since uploading the video onto social media, Sherein said she has been able to inspire others.
She added: “I have seen so many comments on the video of other women saying they want to start lifting or lifting heavy which makes me so happy!
“If I were to offer any advice, I would say ignore all the voices warning you to not get ‘too big’, ‘too strong’, too muscular.”
