Anytime Fitness responds over Sunshine Coast gym’s ‘fat shaming’ message board

A Sunshine Coast gym’s attempt at humour has reportedly backfired, with apparent outrage over a temporary sign promoting Anytime Fitness Kawana that read ‘Are you fat and ugly? Just be ugly’.

The Sunshine Coast Daily and The Australian have both reported that “hundreds of people shared their outrage” over the alleged fat shaming.

Debbie Peut told the Sunshine Coast Daily she was “horrified beyond explanation” when she saw the sign.

Peut told the newspaper “how sad that the word fat continues to be used as an insult and a way to define people.

“Why is humiliating people funny?”

Peut said the move was a hurtful ploy by the gym to score free publicity.

While the Anytime Fitness Kawana franchisee has not commented, a spokeswoman for Anytime Fitness told news.com.au the company understood the offence their sign may have caused members of the community, advising “we understand and sincerely apologise for any offence taken from the sign posted outside one of our clubs.

“The value of being an inclusive, accepting gym where our members feel comfortable and confident when they walk through our doors is at the heart of our business model.”

According to the spokeswoman, the gym does not “endorse nor tolerate any type of body shaming”.

She added “we have spoken with the club manager who immediately removed the sign and was extremely apologetic for any distress caused.”

The gym took to Facebook yesterday to gauge members’ feelings on the matter.

Posting a clip from the Today Show, the gym’s staff asked its members: “Did we go too far?!? What are your thoughts?”

However, it would appear that Anytime Fitness Kawana has gained a considerable amount of exposure over the matter.

Images: The ‘fat shaming’ message board that caused outrage (top, supplied) and promoting Anytime Fitness Kawana prior to is opening (below).