As the calendars turn to 2026, many of us are once again inundated with diet propaganda, “health initiatives,” and encouragement to become smaller, stricter, and more rigid.
Although nothing new, these messages continue to be harmful, regardless of whether we consciously believe them or not. So let’s have a chat about how to quiet the noise, reconnect with our bodies, and tune into eating disorder recovery with body kindness.
One of the first, and best, things we can do to turn down the volume is to spend less time on our phones. I know I’m saying this as you’re most likely reading this post on your phone… and still! Taking intentional breaks from screens matters. There is no amount of censoring or filtering that can fully protect us from harmful diet culture content. It trickles in anyway.
Stepping away from screens also creates space to connect meaningfully with people, hobbies, and the world around us. It’s so easy to get pulled into narrow-minded ideals about bodies and worth when we’re consuming information through literal narrow channels. Get outside. Take a walk. See a friend. Laugh with your mom. Chat with a neighbor. Get. Out. Into. The. World.
Diet culture can seep very easily into many facets of life, often unintentionally. This is especially true for anyone actively in eating disorder recovery (or even those who have been in recovery for a long time). It may start with fixating on your body or comparing yourself to others. Then food becomes something you’re overthinking, controlling, or avoiding.
The new year can be a beautiful time to reflect on the progress you’ve made in recovery and to re-orient yourself toward your recovery goals. Unfortunately, “new year, new you” diet culture messaging can try to undermine this, often in sneaky ways. A short meditation or journaling session may help you refocus your intentions for the year. Talking with your therapist about the pull of diet culture can also help you process the pressure you may be feeling.
Don’t keep these struggles bottled up. Let them breathe. Let them take up space. Diet culture doesn’t simply disappear, and one way we fight for recovery is by acknowledging that we deserve better. We deserve a life where we eat, live, take up space, and spend our energy on what truly matters- not on fighting to be small and hungry.
When I see diet culture, especially as it aggressively resurfaces in the new year, I often think about all the time wasted judging, bullying, and working against our bodies. Aiming for wellness and caring for or respecting your body is wonderful. Judging, restricting, fixating, and constantly trying to change it is not respect. It’s not wellness. And it’s not compassionate.
One way to reconnect authentically with your body is through movement that feels fulfilling and pleasurable. Movement can look like a walk around your favorite store, a yoga class, a gentle stretch, or a run (if that’s your thing). Diet culture often implies that exercise must be exhausting, punishing, or focused on weight loss or body manipulation. The truth is that movement, in all its forms, can be supportive- not just physically, but mentally as well. The best way to move is in a way that feels good for both your body and your mind and without the guilt if you don’t do it.
You deserve to enjoy the new year without compromising your recovery. Here’s to 2026 being a year of living fully and wasting far less time on diet culture.
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