How to Navigate Diet Culture Traps in the New Year
Every new year brings a wave of diet culture messaging. From “new year, new you” slogans to wellness challenges that focus on restriction, to pushes from social media companies advertising weight loss medications showing up in your feed, January can feel like an onslaught of pressure around food, weight, and body image. I often describe it to my clients as navigating a video game or obstacle course, with traps and “bad guys” popping up in all directions.
What Is Diet Culture?
Diet culture is a pervasive system of beliefs that:
Glorifies thinness
Equates body size with health
Demonize certain bodies
Promotes a pressure to lose weight and control one’s body
Labels certain foods as “good” or “bad”
Encourages restriction and food guilt
Suggests your body needs fixing
Diet culture often disguises itself as “clean eating,” “wellness goals,” or “discipline,” especially at the start of the year. Recognizing these patterns is the first step toward avoiding them. Read on for 4 ways to recognize and combat diet culture in the New Year.
Diet Culture Trap #1: “This Is the Year I Fix My Body”
Many New Year’s resolutions are rooted in the idea that your body is a problem, and it's a problem that needs to be fixed. This toxic mindset is rooted in systems of oppression (sexism, racism, and healthism), but it is so normalized, it can be hard to spot.
A healthier alternative:
Focus on body respect or body neutrality instead of body control. Ask yourself:
What helps me feel energized during the day?
What routines support my mental health?
What makes eating feel satisfying and sustainable?
Remember to point the finger at the real bad guy. Hint: It’s not your body.
Diet Culture Trap #2: Food Rules and Restriction
Cutting out entire food groups or following rigid eating rules is a common diet culture trap. This one often shows up in January in the form of cleanses, “clean eating” challenges, and is often encouraged in workplaces and gyms.
Here's the thing: the more you restrict your eating or try to eliminate certain food groups, the more likely you are to increase cravings, guilt, and stress around food.
A more supportive approach:
Shift from restriction to nourishment. Aim for balance, variety, and enjoyment.
Remember, eating well includes pleasure, culture, and connection—not just nutrients.
Try adding in more types of food or food groups, rather than taking them away.
Resist the urge to track your calories, macros, or use food logs.
Diet Culture Trap #3: Comparing Yourself to Others
Social media can make it seem like everyone is starting a diet or fitness challenge in January. Comparison fuels diet culture and disconnects you from what actually works for you.
What helps:
Unfollow or mute accounts that promote weight loss or body comparison
Follow creators who talk about body image, intuitive eating, or mental health
Take breaks from social media if needed
Your health journey does not need to look like anyone else’s, and it does not need to include attempts to lose weight or modify your body in any way. If you are looking for great anti-diet content, I always recommend anything from Virginia Sole-Smith, Christy Harrison, Dr. Sabrina Strings, Roxane Gay, Sonya Renee Taylor, and the hilarious but always on the nose podcast Maintenance Phase.
Diet Culture Trap #4: Measuring Success by Control
Diet culture often praises willpower, discipline, and “pushing through.” But true well-being comes from listening to your body, not overriding it.
Redefine success in the new year:
Eating when you’re hungry
Stopping when you’re comfortably full
Moving your body in ways you enjoy
Letting go of guilt around food
These habits support long-term health far more than strict rules.
How to Set New Year Goals Without Diet Culture
Instead of weight-focused resolutions, try goals that emphasize how you feel:
Build regular meal routines that support energy
Explore joyful movement
Improve sleep or stress management
Practice self-compassion
You don’t need a “new body” to have a meaningful new year.
Final Thoughts: Choosing Care Over Control
Learning how to navigate diet culture traps in the new year is challenging, but such an incredible act of self-care. This year, let your goals support your life—not shrink it. If you’re ready to break up with diet culture this year, reach out for support. We are here to help.