If you’ve ever scrolled through your Instagram or TikTok feed you may be familiar with “that girl.” “That girl” refers to the girl who wakes up at 5 a.m. to complete her workout. Her apartment is always clean, which somehow makes you irrationally furious and impressed with a person you don’t even know. She takes her vitamins daily and she exclusively eats “healthy” foods. Her wardrobe is made up of stylish athletic sets and she’s seemingly promoting a healthy lifestyle to the world. I know “that girl,” because I’m desperately trying to keep up with her.
I fear wellness is becoming the new diet culture. Diet culture is a social expectation that tells us how we should look, telling us that if our bodies look a certain way, we’ll feel more accepted. Despite individuals combating diet culture, social media has made room for a new normal of toxic health.
The idea of “that girl” is actually quite positive in theory. Working out and eating healthy has numerous health benefits including improved mood, sleep, and overall productivity. However, some wellness practices promoted by influencers on social media can actually be incredibly harmful and unrealistic, telling us that if we act a certain way we too can be “that girl” which will lead us to happiness.
The danger of “that girl” is the idea that she needs to follow set steps to become successful and accepted in society. The spread of wellness trends has become more centered around how you look and act rather than individual wellness practices that can best fit your individual lifestyle. The overall message becomes that you should be doing these things to be healthy.
Images and videos that only show beautiful clean countertops, slim waists and “clean” recipes are not accurate representations of everyday life. When you are constantly seeing these videos that claim to “eliminate your love handles” or give you the “perfect healthy sweet in place of ice cream,” you are not participating in authentic wellness and the result can be incredibly guilt-inducing for the viewer.
According to wellness reels on Instagram, to be “healthy” you must exercise everyday and only eat “healthy” foods. “That girl” is in the best shape of her life because she does these specific exercises everyday, why don’t you do that? Her apartment is spotless, why isn’t yours? The truth is that it’s not sustainable. The lines become even more blurred when influencers argue that specific food items are bad for you and rate everyday products to promote their brand rather than true wellness.
Toxic wellness promotes this idea that you can only be well if you do these specific exercises, however, true wellness comes in balance because we will look better. Despite fighting to eliminate diet culture, I’m worried we’ve just given it another term.
Wellness is achievable when you realize life needs balance and those pretty videos on your phone aren’t always showing the truth. Wellness does not mean you have to be perfect. Wellness can be present even if you eat ice cream, even if you didn’t exercise today, and even if your room is a total mess. Wellness comes from knowing what makes you feel the best.