‘New year, new me’ say millions of Brits every January as they ready themselves to embark on a ‘healthier’ lifestyle. But when nearly all of these diets fail and leave us hating ourselves, why do we still do them? Alice Wade investigates the negative repercussions of the annual diet obsession and why you should avoid doing one.

As if the start of a new year wasn’t depressing enough, come the new annum, 26 million people in the UK will start a diet. Noticing your Christmas cushioned edges and sense of self hatred, you may notice every gym, influencer, and protein bar manufacturer foaming at the mouth with excitement as you gear up to hand over your wallet in exchange for a sense of self worth.

When my flatmate came home from the office on 2 January, she told me every woman in her team had come in with a tupperware of salad. As though a gong has sounded across the entire Western world, beckoning every man, woman, and child to pull up their trainer straps and login to MyProtein.

This depresses me for a plethora of reasons. Having had an eating disorder in my teens, I know only too well how potent the January shove towards weight loss can be. I went to an all-girls school and bitterly remember as young as 13, coming back from Christmas break to most of my class on some kind of ‘health kick’.

And beyond making you feel rubbish, simply put, these diets do not actually work. Research shows that a whopping 90% of people who take on fad diets will give up on them after just 12 days and 83% will regain any weight they lost.

Regina Lazarovich is a clinical psychologist and the founder at Compass CBT Psychology, PC. She emphasises that “Harmful diet culture messages about ‘healthy eating’ and exercise are super loud in January”.

“According to diet culture, thin people are morally superior and better than people in larger bodies. Diet culture is ubiquitous. It's all around us. It's the air we breathe,” she explains. 

Not only do most people quickly give up on extreme diets, but most will be left feeling pretty terrible about themselves.

A study by Second Nature found that the top reasons for people failing their January diets  included losing motivation, missing enjoyable foods, and setting unrealistic goals. Some even blamed the impact on their sex lives.

It found that of those who give up on their diets, 40% report feeling as though they have no willpower while 26% believe they will never have the body they want – hardly inspiring stats.

For some, these negative feelings can even balloon into something sinister. Lazarovich says: “Dieting and exercising with the primary objective of weight loss are ineffective at best and contribute to disordered eating and eating disorders at worst.”

“For those with a vulnerability to eating disorders, the idea of using exercise to compensate for eating can perpetuate a disordered relationship with food and movement,” she adds.  

Lexi Moriarty, an eating disorder and sports dietician and owner of Fuelled + Balance Nutrition, says: “The push to get back in the gym, get in shape, or set new fitness goals in January can feel really overwhelming for those with eating disorders.”

When these diets inevitably fail, “it can make us feel like we are the problem, not the goals that we set for ourselves,” says Moriarty. 

Of course, not everyone who goes on a January diet will develop an eating disorder. Some (likely those who take a more moderate approach) will even reach their ‘goals’, though it is a miniscule percentage – less than 10%. 

What I find hard to reconcile, is why the force to get fit is so prevalent in what is considered the most depressing month of the year. 

One in 20 people in the UK are diagnosed with SAD (seasonal affective disorder) with some studies suggesting this could be as high as one in three. With many experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety come winter, why on earth would it make sense that just over a week into the season, we launch into self-imposed torture for the sake of being thin?

Not only are we not in the mood mentally, but studies show that even just watching wintery videos can elicit thoughts about high energy foods and surviving the barren period, making low calorie diets near impossible. Simply put, we’re not designed to diet at any point, but especially not winter. 

It’s no wonder 42% of people will spend the festive period dreading a January diet. Dodging calories on top of the January blues (and an insatiable appetite for insulating carbohydrates) sounds like a nightmarish version of Mario Kart.

As Lazarovich points out, “The all-or-nothing mentality often sets people up to give up on their fitness and health goals – energy levels and life circumstances will change what feels achievable.”

Often the January mindset is considered an antidote to a festive season of indulgence, but this in itself creates an unhealthy relationship with food, and can even lead to a cycle of restricting and bingeing. Something which is hardly surprising when just seconds after we’ve submerged ourselves in a month of decadence, we expect to spring into the new year two stone lighter.

Lazaorich says: “When we judge our holiday eating as ‘bad’ it leads us to fall into the ‘last supper mentality,’ i.e I better eat all the bad foods now because after the holidays I will be good and only eat clean, healthy foods’ and this kind of thinking leads people to eat past the point of fullness out of a sense of impending food scarcity.” 

“Once January rolls around, people start their new diet or restrictive food plan, but a few months later, most people are off their diet and have regained their weight.”

Not only are these all-or-nothing approaches time consuming, mentally wearying, and extremely difficult, but they often interrupt our social lives. As Moriarty points out, taking part in life and enjoying the company of others over a meal is inevitable. “You will ultimately have a lot going on. Whether it’s a lot of events to attend all in one week, travel, or you just want to enjoy a richer meal.”

“When these things happen (because they will), you want to find an approach to fitness and nutrition that accommodates your everyday life and allows you to be flexible,” she advises.

Food isn’t just about weight, it's about culture and enjoyment and convenience - restriction by diet is not just about eating less, it is about restricting time, social events, and ultimately our relationships. In periods I’ve spent obsessing over my body, I’ve said no to plans or asked to skip dinner, reassuring friends that I’ve eaten at home when I’ve actually had half a protein bar to ‘save’ my calories for a couple of pints. 

The diet culture that January perpetuates is not conducive to reaching a healthy self. The extreme changes we expect ourselves to make are punitive and feel near impossible in the depths of winter. 

And it’s hard to escape it when this mentality is plastered over social media. Moriarty suggests a way to remove yourself might to mute or unfollow fitness accounts or people who openly restrict their January diet. “Avoid gyms or classes that focus too much on new year's resolutions, calorie talk, or weight loss terminology,” she adds.

For all these reasons, I implore you to avoid the skinny rush that dominates the discourse of this bleak month. Take pride in indulgence, eating out with friends, and savouring a sticky toffee pudding on a wintery night, it’s a much more laid back start to the new year.