2026 Ins and Outs
2025 was an interesting year across the board, not just in the fitness and wellness sectors. Whilst at times it did indeed feel like the world was burning, the wellness industry soldiered on to promote new and revamped ideas of self-optimisation, marketed as necessary to keep us afloat amidst the rubble that is ~our society~.
GLP-1 medications hit the mainstream, and with it, body-positivity seemed to take a nosedive, with Skinny-Tok influencers and footage of rapidly shrinking celebs thrust to the forefront of social media algorithms, both in the format of either ‘expressing concern’ as well as actually teaching viewers how to achieve this ’90s catwalk model’ body type.
At the same time, the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) campaign, led by Robert F Kennedy Junior in the United States, has both been reflective of and had a huge influence in generating momentum towards a general distrust of pharmaceutical companies and food companies. Key MAHA concerns around the average American diet include the high amounts of chemicals found in processed food, such as food colouring, seed oils and preservatives, and apparently, not enough protein.
And with the rise in distrust of Western medicine and pharmaceuticals, over on social media, we’ve seen a proliferation of ‘experts’ who claim to be able to heal our bodies through entirely ‘natural’ means (i.e. by taking $800 a month worth of supplements). These ‘practitioners’ specialise in all manner of fields - hormones, cellular health, energy healing, you name it - with testimonials sharing how their specific methods conveniently fix everything from hair loss to depression to autoimmune disease. Heck, it wouldn’t surprise me if I saw someone share that by following their special diet and doing morning breath work, their hair went from brown to blonde, and their teeth became whiter.
It’s both funny and sad how, in a time when we technically know more than ever, there’s also more confusion than ever, and also more divisiveness than ever. Forever the optimist, I always try to find some glimmer of hope where I can. I’d like to hope that people are getting tired of the same shtick I am, and that we can start leaning in to things that make the world feel a bit less miserable.
These are the ‘ins and outs’ I’d like to proclaim for 2026.
In:
Hiking
I live in one of the best countries in the world for hiking, and I have not done any of the ‘Great Walks’ that this country is apparently quite well known for. I see videos posted on social media all the time by people who come to this country and immediately find the most beautiful landscapes I’ve ever seen. Right in my backyard! It’s my goal to finally do a Great Walk this year and stop putting it off. New Zealanders tend to be pessimistic about our own country (well, that’s what it seems like if you’ve ever read a NZ Herald comment section on Facebook). I understand that there is a general sense of deflation circulating at the moment, but I think that taking some time in nature to awe at landscapes and breathe in crisp, fresh air has got to be one of the best things you can do for your physical and mental health.
Having muscle
Having visible muscle, or simply being strong, is undeniably cool. It’s clear evidence that you’ve put in time and effort to improve your body’s functionality, in a way that simply pursuing thinness doesn’t. More importantly, having muscle and getting stronger requires you to eat. This is crucial because not eating enough is a serious problem that many people have developed. We need to eat so that we can stay sharp and use our brains for critical thinking, so that they don’t further atrophy thanks to excessive reliance on Chat GPT and social media addiction. And we need muscle so that we’re less prone to falling over and becoming bed-bound before our time comes. In a world that wants you to be frail, weak and malleable, you can be a force for good. Lift weights, build muscle and eat.
Beans
An unexpected, but positive, trend to come out of 2025 was the humble legume re-entering the spotlight. Bean salads, stews and soup recipes started circulating, along with bean testimonials of people’s life-changing experiences simply from consuming more beans.
Finally! I’ve been waiting for the world to click that it’s not just protein that we need to focus on nutritionally, but fibre. And beans are an excellent source of both soluble and insoluble fibre, making them one of the best things you can consume for gut health, which we know has considerable influence on so many other aspects of our health. I recommend making bean salads for meal-prepped lunches, because they last multiple days in the fridge without turning soggy (as other salads often do). Use canned mixed beans, crunchy vegetables and a good vinaigrette, for a super healthy, filling and tasty lunch that’s also very cheap! A true win-win in this day and age.
Out:
The carnivore diet
Can this diet just LEAVE already? The carnivore diet does not benefit people’s health, and in many cases, makes it worse. The supposed benefits of consuming an all, or mostly-meat diet are the same as any diet that results in caloric restriction. If you’re eating a carnivore diet to lose weight, the weight loss that occurs is a result of you restricting your food and, therefore, caloric intake. It may suppress hunger because it is, by nature, high in protein, and by eliminating food variety, so eating becomes less enjoyable. My main concern with this diet is that there are so many nutrients that you aren’t consuming - vitamin C, fibre, antioxidants - to name a few, along with an incredibly high saturated fat intake, a known predictor of heart disease. Even the ‘Carnivore MD’ - Paul Saladino, author of ‘The Carnivore Code’ is reportedly ‘no longer carnivore’. That should tell you something.
Monitoring glucose spikes
Unless you have diabetes, you do not need to wear a continuous glucose monitor. Tracking your blood glucose levels will not revolutionise your health beyond what having a basic level understanding of the mechanisms of insulin and the glycaemic load of foods will - despite what certain ‘experts’ (or goddesses) may claim. Glucose levels will, and are supposed to, rise after you consume a meal. You don’t need a device to warn you that you’re about to have a blood sugar crash. Basic healthy eating advice - like consuming meals with balanced macronutrients and plenty of fibre- will keep your blood sugar more stable, which may mean that you have better energy levels across the day and become less prone to snacking or over-eating at night. But it’s not the be-all-end-all of healthy eating that some people are making it out to be.
Personal development podcasts
I became disillusioned with the whole genre of self-help when I realised that most of it was about making you feel terrible about who you are, whilst promising a solution to reinvent yourself that completely neglects any systemic barriers that may exist or external reasons why you might be struggling in the first place. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think that we should just go around pointing fingers and not take any personal responsibility ever, it’s still admirable to put in the effort to improve your life situation - but a whole lot of self-help is presented as ‘one size fits all’, when it’s really not, and I don’t think we should feel bad if we’re not cut out to do meditations, ice baths, journaling and 2 hour workouts every day on top of running multiple successful businesses, like some people apparently do. I will sometimes listen to an episode of Huberman’s Lab or Diary of a CEO if there’s a particularly interesting guest on there, but I’m not a subscriber to either of those podcasts because, well, I’m frankly exhausted by it all, and I’d rather listen to something that isn’t just constantly telling me I need to change.
I’m hoping that in 2026 - we can learn to chill. Chill out on the protein obsession, chill out on the hustle culture mentality, chill out on trying to endlessly shrink ourselves. Get healthy - yes. Exercise, get outdoors and strength train - definitely. Eat beans - you bet. But not in a way that assigns morality to whether you do these things or not. If you’re not health-maxxing this year, that doesn’t make you a bad person. Really, I think the most important thing is that you’re doing your best to live in a way that’s fulfilling to you. You know, a life that feels truly meaningful, which (I promise) doesn’t depend on whether you eliminate seed oils from your diet.
Wishing you all the very best for the year ahead!
What are your ins and outs for 2026?
I’m keen to hear.
Lx
